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Wanderers are praying that Kyle Dempsey can use the international break to make a full recovery from the back injury which has hampered him for nearly two months.
The influential midfielder has had to manage the pain of a persistent problem picked up in a game against Fleetwood in August – and failed to get rid of it completely in last month’s break.
Dempsey has continued to play and has not missed a League One game this season. In the last few weeks he has also worn the captain’s armband with Ricardo Santos and Gethin Jones absent through injury and suspension.
Ian Evatt admits playing with pain has slightly hampered the 28-yeear-old’s form, but the club is now hoping that an extended rest can help him get fit and firing once again.
“Kyle’s back is something we really need to settle,” Evatt told The Bolton News. “He has been the one who has given us that bite, that dynamism, he has been exceptional.
“We wanted him to keep going, and he has been OK, but we know there is more in him. We hope the injury will settle and that by the end of the break that he will be back up to top speed, or near enough top speed.”
Dion Charles has also been playing with painkilling injections in a shoulder injury sustained at Reading a few weeks ago – but he is due to link up alongside Eoin Toal with the Northern Ireland squad this week for Euro qualifiers against San Marino and Slovenia.
Evatt has hinted other players have also played with minor injuries, and with Ricardo Santos, Paris Maghoma and Gethin Jones available once again for the Northampton game a week on Saturday, the Bolton boss is keen to avoid dwelling on a poor performance against Carlisle United last time out.
“We do our very best not to lose games but all of the fans are not privy to the information and experiences I have got, seeing what it has taken to patch the lads back up with a depleted squad,” he said.
“We took six points in the week, which is two points a game, and it still feels like it is not enough. That is the nature of the job we are in and of this football club.
“We will be better for it. All is not lost and we have 20 points from 11 games. We have definitely left a few out there but once we get this group together and on song, fully fit, then I think we are capable of going on an extended run to get us to where we want to be.
“I still think we are in good shape, we have just suffered this last few weeks, that will happen in a football season, it happens to nearly everyone at some stage or another.
“We will take a little bit of heat, as we always do, but we need to come back and prove people wrong.”
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