Nolan has faith in Muamba

Trotters ace backs fellow midfielder to break his goalscoring duck

By Chris Burton   Last updated: 30th September 2008

Fabrice Muamba for Bolton

Muamba: Yet to find the target

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Bolton's Kevin Nolan believes it is only a matter of time before his midfield partner Fabrice Muamba finds the target.

The summer signing from Birmingham spurned a gilt-edged chance at Old Trafford on Saturday to put the Trotters 1-0 up, ensuring his wait for a first goal for the club goes on.

That game was later overshadowed by the award of a contentious penalty to Manchester United, helping the Red Devils on their way to a 2-0 win.

However, Nolan does not believe the miss will weigh on his young team-mate's mind and has backed the England U21 international to bounce back in style.

Character

"Fabrice worked hard in the game, he was fantastic," Nolan told The Bolton News.

"He will have expected to score that one, but he has just got to keep his head up because those goals will come.

"He's a strong character and a very bright lad. He doesn't need anyone to tell him to keep his head up, but if he does, I'm there.

"At some point this season he'll score a goal out of nothing which will get us points, so it evens itself out in the end," he said.

"He is a top player and he will get more chances. We all miss them, even the best players in the world do. He's got to put it to the back of his mind, then take the next one and celebrate."

Confidence

Meanwhile, Gretar Steinsson believes the Trotters are on the verge of turning the corner after performing admirably in a couple of tricky fixtures of late.

Gary Megson's side have lost four of their last five Premier League fixtures to slip into trouble at the foot of the table, but positive displays against Arsenal and Manchester United have helped raise confidence within the camp.

"If you take away the 15 minutes of the Arsenal game when we conceded the goals (midway through a 3-1 defeat) and after Manchester United scored their goal on Saturday, you can see how good we are," Steinsson said.

"We can play good counter football and we are physically strong. All we need to do now is stick together. We can start our season again now and see what we can do."