Bolton 0 Middlesbrough 0: Nicolas Anelka was left frustrated once again as Jonathan Woodgate took centre stage to ensure Middlesbrough a hard-earned Premiership point at Bolton.

Woodgate, on a season-long loan from Real Madrid, made his Boro debut during last week's 1-1 draw at Arsenal and reduced Thierry Henry to a peripheral role.

This time it was Anelka's turn to be on the receiving end as the assured Woodgate calmly marshalled the visiting defence.

The 26-year-old was handed the captain's armband due to George Boateng's suspension and after this display manager Gareth Southgate may feel inclined to allow Woodgate to keep it.

Woodgate made just 14 appearances during the past two seasons at Real Madrid due to a series of injuries but this defensive masterclass suggested his fitness and form are well and truly back.

His display left Boro fans chanting 'Woody for England' as Anelka, Bolton's £8million record signing, saw little sight of goal for the second successive game. Yakubu, meanwhile, should have pilfered the points for Boro in the closing stages.

Teenage midfielder Lee Cattermole replaced Boateng in the centre of midfield while Adam Johnson came in for England winger Stewart Downing, who was missing with a groin injury.

Bolton were boosted by the return of Stelios Giannakopolous after a groin injury which had ruled him out of last week's 1-0 victory against Watford.

Anelka, although ably assisted by Giannakopolous and El-Hadji Diouf, was again left to plough a lone furrow in attack.

However, he threatened to open his account for his new club inside the opening two minutes.

Diouf's delightful flick gave skipper Kevin Nolan the space in midfield to advance forward and slip a pass behind the Boro defence for Anelka to race onto.

His pace ensured he beat Emanuel Pogatetz to the ball but Anelka's heavy touch prevented him from testing visiting goalkeeper Mark Schwarzer.

Bolton began to dominate as they sought to claim their first goal in open play since their opening day victory against Tottenham.

After four minutes, Gary Speed found Diouf and he swung in a dangerous cross from the right which Woodgate headed clear for a corner.

Boro struggled to gain a foothold in the match and Speed thrashed a shot narrowly over the bar from 30 yards before Diouf lobbed on to the top of the net after taking Ivan Campo's quick throw-in.

After 15 minutes Diouf produced a moment of magic when he ghosted past Adam Johnson and Andrew Taylor but failed to find the delivery his approach work deserved.

James Morrison almost caught out Jussi Jaaskelainen at his near post on 18 minutes with a long-range effort but Bolton remained on top and Johnson's late foul on Tal Ben Haim earned him a 20th-minute booking.

Referee Steve Bennett waved away Bolton appeals for a penalty in the 26th minute when Andrew Davies looked to have shoved Giannakopolous in the back.

Boro were forced to play largely on the counter-attack but in Yakubu they possessed a striker capable of breaching the best defences.

Indeed, after Bolton's penalty claim was denied, Boro raced upfield and Yakubu engineered the space to strike a low 20-yard shot just wide of Jaaskelainen's near post.

Having withstood Bolton's early pressure due to the composure of Woodgate, Middlesbrough began to look comfortable as the pace of the game dropped significantly as the half-time whistle approached.

But Anelka still served notice of his threat in the 42nd minute when his deflected 20-yard strike missed Schwarzer's right-hand post by inches.

Two minutes after the break he was at it again as he showed another glimpse of the undeniable talent that has seen him rack up transfer fees in excess of £51million throughout his nomadic career.

Allardyce gambled a large portion of his summer budget on the former Arsenal, Real Madrid and Manchester City striker, notorious for his bouts of emotional turmoil.

But all too often Anelka was left isolated as Woodgate and Pogatetz dealt comfortably with much of what Bolton had to offer.

After 51 minutes, Yakubu showed outstanding strength to hold off a clutch of players and lay the ball off to Jason Euell deep inside Bolton's 18-yard box.

Euell in turn found Johnson on the left but his drilled cross from the left was smothered by Jaaskelainen at the near post.

Both sides made changes as the half wore on and Yakubu fired wide when he should have done better with 10 minutes remaining.

Euell played him clear but the Nigerian fired wastefully wide while Anelka saw his shot deflected out wide for a corner three minutes later as Boro held firm.