Comments and predictions for Arsenal vs Bolton Wanderers: Gunners dominate

One of Arsenal's less favoured competitions in recent times, the Carabao Cup returns to the Emirates Stadium on Wednesday night, as the Gunners host Bolton Wanderers in the third round.

While Arsenal have already missed the first two rounds, visitors Bolton have had to overcome Mansfield Town and Shrewsbury Town to set up an intriguing clash with Mikel Arteta's side.

Latest Arsenal vs Bolton Wanderers squad information

Arsenal's hard-fought point against Man City came at a high cost; David Raya, Calafiori and Jurrien Timber all picked up cramp or minor injuries in the closing minutes of the game, while Leandro Trossard followed in Declan Rice's footsteps by being sent off for kicking the ball away after being booked.

The Belgian will serve a one-match ban on Wednesday – red cards count across all competitions rather than cumulative yellows – as he joins Mikel Merino (shoulder), Martin Odegaard (ankle), Takehiro Tomiyasu (knee), Oleksandr Zinchenko (calf) and Kieran Tierney (hamstring). On-loan Bournemouth goalkeeper Neto is also unavailable, having played in the previous round, leaving Arteta in a difficult position if Raya is unavailable.

Arsenal's starting options are limited, and Arteta is likely to hand starting opportunities to Ethan Nwaneri and Myles Lewis-Skelly, with the latter picking up a yellow card before making his Premier League debut in the dramatic clash with Man City.

By contrast, a pleasant afternoon for Bolton against Reading did not leave them with fresh injuries, although Osei-Tutu will miss out on a reunion with his former club as he recovers from a knee injury.

The 25-year-old - who has not made any appearances for Arsenal - is not the only one in the treatment room, as Carlos Mendes Gomes (Achilles), Klaidi Lolos (ankle), Gethin Jones (knee) and Will Forrester, who broke a toe and dislocated another when he fell down the stairs, are also absent.

It is worth noting that the visitors have just one player over the age of 30 in their squad - former Burnley and Rangers midfielder Scott Arfield - who could be brought into the starting line-up thanks to his valuable experience.

Latest predicted lineup Arsenal vs Bolton Wanderers

Arsenal:

Raya; White, Heaven, Kiwior, Lewis-Skelly; S Oulad M'Hand, Jorginho; Saka, Nwaneri, Sterling; Jesus

Bolton Wanderers:

Southwood; Toal, Johnston, Santos; Dacres-Cogley, Thomason, Arfield, Dempsey, Schon; Adeboyejo, Charles

Latest football commentary Arsenal vs Bolton Wanderers

A team often criticised for being easy to bully in the latter stages of Arsene Wenger's reign, Arsenal transformed from a soft-hearted side to one that employed the "dark arts" against Premier League title rivals Manchester City on Sunday, a tactic that almost paid off at a stadium where they have not won since January 2015.

Arteta sent his 10 players out with spirit and courage for the entire second half, only to lose two points in the most painful way, when John Stones scored the quickest equaliser in Premier League history for Manchester City in a dramatic 2-2 draw.

Arsenal's defensive tactics at the Etihad were certainly controversial in the public eye, but with 10 men away to Man City, no one could criticise the Gunners for adopting a 5-4-0 formation after Riccardo Calafiori and Gabriel Magalhaes equalised for Erling Haaland, who scored his 100th goal for City in the first half.

Still just two points behind Pep Guardiola thanks to their unbeaten run, Arsenal will now move on to a competition they have only won twice in their history - and not since 1993 - as they bid to avoid a repeat of last season's fourth-round defeat to West Ham United.

However, Arsenal's last two EFL Cup games at the Emirates Stadium ended in defeats to Liverpool and Bolton Wanderers, meaning the Gunners have not won a home game in the competition since 2021, when former Hale End star Charlie Patino scored in a 5-1 win over Sunderland.

Arsenal's two EFL Cup wins in 1987 and 1993 are still superior to Bolton, who have never won the competition and are 66 years without a major trophy, their last win being the Community Shield in 1958.

The League One side, though, enjoyed their best run in the EFL Cup since 2017-18, overcoming Mansfield Town on penalties in the first round before winning 2-0 at Shrewsbury Town in the second round, where former Arsenal man Jordi Osei-Tutu scored.

However, since the 2011-12 season, Bolton have not progressed beyond the third round of the EFL Cup, where they were knocked out by Arsenal in the last 16, and inconsistency has been a theme for Ian Evatt's side so far this season.

In fact, Bolton's last six games in all competitions have seen them go on a win-loss streak, after losing 0-4 to Huddersfield Town at home on September 14 and then beating Reading 5-2 last weekend, with Dion Charles scoring a first-half hat-trick.

Currently 18th in League One with just two wins from six games, Bolton now face Arsenal 12 years after their last meeting – a goalless draw in the Premier League in 2011-12 – before Andrey Arshavin and Park Chu-Young had equalised for Fabrice Muamba’s opener in that year’s EFL Cup last-16 tie. It remains to be seen how Arteta is prepared to change his side for Wednesday’s game, but even a youthful and reserve Arsenal side should easily overcome an inconsistent Bolton side.

Bolton have conceded goals in their last four games and are unlikely to find a successful formula in defence in midweek, as Arteta's men progress to the fourth round.

Score prediction Arsenal vs Bolton Wanderers

Based on the above football comments, we and the world's leading football sites have given the following results for the Arsenal vs Bolton Wanderers match:

• Sportsmole: Arsenal 2-0 Bolton Wanderers

• WhoScore: Arsenal 2-1 Bolton Wanderers
• Our prediction: Arsenal 2-0 Bolton Wanderers

When and where to watch Arsenal vs Bolton Wanderers live?

To watch the live match Arsenal vs Bolton Wanderers in the Carabao Cup taking place at 1:45 a.m. on September 26, viewers can watch on K+ Sport, K+PM or online sports channels. Wishing viewers happy moments of watching football.

Source: https://baodaknong.vn/nhan-dinh-du-doan-arsenal-vs-bolton-wanderers-phao-thu-ap-dao-229993.html