Season shape-up - Bolton

We look at how sides are gearing up for the new campaign

Last updated: 14th July 2008

Megson Gary Bolton v Liverpool

Megson: Looking to build on last season

BOLTON TRANSFER ACTIVITY
INS: Johan Elmander (Toulouse - undisclosed), Fabrice Muamba (Birmingham - undisclosed)
OUTS: Daniel Braaten (Toulouse - undisclosed), Ivan Campo (released), Stelios Giannakopoulos (released), Andranik Teymourian (Fulham - free transfer)

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Bolton had a difficult season last term following the departure of Sam Allardyce and will be hoping to avoid another relegation dogfight. Lewis Rutledge assesses what the Trotters need to do to re-establish themselves as a major force in the Premier League.

What's happened so far

Bolton looked dead and buried with just weeks to go last season but they embarked on a stunning run to collect 11 points from their last five games and clinch survival on the final day with a typically hard-fought 1-1 draw against Chelsea.

Gary Megson, who came in to replace Sammy Lee in October, has been quick to build on Bolton's encouraging end to the season with a couple of shrewd signings.

Fabrice Muamba was the first to arrive when Megson beat off competition from Wigan to sign the England Under-21 international from Birmingham in a deal thought to be worth over £5million.

Described by the Bolton boss as a 'tough-tackling central midfielder', Muamba joins on the back of a solid campaign with Blues and over time he could blossom into such a fearsome competitor as to justify comparisons with Patrick Vieira.

Bolton have also shown their ambition by securing a deal for Sweden international Johan Elmander, a striker who is just hitting his peak and reportedly cost in the region of £8million.

Daniel Braaten moved to Toulouse as part of the agreement and the Norwegian winger is one of four players to have left the Reebok Stadium this summer.

Veteran duo Ivan Campo and Stelios Giannakopoulos were not offered new contracts after falling down the pecking order under Megson, while Iranian midfielder Andranik Teymourian has joined Fulham on a free transfer.

There has been as much speculation as ever and it has been a difficult task for Bolton fans to decipher who are genuine targets, but most of the names in the newspapers have been strikers.

The Trotters will be optimistic that Elmander will fill the void left by Nicolas Anelka's switch to Stamford Bridge after goals were hard to come by for the second half of last season, but Milan Baros, Bafetimbi Gomis of St Etienne and Real Mallorca's Dani Guiza have all been mentioned as other possible targets.

Anthony Annan, heralded as the 'new Michael Essien' in his native Ghana, Deportivo La Coruna forward Riki, Newcastle defender Stephen Carr and even Joey Barton have been linked with Bolton as well.

What they need

Megson will want to strengthen in every department if possible but his focus is likely to be in attack, with Elmander and Kevin Davies perhaps lacking top-class cover.

An out-and-out winger would add an extra dimension to Bolton's play, while Megson will be looking to increase competition for places in defence.

Bolton may have already brought in Muamba and Elmander but there should still be something left in the kitty, while any further departures would create more funds.

Jussi Jaaskelainen has agreed to stay at the club and it will be a priority for Megson to tie the goalkeeper to a new deal when he returns to pre-season.

What they'll get

Bolton are likely to remain active right through until the close of the transfer window but Megson may decide to try and save money and concentrate on loan deals.

Much will depend on whether El Hadji Diouf moves on to pastures new, with the Senegalese forward making no secret of his desire to leave as last season drew to a close.

There has been no word on his future yet and while Megson will hope he stays, the Trotters boss would also be ready to cash in and sign somebody like Riki or Ecuador striker Carlos Tenorio in his place.

Another player who could leave is defender Abdoulaye Meite, who angered Megson by apparently refusing to play against Manchester United in March and has now been linked with Hull.

Fan's view - Fraser Ames

I think Bolton desperately need to keep Diouf. Elmander will turn out good for us but he's not all we need to be Uefa challengers again. We need a creative midfielder with pace and a pacey winger that can cross and beat defenders. Then Bolton will be a good side again.

What do you think of Bolton's moves in the transfer market so far this summer? Let us know using the form below.

Prem 2008/09 Win Outright: Bolton 3000/1

Comments

Paul Leach (Bolton Wanderers fan) says...

Yet another smart signing by Megson. Riga is a fast, attacking midfielder who should provide plenty for Elmander. I've come across a few fans who claim never to of heard of Elmander, all i can say is that his style of football should suit us. He's a tall centre forward who can strike a ball as well as head it, coupled with Davis on set pieces Bolton should prove a major headache from set pieces again. Im not expecting miricles and I dont think we will claim anything above 10th this season, as the team is not yet the finished article. But give Megson the time and a little spending power and we'll be competing for Europe once again. Now lets get behind the lads and wear the white shirt with pride!!

Posted 18:43 30th July 2008

Andrew Dyson (Bolton Wanderers fan) says...

What we reallly need is a midfielder who's good on the ball and can ping it about. Campo was that man, it's just a shame the canny old goat got a bit too slow for the premier league. Muamba is probably a decent signing but I'd see him going in instead of McCann or to let Nolan push forwards more. We'll struggle without the ability to hold the ball in midfield, then get it to the wings quickly and effectively - that's what Ivan used to give us.

Posted 09:48 16th July 2008

Peter Mcnulty (Bolton Wanderers fan) says...

i agree with the guys that said we need a creative player like Pennant. I think Elmander will be a great signing with the assist thats would be pennant in my eyes or maybe Shunsuke Nakamura put a sneeky bhid in for him you never know. And what do guys think of Harper is he worth buying ? because i dont think we should get him because we have the defence in the midfeild and the attack in nolan.

Posted 21:21 15th July 2008

Naveed Younis (Bolton Wanderers fan) says...

I think that Bolton will do a lot better than last season (obviously) but i think that they need to sign a new defender, someone with some pace and also a quick midfielder, i feel that our attack is strong enough and hopefully Dioufey will stay, if Megson does this then we'll be competing for the UEFA Cup again and who knows even the Champions League. COME ON BOLTON!!!

Posted 19:10 15th July 2008

Josh Fildes (Bolton Wanderers fan) says...

bolton will struggle next season unless we sign 2 midfilders i think they should get giles barnes and experciened holding midfielder like edgar davids. ger rid of vaz te whats the point he doesnt get a chance. Elmander could be like jardel or could be suprise who knows! i would sign richard stearman from leiester he is young defender. Bolton should of gone for david nugent he did well at bury. i think anthor tough season ahead.

Posted 16:16 15th July 2008

Tom Sharples (Bolton Wanderers fan) says...

Why have we bought a player like Fabrice Muamba for £5mil when we could have bought Danny Guthrie for the same amount of money and proved he is worth that amount?

Posted 14:18 15th July 2008

Mark Flatley (Bolton Wanderers fan) says...

I think that we still need another striker to partner Elmander E.G. Dani Guiza or Riki from Deportivo. We could also do with 2 new midfielders, a winger and a centre mid following the departure of Campo. We should buy Anthony Annan and and Sabastien Larrson. If we get atleast one of those we will be a strong force again in the Premier League.

Posted 10:02 15th July 2008

Craig Fishwick (Bolton Wanderers fan) says...

I agree with the comments about our lack of ambition in midfield, we need some creativity, Nolan, Diouf and Matty Taylor are probably our most creative players but are either being played out of position or not getting the service they need to create something for our strikers! Pleased with the two signings we've made, Elmander could surprise a few people this season and Muamba is certainly a promising player, disappointed we let Andranik go (cant believe he signed for Fulham either!) because he is a talented player. A few signings the club could think about; Anthony Vanden Borre (Genoa/Fiorentina) - he can play on the wings or in defence and is a quality player, Kevin Larsen (Tromso) - good, strong left back/left mid, in a similar mould to Taylor, Robert Vittek (Nurnburg) - Good striker who knows where the net is and can finish well but he's just come back from a long lay-off so could be a gamble! Serdar Tasci (Stuttgart) - similar to Cahill, a good solid defender with plenty of potential. With a few more decent signings we can easily achieve 11th or above and i'd be happy with that.

Posted 16:55 14th July 2008

Reebok Rob (Bolton Wanderers fan) says...

Come on you whites! let's be honest nobody wanted Megson at the time, but credit where credits due, he did do a good job keeping us up...remember we were BELOW Derby County when he took over, this will be his season, yes we still need a couple of players... someone with sizzling pace up front... Saha on loan maybe?.. hopefully Diouffie will sort his head out and stay.. the lad is world class, but this season we will get off to a great start- Batter Stoke, turn Newcastle over and demolish the Baggies, Top of the League after three games and I predict a top 8 finish at least.. keep the faith whites fans this will be our year!!

Posted 12:55 14th July 2008

John Reed (Bolton Wanderers fan) says...

Bolton need to sign more midfielders, and not just one or two. The whole midfield has needed a revamp from before Alardyce left. Anelka got us goals, but our service to him was poor and this is not going to change with just buying new strikers. The gruelling schedule in the premier league shows that a good 1st team is not enough and Bolton need more depth which doesn't include Joey O'Brien playing in midfield. If signings stay as they are it will be another horribly tough year for us again.

Posted 05:44 14th July 2008

Chris Abalain (Bolton Wanderers fan) says...

I agree that Bolton should continue looking for more players to strengthen the squad, but he already did a good job getting Cahill at the back for us, even if we have lost Anelka. I agree also that should Diouf go, we will need someone to match his skill and pace on the wings/up front, as we have missed someone who can turn a game since the Okocha.Djorkaeff days. Disappointing that Guthrie went to Newcastle as he will be great next season, but maybe we can tap into one of the big clubs (if any are left on Megson's friend list) and get another quality loan signing from somewhere. Spurs have some good young players we could tempt, and seeing as they're having a potential clear-out, we should see what we can get!

Posted 00:05 14th July 2008

Liam Martin (Bolton Wanderers fan) says...

Why can we not challenge for europe? if the fans actually started going back to the reebok like in big sam days and get behind the team which is probally stronger than the team allardyce took into europe, we can qualify either through league position or through a cup final appearance. Don expect miracles from elmander, hes good but not anelka quality. Muamba is a great player and i believe the missing link is a winger in the shape of pennant. Would also liked to have seen mendy back at the reebok but i suppose steinsson is quality at rb. Another midfielder i believe is a must. Would love to see steven davis of fulham at the reebok. COME ON WANDERERS BELIEVE

Posted 22:29 13th July 2008

Sam Heyes (Bolton Wanderers fan) says...

i think bolton need to bring in a couple of defenders of the quality of Garry Cahill. I also thik that we need to buy some midfielders with the ability to pick out forwards from distance. If there is anything left at the end of that bring in some young brazilian players like Kerlon from cruizeiro and lulinha from corinthians.

Posted 21:49 13th July 2008

Craig Scott (Bolton Wanderers fan) says...

I think that the signings we have made have been good but we need to build on that by signing another top quality forward, a decent winger with pace, a creative midfielder because nolan doesnt have that quality and another half decent left back as cover for gardner when he's injured because i dont think samuel is premiership standard anymore! If we sign some more quality players i still think the best we can hope for is mid table this season!

Posted 20:43 13th July 2008

Ewan Kelly (Bolton Wanderers fan) says...

Allen has hit the nail on the head - its all very well dreaming of UEFA cup competition but why on earth do we need Muamba when our midfield cannot pass a ball more than a few yards, cannot beat its man, and has no pace? Why do we need a midfield consisting almost entirely of hard working grafters? Cohen? McCann? O'Brien? Muamba? and the oddity Nolan who isn't really good at anything when he isn't scoring. What variety is there here? It is bereft of any creativity and I think Megson is terrified of players with any skill and as such they will always be on the perifery of the team. I approve of the Elmander signing but the team DESPERATELY needs creativity and pace. Malbranque would be a great signing but I cant see Megson being interested in that type of player myself. If you think Allardyce's teams weren't pretty we haven't seen anything yet!

Posted 20:10 13th July 2008

John Russell (Bolton Wanderers fan) says...

I don't understand all this "attractive football" nonsense, if hard graft is what we need to stay up, then hard graft is what we should do! We have never had the funds and so it won't be for a couple more seasons of tough tackling football will we have built up a strong enough squad to knock the ball about on the floor and stay up. I mean look at Reading they played attractive football and got relegated...ask their fans what they think of it now.

Posted 18:39 13th July 2008

Ryan Hulme says...

If Diouf doesnt want to stay, let him go. We only want players that want to play for their shirts and show pride in our team. I think we need a proper striker who will score 20 goals a season to partner Davied upfront, but i dont think Elmander will be that man from what I have seen from him in the past. I hope he is though. I predict another difficult season for us :(

Posted 15:59 13th July 2008

Gareth Jones (Bolton Wanderers fan) says...

I think Bolton have made some shrewd signings and am particularly pleased with the capture of Fabrice Muamba who will strengthen the midfield in the form of a tough tackling defensive midfielder where perhaps we were lacking over the past 2 seasons or since the days of Adeboulye Faye - in my opinion this will allow Kevin Nolan a chance to play as an attacking midfielder as ive heard thru the grapevine that bolton will reform back to good old 4-4-2 diamond next season - with possible future signings Milan Baros and/or Louis Saha playing as a strike partner for Elmander! - If this is true and i hope Megsons reading and it is then the future looks bright for Bolton with a more entertaining and rewarding form of football due to be played at the Reebok! Prediction though: 9th and then genuine UEFA cup contenders the season after!... Gareth Jones

Posted 14:59 13th July 2008

Carl Readfern (Bolton Wanderers fan) says...

I still think theres a few players we could really do with. I'd like to see Simon Vukcevic (sporting LIsbon) to sign. Also agree that someone like Pennant would be a big signing to supply Elmander. Would also like Malbranque but I think alot will be to do with what Dioufy decides to do.

Posted 14:54 13th July 2008

John Price (Chelsea fan) says...

Bolton have been busy in the transfer market this summer but I fear that it'll make no difference to the league standings as far as the Trotters are concerned. I predict another 16th position as they've sold four experienced players this summer.

Posted 13:57 13th July 2008

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