Home
Derby saviour Jon Dadi Bodvarsson says he can play a central role in getting Wanderers back into the Championship.
The Icelander’s inch-perfect header claimed a point for Bolton at Wigan Athletic on Saturday – but in all honesty, a promotion push will now have to wait for next year.
Bodvarsson is far from despondent, and with the promise of more quality being added to the squad in the summer he is confident he can spearhead a successful campaign with a full pre-season behind him.
“When I came here I was so excited by the ambition of the club,” he told The Bolton News.
“They have been through a lot but they want to go somewhere, they have a lot of young players and they are hungry.
“I am looking forward to next season because we want to be promoted and be among the best teams. I want to be a part of that journey and though you never know in football, I think we can be up there.”
Bodvarsson was on international duty last week with Iceland and at 29 is now one of the senior members of a squad which is reshaping itself for a push towards the 2024 Euros in Germany.
Having already played at two major tournaments with his country, the striker is happy to change his role in the squad.
“It was brilliant to see the lads again from Iceland and be back in it,” he said after meeting up for two friendlies. “We had a game against Finland and then a good running session against Spain.
“Nonetheless is was a good experience for us to prepare for the games this summer.
“I said in the Icelandic media the other day that the transition is weird, it has changed so quickly.
“A lot of players have retired or they are not in the international team any more.
“So maybe it is a wake-up call for me, maybe I have to be more of a leader and help the younger guys get into it. This is a massive transitional period for Icelandic football at the moment so I will try and help them as much as I can with our experience.”
Bodvarsson arrived at Wanderers in January having played just 18 minutes of club football at Millwall.
Now back up to full fitness, he is keen to play the same sort of leading role in his new surroundings at the UniBol.
“I have been in the game for quite a while now and I feel I can help and be a positive example on the pitch,” he said.
“I feel more confident. I felt like I was stuck in a box in the previous club and now I am able to express myself a bit more and I also feel more appreciated by the club and the fans.
“I think at previous clubs I had been doing okay, to be fair, it was just at the last one that – and this is no disrespect for them – but it didn’t work out and I didn’t feel comfortable at times.
“If you are not good in your environment then you don’t play well. Coming here was a massive confidence boost and I felt 10 kilos lighter.”
Source