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Wanderers have added Tom Walker and Alex Finney to the core of young players making up their squad next season.
The club confirmed yesterday they had taken up a 12-month option written into their existing contracts, alongside those of Rob Holding and Kaiyne Woolery.
The decision gives Wanderers some extra insurance should any other club make a move for their services over the summer.
Walker burst on to the scene last season under Neil Lennon, making his full debut against Millwall and scoring his first senior goal a few weeks later in a 1-1 draw against local rivals Wigan Athletic.
But the Salford-born midfielder has struggled to make his mark in the current campaign, starting just three times, two of which have been under the interim management team of Jimmy Phillips and Peter Reid.
Left-sided Walker graduated right the way through the club’s youth academy and is highly regarded at the Macron, where he followed hot on the heels of Zach Clough from David Lee’s Under-18s to first-team football.
And it is hoped he will soon be joined by long-time team-mates Niall Maher and Oscar Threlkeld, both of whom are in talks about extending their contract at Bolton next season.
Wanderers also have big decisions to make on 15 other professional players at the club, including David Wheater, Emile Heskey, Paul Rachubka, Rob Hall, Liam Feeney, Neil Danns, Ross Fitzsimons, Quade Taylor, Jordan Lussey, Channing Campbell-Young, Jon Celebrio, Yvan Wassi, Tom Eaves, Hayden White and Stephen Dobbie.
The Whites have plenty of choices to make with the next generation of players coming through the system but can already count on the services of striker George Newell, who made his debut against Hull City on Saturday, and have him tied to a professional contract for next season.
Promising left-back Tyler Garratt is in the final year of his scholarship and it is hoped he will soon follow suit in signing his first professional deal, likewise Wales youth international Jamie Thomas, Austria-born front man Chris Cvetko and young goalkeeper Harry Campbell.
Wanderers have confirmed scholars Alex Honeyball, Callum Spooner and Alex Perry have been offered an extra year.
Alex Samizadeh, another striker tipped for big things from the Whites’ youth ranks, is currently going into the second year of his scholarship.
Finney, the big centre-half signed from Leyton Orient’s youth ranks by Dougie Freedman two summers ago, has also been rewarded as the Whites picked up a 12-month option on his contract, which now runs until the summer of 2017.
The 19-year-old made an unhappy full Wanderers debut in a 3-1 defeat at Brentford last month, where he was substituted at half time.
But Finney has been a regular at Under-21 level and fellow defender Wheater believes he can go on and have a solid future in the game.
“Straight away when I heard Alex was coming off at Brentford I went over to him in the dressing room and told him not to worry and that he would have plenty more chances,” he said.
“He needs to stay confident and he will be fine. We all have bad games and it was a shame it came on his full debut.
“But he will definitely bounce back because he’s a good player. He’ll be fine.”
Source
The club confirmed yesterday they had taken up a 12-month option written into their existing contracts, alongside those of Rob Holding and Kaiyne Woolery.
The decision gives Wanderers some extra insurance should any other club make a move for their services over the summer.
Walker burst on to the scene last season under Neil Lennon, making his full debut against Millwall and scoring his first senior goal a few weeks later in a 1-1 draw against local rivals Wigan Athletic.
But the Salford-born midfielder has struggled to make his mark in the current campaign, starting just three times, two of which have been under the interim management team of Jimmy Phillips and Peter Reid.
Left-sided Walker graduated right the way through the club’s youth academy and is highly regarded at the Macron, where he followed hot on the heels of Zach Clough from David Lee’s Under-18s to first-team football.
And it is hoped he will soon be joined by long-time team-mates Niall Maher and Oscar Threlkeld, both of whom are in talks about extending their contract at Bolton next season.
Wanderers also have big decisions to make on 15 other professional players at the club, including David Wheater, Emile Heskey, Paul Rachubka, Rob Hall, Liam Feeney, Neil Danns, Ross Fitzsimons, Quade Taylor, Jordan Lussey, Channing Campbell-Young, Jon Celebrio, Yvan Wassi, Tom Eaves, Hayden White and Stephen Dobbie.
The Whites have plenty of choices to make with the next generation of players coming through the system but can already count on the services of striker George Newell, who made his debut against Hull City on Saturday, and have him tied to a professional contract for next season.
Promising left-back Tyler Garratt is in the final year of his scholarship and it is hoped he will soon follow suit in signing his first professional deal, likewise Wales youth international Jamie Thomas, Austria-born front man Chris Cvetko and young goalkeeper Harry Campbell.
Wanderers have confirmed scholars Alex Honeyball, Callum Spooner and Alex Perry have been offered an extra year.
Alex Samizadeh, another striker tipped for big things from the Whites’ youth ranks, is currently going into the second year of his scholarship.
Finney, the big centre-half signed from Leyton Orient’s youth ranks by Dougie Freedman two summers ago, has also been rewarded as the Whites picked up a 12-month option on his contract, which now runs until the summer of 2017.
The 19-year-old made an unhappy full Wanderers debut in a 3-1 defeat at Brentford last month, where he was substituted at half time.
But Finney has been a regular at Under-21 level and fellow defender Wheater believes he can go on and have a solid future in the game.
“Straight away when I heard Alex was coming off at Brentford I went over to him in the dressing room and told him not to worry and that he would have plenty more chances,” he said.
“He needs to stay confident and he will be fine. We all have bad games and it was a shame it came on his full debut.
“But he will definitely bounce back because he’s a good player. He’ll be fine.”
Source