WANDERERS have been given an unexpected second chance to claim top billing in League One but only if they deliver when the bell rings on Saturday.

At times, the days leading up to a matchday at Bolton can feel like the build-up to a big boxing bout.

You rarely have to venture far to find confident talk in the Whites camp, whether that be Ian Evatt’s insistence that his side can win their last four and finish on 93 points, Nathan Baxter’s view that the Whites can “beat anyone” or any number of players who have claimed – in their opinion – they are playing in the ‘best team in the league’.

And, once again, Bolton find themselves psyching themselves up for a big final round. Derby’s goalless draw at Wycombe on Wednesday night means that if Evatt’s side can win their final four games, they are guaranteed Championship football next season.

In order to get to that point, however, they have to take on some real heavyweights, starting with the league leaders Portsmouth.

It is easy to take the frequent footballing hyperbole the wrong way, and some of the soundbites that have spilled out of the Toughsheet Stadium in the last few years have certainly done the rounds on social media, particularly among opposition supporters.

But as Evatt often notes, that sort of self-motivation is not necessarily meant for anyone else. It is no different to a fighter staring into the mirror and mentally preparing themselves for a contest.

Evatt has built a side in his own image, and Bolton are never more effective than when they feel on top of the world. In that sense, the recent bravado is a very positive sign.

Much like boxing there comes a time when the big talk must stop. Bolton and Portsmouth have now stepped on to the scales, faced each other on the podium, now it is time for the real business to begin.

Bolton were outfought when the two sides met at Fratton Park back in December. Dion Charles’s glaring first-half miss was allowed to resonate, and an uncompromising home side took full advantage of their vulnerability.

Since then, and either side of a spell of one win in seven games in December and January, Portsmouth’s consistency has been frightening. Their split of points hardly discernible, whether playing at home or away.

Like Bolton, John Mousinho’s side has despatched lesser opposition efficiently, taking 10 wins, three draws and just one defeat from their games against the current bottom seven clubs. Over the 14 games they have scored 21 times and conceded six.

Currently, the Whites have yet to play Shrewsbury and Port Vale at home – but their record over 12 games stands up, with 10 wins a draw and a defeat, conceding just seven and scoring 23.

Their record against the seven sides below them is solid, if unspectacular. From their 11 games so far they have won six, drawn four and – crucially, perhaps – lost just one, scoring 18 and conceding 14.

Bolton have played a dozen games against the same opponents and taken two points fewer – their 17 to 12 goal difference boosted by a bumper win against Oxford United.

Whilst there is little difference between Pompey and Wanderers against the ‘big’ or the ‘smaller’ clubs in League One, a sizeable gap has been created since the turn of the year because of the South Coast club’s mechanical ability to grind out results when not necessarily playing at their maximum level, or indeed when dealing with injuries.

Bolton’s wobble coincided with the loss of top scorers Dion Charles and Victor Adebjoyejo, alongside first choice goalkeeper, Nathan Baxter.

But Pompey have also had significant spells of misfortune – with 10 players ruled out for three months or longer this term, and a dozen needing surgery at one time or another.

Wanderers have used 25 different players in League One this season, the lowest total in the league and one dwarfed by Charlton Athletic, who have utilised 42 different members of their squad alongside five different faces in the dugout.

Despite their issues, Portsmouth have used just 28, benefitting from the decision to ‘overinflate’ their squad in the January transfer window.

Last Saturday’s win at Bristol Rovers was the sort of pragmatic performance that Bolton have lacked – a no frills 90 minutes in which they did enough to protect a clean sheet and allowed moments of quality like Aaron Collins’ perfect opening goal to be decisive.

Operating on such tight margins has not been the Whites’ strong suit, their results so often earned with the sort of shock and awe football that left Reading reeling a couple of weeks ago.

That policy may well be the case on Tuesday night against Shrewsbury, or the following Saturday when Port Vale come to town – both opponents will presumably look to contain and frustrate – but can Bolton really expect to blow Pompey out of the water in the same way?