Bolton must now win at Wigan after UEFA gamble lost

Gary Megson huffed, he puffed, but nothing he did March 13 could make his understrength team topple Sporting Lisbon in the UEFA Cup, losing 1 - 0 on the night and 2 - 1 on aggregate.

The Bolton Wanderers manager elected to leave Kevin Nolan, Jussi Jaaskelainen, Kevin Davies, Matt Taylor, El-Hadji Diouf, Andy O'Brien, Ricardo Gardner, Ivan Campo and Gavin McCann at home in anticipation of the relegation battle against Wigan Athletic on Sunday.

His reserves, led by Gary Cahill who put in a heroic performance at the Estadio Jose Alvalade, could not muster the goal they needed to knock of the Portuguese side after drawing the first leg in Bolton.

The dilemma that Megson faces is that he wagered if he rested his top men for Sunday, they could potentially move on in Europe and get three points valuable points in the league.

Based on how his team performed last night, the gamble almost paid off. Only a late goal in the 85th minute sealed Bolton's fate. Watching the Trotters battle against a somewhat mediocre Sporting side, one couldn't help but wonder what could have been had Megson kept, say, Nolan, Davies and Diouf in the team.

Bolton only needed a goal, now they need to defeat Wigan on the road. Mired in 17th place, Bolton has only one win in their travels this season, so the odds get even longer for Mr. Megson.

Bolton have been the most underachieving side in the Premier League this season (Newcastle had yet to achieve anything, so they don't really count). The departure of Sam Allardyce has damaged both Bolton's fortunes and those of Big Sam himself.

Allardyce had managed to keep a penny-wise club in the top eight, four seasons in a row. Now Bolton are fighting for their top-flight lives.

The story of Bolton this season has been a woeful one, but Wanderers fans can only hope Megson gets his bet right on Sunday.