Fulham v Bolton preview

Fulham and Bolton will both be looking to climb the Premier League table when they meet at Craven Cottage on Wednesday night.

The hosts have been hovering just above the relegation zone for long periods of the season but will be starting to breathe easier with the end in sight.

Saturday’s 1-1 draw at Wolves left Fulham five points clear of the drop zone and Mark Hughes declared after the final whistle that he was looking up rather than down.

Victory over the Trotters would catapult Hughes’ side beyond the 40-point barrier and into the top half, still with four games left to play.

Fulham have been in good form at home all season but it will not be easy to overcome a Bolton side that on Sunday responded positively to their FA Cup disappointment a week earlier.

The Trotters, thrashed 5-0 by Stoke at Wembley, turned the tables with a 2-1 victory over Arsenal that effectively brought the North Londoners’ title bid to an end.

Bolton now have the opportunity to move above Everton into seventh by beating Fulham, a result that would keep their faint European hopes alive.

Team news

Fulham captain Danny Murphy and star striker Bobby Zamora are expected to be fit.

A dead leg forced Murphy off during the weekend draw at Molineux, while Zamora was restricted to a late cameo after tweaking his back in training.

Andrew Johnson will also be hoping for a starting role after scoring the equaliser against Wolves within seconds of coming on as a substitute.

It remains to be seen whether winger Damien Duff has recovered sufficiently from his Achilles injury to return after two-and-a-half weeks out, while Philippe Senderos is still working his way back to full fitness having missed the entire season to date.

Bolton manager Owen Coyle is hoping striker Daniel Sturridge will have recovered from an ankle knock in time for kick-off.

The on-loan Chelsea man scored his seventh goal in nine games against Arsenal but was forced off with the problem late in the contest.

Sam Ricketts (Achilles), Sean Davis and Stuart Holden (knee) are all long-term absentees.

Possible starting XIs

Fulham: Schwarzer, Baird, Hangeland, Hughes, Salcido, Davies, Murphy, Sidwell, Dempsey, Zamora, Dembele.

Bolton: Jaaskelainen, Steinsson, Cahill, Knight, Robinson, Lee, Muamba, Taylor, Elmander, Kevin Davies, Sturridge.