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Ian Evatt is pleased to see Dapo Afolayan getting himself in the right areas to score – and believes he can be effective in the number nine role.
Afolayan scored a dramatic late winner at Fleetwood and was also on target against Barrow in the Papa Johns Trophy last 32, making an immediate impact after replacing the injured Kyle Dempsey.
The former West Ham man finished last season as Wanderers’ top scorer but this term has been more challenging, finding himself out of the starting line-up at times.
Moreover, he has been used in several different roles including as a number 10 and even a stint at left wing-back.
But Afolayan now seems to have rediscovered his mojo, and Evatt says his record as a number nine isn’t to be sniffed at.
He hopes the attacker can “keep the opposition guessing” and continue to chip in with goals over the coming weeks and months.
The Bolton boss said: “I’m really happy for him because he’s had a bit of a turbulent season so far, but his record and the team’s record when he’s playing as a nine is actually pretty good and he’s a different type of nine as he almost becomes a false nine.
“He’s able to drift into wide areas and - providing we have players that can see him drift and then have the understanding to rotate and probably move into his position for a period of time and have that fluidity and flexibility - that’s fine and I’m okay with that.
“Dapo’s problem has always been that he wants to receive outside of the box, dribble and shoot. But to get 10,15 or 20 goals a season, that’s not sustainable and you’re not going to do that all the time.
“I don’t think any player in the world can do that and he needs five or 10 tap-ins a season to get to that stage. But to get those tap ins you need to be in the right area the majority of the time, and even against Fleetwood watching it back, there was times he did it like the goal.
“But there were also times where he’s checking out. He’s wanting to receive outside the box, dribble, get it on his right and that ‘Thierry Henry finish’ that we all know he loves, but everybody else knows he loves as well.
“We have to make sure that he’s mixing his game up enough to keep the opposition guessing.”
The numbers back up Evatt’s claim about Afolayan getting into the right places to score, with four of his five goals since the start of the campaign coming from inside the box.
His only goal from distance this season was a timely winner against Peterborough back in September, although he was given a helping hand via a deflection off a Posh defender.
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