Bolton Wanderers vs Bradford City - prediction, team news, lineups

Bolton Wanderers and Bradford City volition footwear disconnected their conflict for a spot successful the League One playoff last connected Saturday, erstwhile they quadrate disconnected successful their semi-final archetypal limb astatine the Toughsheet Community Stadium.

The 2 teams finished conscionable 2 points isolated successful 5th and 4th spots respectively successful the League One table, with Saturday's visitors leapfrogging their opponents and earning a location 2nd limb with a final-day victory.

Match preview

Bolton Wanderers caput into their 3rd League One playoff run successful the past 4 years successful a bid to instrumentality to the Championship adjacent play for the archetypal clip since 2019.

In their archetypal afloat play nether the absorption of Steven Schumacher, they person returned to the apical six by earning 75 points from their 46 matches, winning 19 of those portion lone champions Lincoln City suffered less than their 9 defeats.

The Trotters did neglect to circular disconnected the regular play successful beardown signifier and physique momentum for the playoffs, though, having won conscionable 1 of their past six games and earned six points, lone ending 1 constituent supra seventh spot arsenic a result, having played retired consecutive draws heading into the last day.

Those were capable to warrant a top-six finish, astatine least, with the second coming away astatine Bradford City acknowledgment to Johnny Kenny's opener, earlier they hosted playoff-chasing Luton Town connected the last time and suffered a 3-2 loss, contempt starring done Jordi Osei-Tutu and Ibrahim Cissoko, arsenic Hakeem Odoffin levelled for the visitors and Shayden Morris snatched a 94th-minute winner.

Now aiming to enactment that dilatory extremity to the run down them and spell 1 amended than their past playoff effort successful 2024, which ended successful a last decision astatine Wembley, Bolton Wanderers volition anticipation to marque the astir of location vantage connected Saturday and instrumentality a pb into adjacent week's distant limb against a broadside they person drawn with doubly this play and bushed 3-0 astatine location successful the EFL Trophy.

Their visitors, meanwhile, caput into their 2nd contention with Bolton successful a substance of weeks, having pipped the hosts to 4th spot precocious successful the regular season.

In their archetypal word backmost successful England's 3rd tier aft their League Two promotion, Bradford City continued to turn nether Graham Alexander, earning a playoff spot astatine the archetypal effort by picking up 22 wins and 77 points from their 46 outings.

The Bantams besides failed to nail down their top-six spot until precocious successful the run-in, though, having headed into the last 2 matches connected the backmost of a nonaccomplishment and 2 draws, earlier coming backmost to gully 1-1 astatine location to Bolton Wanderers acknowledgment to Kayden Jackson's 80th-minute leveller, completing a brace of league draws aft a goalless stalemate successful Lancashire and the 3-0 cupful defeat.

Then needing a constituent to warrant their playoff spot connected the last day, Alexander's men visited relegation-threatened Exeter City and made an important instrumentality to winning ways, having led by 2 done Jackson and Antoni Sarcevic heading into the last 10 minutes and seen retired a 2-1 triumph aft Josh Magennis halved the hosts' shortage successful wounded time.

Now heading into different playoff campaign, having been unsuccessful successful their past 3 crossed League One and League Two, Bradford City volition bid to marque a affirmative commencement distant from location astatine the play earlier hosting Bolton successful the 2nd limb adjacent week with a Wembley spot connected the line.

Bolton Wanderers League One form:

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Bradford City League One form:

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Team News

Bolton Wanderers are acceptable to stay without midfielder Ethan Erhahon and attackers Corey Blackett-Taylor and Marcus Forss for Saturday's archetypal limb owed to ongoing injuries.

Sam Dalby, who has netted 11 league goals this season, is apt to return, though, having missed the last 2 games of the regular season, and helium volition conflict with Mason Burstow to pb the line.

Cissoko, who has scored doubly successful the past 3 games, Johnny Kenny and Amario Cozier-Duberry should proceed down the preferred lone beforehand man, portion Ruben Rodrigues should again get the motion alongside mainstay Josh Sheehan successful the motor country successful Erhahon's absence.

Bradford City should tract a akin starting XI to their final-day distant triumph implicit Exeter City, with attackers Tyreik Wright and Bobby Pointon remaining confined to the attraction room.

The Bantams inactive person contention successful attack, though, with Nick Powell, Wil Swan and Stephen Humphrys each hoping to travel successful from the start, but Kayden Jackson should again get the motion to pb the enactment having scored successful consecutive games heading into the playoffs.

Sarcevic is simply a cardinal antheral successful support, having netted his 11th league extremity of the play past clip out, portion Max Power and Jenson Metcalfe volition proceed successful beforehand of the backmost 3 of Curtis Tilt, Aden Baldwin and Joe Wright.

Bolton Wanderers imaginable starting lineup:

Bonham; Osei-Tutu, Toal, Forino-Joseph, Conway; Sheehan, Rodrigues; Cozier-Duberry, Kenny, Cissoko; Dalby

Bradford City imaginable starting lineup:

Walker; Wright, Baldwin, Tilt; Neufville, Metcalfe, Power, Touray; Sarcevic, Lapslie; Jackson

We say: Bolton Wanderers 1-0 Bradford City

With playoff archetypal legs often choky and cagey fixed the stakes for some teams, we expect a low-scoring matter astatine the play and backmost Bolton Wanderers to instrumentality a slender vantage into adjacent week's travel to Bradford.

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