English Premier League preview: Bolton Wanderers
Although the Bolton Wanderers have rarely faced the threat of relegation during their nine-year stay in the English Premier League, there has been little to suggest in recent years that they will be challenging for silverware any time soon.
However, with the arrival of exciting young manager Owen Coyle midway through last season, there will be optimism in the North West town that the club can progress on last season’s 14th place finish.
The buzz around The Trotters’ manager began after he moved to then Football League Championship outfit Burnley in 2007. The Scot gave the Lancashire side new life when he encouraged them to start playing flowing, attacking football that not only pleased supporters but brought success on the pitch.
In his first full season in charge, Coyle led the Clarets to a fifth-place finish in the Championship - their highest league position since 1976 - which allowed them into the play-offs for a chance to enter the EPL. Coyle’s men won the play-off final and he led them to the top division of English football for the first time in 33 years. This was a huge achievement considering Burnley’s tiny budget in comparison to some of their more affluent rivals. His success attracted the attention of bigger clubs, and he soon found himself as boss of Bolton, where he had featured as a player.
New signings
This close season, Coyle has begun to slowly shape his squad for the season ahead with the signings of Martin Petrov, Robbie Blake and Ivan Klasnić on free transfers, along with Marcos Alonso from Real Madrid for an undisclosed fee. It is possibly Petrov’s capture which is the most exciting of the quartet, with the former Manchester City winger having performed consistently well at a high level for several years. Alonso looks to be one for the future but there is no reason to believe that the 19-year-old, who can play either as a left-back or on the left of the midfield, will not feature for Coyle’s first team this season.
Before the transfer window closes, Coyle will look to be signing a proven goalscorer, perhaps on loan for a season as he does not have a big budget with which to improve his squad. Of those strikers already at the club, Kevin Davies has never exactly been prolific and is getting on in years, while Johan Elmander has disappointed since arriving for a club record £8.2m fee two years ago. In 55 games for Bolton, he has scored just eight times.
Blake will be capable of getting a few goals, but at the age of 34 it is unlikely that he will be starting every week. Klasnic may be the answer to Coyle’s striker problem, with the forward having netted eight times in 27 league games while on loan at the club last season, but finding a consistently performing striker will be Coyle’s top priority.
Key man
The key man to any hopes of Bolton progressing this year is South Korea international Lee Chung-Yong. The 22-year-old was the club’s player of the year last season and features in most of Bolton’s attacks as he scampers up and down the right wing. Lee joined Bolton last summer and shone as he scored five goals and set up another eight across all competitions for his new club.
Although Bolton looks unlikely to finish in the top half of the table this season, the team will be safe long before the final game. In addition, it won’t come as a surprise if Coyle manages to put together a couple of good runs in the domestic cup competitions.
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