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Nathan Baxter has taken notes at every level from the Isthmian to Premier League – and now wants to put them to good use.
Stepping out for the first time as a professional footballer with no ties to Chelsea, the 24-year-old keeper will make his Wanderers debut against Lincoln City tomorrow looking to show why his pedigree could make all the difference in the club’s pursuit of success this season.
Schooled at Stamford Bridge but educated up and down the land in a string of loans over the last seven seasons, Baxter was one of this summer’s most sought-after goalkeeper free agents.
He turned down overtures from Israeli clubs bound for the Champions League along with a cluster of offers from the Championship to link-up with Bolton, based largely on a gut feeling that the Toughsheet Stadium is where he was meant to strike out alone.
Baxter played for Hull City in the previous two seasons but had a permanent move scuppered by an ankle injury last November. The London-born keeper – who rubbed shoulders with some of the world’s best during more than a decade in the Chelsea system – is now determined to show why Wanderers was the right choice.
“Being part of a first team squad at Chelsea from such a young age was good because I have been in changing rooms, watched team talks, listened to how great players prepare, what title-winning teams say at half time,” he told The Bolton News.
“But I have also seen the other side of the game out on loan in non-league. And that hardens you up.
“For me, it is nice to have played in the division above this in the last two seasons. Every week when I was fit, I felt good at that level. I am looking forward to showing everyone what I can do.
“This is a Premier League football club with a manager that wants to manage in the Premier League. When I first met the gaffer, I got a feel for how hungry he is and how much he wants to move this club forward. We have both turned down Championship offers to be here and there is a reason for that – the size of the club and the potential that is here. I want to be on that journey.
“I have had a lot of loans but it was really important for me to decide where my first permanent club was going to be (after Chelsea). Even things like the goalkeeping coach and the owner. Hopefully, I am working with Gillo (Matt Gilks) and working under this owner for many years to come.
“It is not like a loan where all you really care about is if you are going to play. Although it is in a lower division than I would have hoped to play in, it ticks every single box so well and hopefully this time next year we are back in the Championship.”
Wanderers remained unbeaten through pre-season, saving some of their most convincing performances for the better opponents they faced over the summer.
While those games helped Baxter to settle back into his stride – especially after his lay-off last season – he accepts they count for nothing once the real business begins on Saturday afternoon.
“I was the third-choice goalie at Chelsea the season they won the league with Conte and they didn’t win a single game in pre-season,” he smiled. “In the same way we weren’t really bothered about the result at Chester, we aren’t really bothered about the Everton result.
“It is nice to know we have matched top teams, but the way Everton and West Brom played is probably very different to what we are going to come up against this season.
“The most important thing is that we get off to a good start. But even then, where we end up in May is more important than what happens on Saturday.
“We want to start well, particularly at home, and it will be my first time playing in front of the supporters here in a proper game, so I am looking forward to that.”
It is reflective of Baxter’s sprawling loan journey that he has already faced Bolton’s opening opponents on four occasions during his career, wearing the colours of Accrington Stanley, Yeovil Town and Solihull Moors.
“I have played against them for many years,” he said. “The Lincoln team now is very different to the days of Paul Farman knocking it long to Matt Rhead in the Conference!
“We are all looking forward to it but it doesn’t really matter who we are playing. Teams should be worried about playing us, and I say that in a respectful way because there are no easy games in any league in the EFL, so we won’t take it lightly. But we are at home so we want to impose ourselves on the game.”
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