GARY Megson has rubbished suggestions of a Reebok jinx.
The Wanderers have struggled at home this season, winning just twice in nine league and cup games and saving their best form for on their travels.
But the Bolton boss has put that down to the quality of the visitors.
Big guns Arsenal, Liverpool and Chelsea, following their 2-0 victory at the weekend, have all left with the points this season.
And Megson believes that paints an unfair picture of Wanderers’ home form.
“It’s nothing to do with where we are playing but who we are playing,” he said.
“We’ve lost to Liverpool, Arsenal and Chelsea at home, and I don’t think too many people would’ve bet against that.
“I don’t think there’s an issue that we are playing at the Reebok, but I think it’s more to do with the opposition we are playing at the Reebok at the moment.”
Wanderers’ new-found success on the road, winning four times – twice as many as they did during the whole of last term – will be tested to the full in their next three away games.
Saturday’s clash at Aston Villa will be followed by trips to Liverpool and Arsenal – three of the Premier League’s top five – for Megson’s men over the Christmas and New Year period.
And the manager insists Bolton must find a way of taking points off the division’s high-fliers.
“We have got to find a way of getting results against these so-called better teams,” he said. “We have got to either get in their faces or drop to the halfway line, like we did away at Manchester United, Atletico Madrid or at Bayern Munich last season.
“We chose to have a right good go at Chelsea but there was only four or five players who did it.”
He added: “That’s why you spend the £300million or £80-90m on wages, to get that extra quality. The only way you can upset that is to utilise other strengths – work-rate, organisation, set pieces and tempo.
“At times when we got it right, you saw Petr Cech sailing the ball out of play as lots of other people would do. If you give good players time on the ball, they will cause you problems.”
Full-back Nicky Hunt has extended his stay at Birmingham City until January 10.
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