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Ali Crawford is already showing he can keep a calm head in a crisis for Wanderers.
The Scottish midfielder’s move from Doncaster Rovers on deadline day went right down the wire – 60 seconds, in fact, before the EFL stopped granting registrations.
But as the paperwork for nine new signings flew frantically around the offices at Wanderers, Crawford was kicking back at the club’s hotel convinced his move would go through.
“I was very positive, to be honest,” he told The Bolton News. “I just chilled while the paperwork took a while to get sorted. But I was confident there wouldn’t be a problem.
“I’d been up in Scotland at the weekend and got a call from Darren Moore (Doncaster boss) to say that Bolton were interested. I hadn’t been playing that much, so it was definitely something that interested me.”
Crawford had started just one game in the Carabao Cup for Rovers since Moore’s arrival, having been a regular under his predecessor Grant McCann, who left to join Hull City in May.
The 28-year-old winger doesn’t look back in anger, however, and says his separation from the Yorkshire club was an amicable one.
“The new manager came in halfway through pre-season, had a look and didn’t see me fitting in his formation or squad,” he said. “But I don’t have a bad word to say about Doncaster. They gave me a chance to play in England and I’ll always owe them that. And in the end I get to play at Bolton, which is a massive club who were Premier League not that long ago. It has worked out well.”
Wanderers’ recent history has been anything but attractive, yet Crawford – who goes straight into Keith Hill’s squad bound for Rotherham today – feels the future is brighter.
“Obviously it isn’t ideal coming into a club when you are on minus 11 and in the relegation zone but the administration, the money, I think that’s in the past,” he said.
“I had a good talk with the management, and they had spoken to the owners. All we want to do now is focus on the football and let that side of things take care of itself.
“Of course we want to get points on the board early, get out of the relegation zone as quickly as possible, but we have to take a deep breath, it might take time.
“The lads are excited about the challenge and when you’ve got a load of fans who are right behind you, it really helps.
“I know the allocation has been sold out at Rotherham, which is amazing, so I hope we go there and give them something to shout about.”
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The Scottish midfielder’s move from Doncaster Rovers on deadline day went right down the wire – 60 seconds, in fact, before the EFL stopped granting registrations.
But as the paperwork for nine new signings flew frantically around the offices at Wanderers, Crawford was kicking back at the club’s hotel convinced his move would go through.
“I was very positive, to be honest,” he told The Bolton News. “I just chilled while the paperwork took a while to get sorted. But I was confident there wouldn’t be a problem.
“I’d been up in Scotland at the weekend and got a call from Darren Moore (Doncaster boss) to say that Bolton were interested. I hadn’t been playing that much, so it was definitely something that interested me.”
Crawford had started just one game in the Carabao Cup for Rovers since Moore’s arrival, having been a regular under his predecessor Grant McCann, who left to join Hull City in May.
The 28-year-old winger doesn’t look back in anger, however, and says his separation from the Yorkshire club was an amicable one.
“The new manager came in halfway through pre-season, had a look and didn’t see me fitting in his formation or squad,” he said. “But I don’t have a bad word to say about Doncaster. They gave me a chance to play in England and I’ll always owe them that. And in the end I get to play at Bolton, which is a massive club who were Premier League not that long ago. It has worked out well.”
Wanderers’ recent history has been anything but attractive, yet Crawford – who goes straight into Keith Hill’s squad bound for Rotherham today – feels the future is brighter.
“Obviously it isn’t ideal coming into a club when you are on minus 11 and in the relegation zone but the administration, the money, I think that’s in the past,” he said.
“I had a good talk with the management, and they had spoken to the owners. All we want to do now is focus on the football and let that side of things take care of itself.
“Of course we want to get points on the board early, get out of the relegation zone as quickly as possible, but we have to take a deep breath, it might take time.
“The lads are excited about the challenge and when you’ve got a load of fans who are right behind you, it really helps.
“I know the allocation has been sold out at Rotherham, which is amazing, so I hope we go there and give them something to shout about.”
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