Home
Ian Evatt hopes to make the forthcoming January window just as successful as the last.
Business done in the last winter window saved what had been a wretched season in League Two, sparking a late run for automatic promotion.
Now the Bolton boss hopes he can add the right players next month to boost a mid-table start in League One, potentially pushing for the play-offs.
The decision to allow Antoni Sarcevic to sign for Stockport was followed by a glut of injuries, which have left the squad looking decidedly under-staffed in some positions.
But Evatt remains confident he can work the same magic and finish the season strongly.
“We did it last January and we’ll do it again,” he told The Bolton News.
“We know which areas we need to strengthen and the window can’t really come soon enough now with all the injuries we have suffered.
“The timing of it all was incredible – letting players out on loan, Sarce leaving, then losing half a team of senior first team players, key players, through injury.
“But it’s a challenge, we’ll adapt and overcome. And come January we will look to get the right people in again.”
Wanderers made eight signings last January. Here’s a look at how they did, and what some of them are up to now.
Kieran Lee – The first addition to the squad in January and one which added a touch of experience, class and calm to the midfield almost immediately.
Lee – who has also recently signed a new contract - has now played 41 times for Wanderers and scored five times, the latest of which booked a place in the Papa John’s Trophy third round on Tuesday night.
Declan John – The squad had been crying out for a left-back specialist and John was determined to prove a point after being virtually ignored at his parent club Swansea.
Looked a real coup when Wanderers signed him on a free transfer in the summer but a few issues with illness and injury checked his progress a little at the start of the season.
Including his loan spell, the Wales international has now played 38 times for Bolton and has started to look more like himself in recent weeks.
Zack Elbouzedi – Never got into his stride during his time with Wanderers on loan from Lincoln City. Blessed with serious pace, his inconsistency and decision making in the final third meant he was regarded as little more than an impact substitute by Ian Evatt in the final few months of last season.
Since then, he earned a move to Sweden with AIK Solna and is now a first team regular in Stockholm with a club chasing Malmo for the league title. With European football likely next season, the winger is now hoping to attract the attention of the Republic of Ireland scouts.
Ben Jackson – Probably won’t have to buy a pint in Bolton again after his winning goal against Morecambe, which put the Whites on the fringe of promotion. The young left-back showed some moments of real promise in his five appearances and it was strongly speculated that he would return this season.
Since returning to Huddersfield, Jackson signed a long-term deal tying him to the club until 2024 with another year option. He continues to play regularly for the Terriers’ B Team but has yet to break into the senior set up again.
Lukas Jensen – May well be a quiz question in the future, as he was the only player in Evatt’s squad who failed to play a single game in the campaign.
Signed on loan from Burnley, the Danish keeper did stop people worrying about the lack of cover for Matt Gilks on the bench, as by January, Billy Crellin had been completely mothballed.
He went back to Turf Moor to be loaned out to Icelandic side Kordrengir and has this season played a handful of games in League Two for Carlisle United.
Dapo Afolayan – Bolton fans took an instant shine to his silky skills after arriving on loan from West Ham but it was only on that final day victory against Crawley that he managed to add goals to his game.
Since then, he hasn’t stopped. Afolayan has nine to his name this season and has become the first player opposition managers look to stop when they come across Wanderers. It is no coincidence that he is League One’s most fouled player.
That Bolton signed him for nothing in the summer on a three-year deal looks like one of the club’s best bits of business for some time.
MJ Williams – Unheralded on his arrival from Blackpool, much was made of Williams’ past injury issues. But he quickly installed himself as a regular starter in front of the back four and provided the midfield muscle needed at the business end of the season.
From being the unsung hero in League One, Williams graduated to a player most fans recognised as being integral to the team. He signed a new deal to 2023 recently but suffered an unfortunate shoulder injury which is likely to keep him out of action until mid-December.
Evatt and the Bolton supporters will be counting down the days to his return.
Marcus Maddison – A gamble, but one that had everyone at Bolton on the edge of their seat in January. Maddison’s career had hit a plateau at Charlton but he seemed to possess the kind of match-winning potential that had arguably been lacking in a team which had yet to really gain any momentum of results.
Although he was given a horrendously misjudged red card on his debut against Morecambe by referee Oliver Langford – one later rescinded – Maddison did not look up to speed in his 10 appearances.
Visibly unhappy, it later emerged he was suffering with his mental health while living in a hotel in lockdown away from his family.
The club agreed to end his contract prematurely and soon after Maddison announced he was quitting football after falling out of love with the game.
He launched a gaming channel and agreed to play part-time for Spalding United but recently announced he was working to overcome an injury and relaunch his career once again.
Source