Bolton are unbeaten in their last 10 home matches
– Both teams have scored in Barnsley’s last eight games
– Recommended bet: Bolton and both teams to score
Bolton hold all the aces ahead of the second leg of their League One play-off semi-final with Barnsley, having recorded an impressive 3-1 win at Oakwell last Friday night.
They will be brimming with confidence when they welcome the Tykes to the Toughsheet Community Stadium on Tuesday evening for the second leg, as the Trotters look to continue their push towards the Championship, a league they have been absent from since 2019.
Team news
Jon Dadi Bodvarsson, George Johnston and Carlos Mendes are all still out for the Trotters, although the signs are positive regarding captain Ricardo Santos.
The Portuguese defender played on in the first leg despite suffering a knock, but the fact that he made it through the full 90 minutes suggests he should be fit to lead his side out at home.
Donovan Pines, Robbie Cundy and Josh Benson are all in the Tykes’ treatment room.
Barnsley caretaker manager Martin Devaney may make some changes following their first-leg defeat, with the likes of Jon Russell and Sam Cosgrove pushing for starts.
The stats
Bolton are unbeaten in their last 10 home matches, winning six times, while both teams have scored in Barnsley’s last eight games.
These two met at this stage last season, with the Tykes running out 3-2 aggregate winners on that occasion.
Both sides found the net in all three of the pair’s previous meetings this term and both teams have found the net in four of Bolton’s last five games.
Barnsley are on a seven-match winless run which includes five losses.
Prediction
Bolton’s win on Friday means Barnsley’s winless streak is now standing at seven games and, with five losses in that run, it seems unlikely they will snap it at the Toughsheet Community Stadium, where the Trotters are unbeaten in 10.
Wanderers have won six times in that run, with a 5-0 thrashing of potential play-off final opponents Oxford the standout result in the sequence.
They were impressive on Friday, suggesting that they will complete their revenge on the Tykes, who dumped them out of the play-offs at this stage last season.
However, they will have to work hard to achieve a place in the play-off final. Barnsley looked lively at times on Friday and are sure to employ a gung-ho approach in this second leg as they look to overturn a two-goal deficit.
Both teams to score has been a winning bet in each of the Tykes’ last eight games, four of Bolton’s last five, 16 of Barnsley’s last 17 road matches and in all three meetings between the pair this term.
With talented forwards in both camps, particularly Dion Charles and Devante Cole, it could pay to back each team to make the Toughsheet nets bulge alongside a win for the hosts, who look set to head to Wembley.