Last season was a backwards step for Bolton Wanderers. After the 2023-24 campaign saw Ian Evatt’s Trotters side fall short of automatic promotion, then lose out at Wembley against Oxford United, the following campaign marked the end of Evatt’s four-year tenure at the Toughsheet Community Stadium.
While the club has primarily seen an upward trajectory since Sharon Brittan assumed ownership, amid the club’s relegation League Two, recent years have seen the club perhaps stuck in the third tier and never quite making the mark for promotion.
Evatt built a coherent footballing identity at the club and established the team as a recognised giant at the level once again; however, last season saw the club fail to live up to expectations, suggesting the former-Barrow coach had taken the club as far as he could.
Taking the reins in January was Steven Schumacher, who has previous credentials in League One with Plymouth Argyle, but questions remain as to whether the Whites can re-establish themselves as firm promotion candidates in the 2025-26 campaign, with particularly strong competition occupying the division.
How did Bolton Wanderers fare last season?
As previously mentioned, last season saw Bolton fail to live up to expectations, after the campaign prior placed the club as firm promotion favourites.
Despite an opening-day victory against Leyton Orient and a draw at home to Wrexham, which kicked off the campaign, inconsistencies quickly became apparent.
Successive results in September saw a 4-0 loss at home to Huddersfield Town as well as a 5-2 win over Reading, which began to make the nature of this Bolton side clear.
Evatt became particularly critical of his side’s character, as positive, front-footed performances were often in vain, with defensive frailties emerging as a deciding factor on numerous occasions for Bolton.
A 5-0 defeat away at promotion rivals Stockport County piled a particular amount of pressure on the head coach, but a reaction of five undefeated and one draw did suggest a reaction.
Ultimately, an inconsistent spell throughout the winter in which Evatt’s side would follow up victories with losses made inconsistencies and frailties far too apparent, as a 2-1 loss at home to Charlton Athletic spelled the end for Ian Evatt, with Steven Schumacher penning a three-and-a-half-year contract with the club.
Minimal impact was truly made, as results remained patchy and scorelines stayed significant; however, Chris Forino-Joseph’s stoppage-time derby winner away at Wigan Athletic will live in Trotters folklore, marking their first victory over their bitter rivals since 2015.
Ultimately finishing 8th in League One and ten points adrift of the play-offs, 67 goals and 70 conceded told the story of the Whites’ 2024-25 campaign.
Summer activity so far
Schumacher has wasted no time in the transfer window this summer, with the task of promotion clear.
Partially, the club has been ruthless in the transfer market, with Gethin Jones, Nathan Baxter, and Ricardo Santos departing at the end of their contracts, after the trio had formed a vital core for the Trotters’ squads over the years.
The most notable departure was Aaron Collins, who emerged as the top scorer and Player of the Year for the club in the 2024-25 campaign. A prolific striker at the level, the former-Bristol Rovers man made a shock drop down to League Two with MK Dons, amid several notable incomings at Stadium MK.
George Thomason will be a vital loss for Schumacher, whose performances and ever-present position in the Bolton midfield always suggested the 24-year-old was destined for bigger things. For an undisclosed fee, the Englishman made the switch to Championship side Wrexham earlier this week.
With outgoings suggesting crucial changes to be in place, the squad has been richly added to this summer.
Forwards Thierry Gale and Sam Dalby have arrived for undisclosed fees from Rapid Vienna and Wrexham, respectively. The latter enjoyed a prolific loan spell with Dundee United, tallying 15 goals and three assists, after never truly getting a chance in League One with the Red Dragons.
Bolstering the midfield are Xavier Simons and Ethan Erahon from Hull City and Lincoln City. The duo have arrived with a great level of excitement, as Simons showed great promise in the Championship for the Tigers and in the division with Wycombe, whereas Erahon has been a standout for Lincoln over the years, with Championship interest in the Scotsman well-documented.
Richard Taylor joined the club from St. Mirren, with defensive improvement a particular area of attention. The 24-year-old will step into the centre of Bolton’s defence after three impressive years north of the border.
Also active in the loan market, promotion-winning shot-stopper Teddy Sharman-Lowe joins on loan from Chelsea, having earned plaudits from his heroics throughout Doncaster Rovers’ title claim.
Amario Cozier-Duberry arrives on loan from Brighton and Hove Albion; the promising 20-year-old featured 22 times for Blackburn Rovers last season and is sure to gain more first-team experience under Schumacher.
Star players
Despite wholesale changes to the core of the Bolton squad under Schumacher this summer, many players remain from last season, which means the club could still get a deal out of next season.
Dividing opinion amongst the Trotters loyal is John McAtee, who tallied eleven goals and three assists for the club after joining on a permanent transfer from Luton Town last summer.
Not quite a striker, not quite a midfielder, the dynamic frontman is proven to be potent at League One level with both Barnsley and his current club. Therefore, there is no reason to suggest that in the right system, Schumacher couldn’t get more from the former Grimsby Town man.
George Johnston. Josh Sheehan and Eoin Toal have proven excellent at the level in previous seasons, and all remain in the peak years of their careers.
Still possessing several prominent players from 2023-24’s promotion charge, there is no reason to suggest that Schumacher’s coaching cannot bring those players back to the previous levels shown.
The core of these players, mixed in with the high-profile arrivals of Ethan Erahon, Xavier Simons, and Sam Dalby, pose excellent prospects for the squad moving into the season. Erahon and Simons will learn a great deal from the likes of Sheehan, while Dalby could provide an excellent foil for McAtee to operate in his preferred “shadow-striker” role.
Another player worth drawing attention to is Max Conway, who impressed on loan at Crewe Alexandra last season. Returning to Bolton, the forward-thinking left back could flourish in the head coach’s system, which places particular emphasis on attacking the flanks using wing-backs.
Where will Bolton Wanderers finish?
Last season was largely transitional for Wanderers, and a stylistic rebrand can be expected after Schumacher’s first full window in charge of the club.
At Plymouth Argyle, the manager had the luxury of shadowing Ryan Lowe before his permanent appointment, making his task at Bolton different, having to build a squad in his image from scratch.
With Schumacher’s footballing identity differing largely from Evatt’s – which was built over a number of years at the club – a slow start could be anticipated.
However, the quality is there to be used. Bolton possesses an excellent side for the level, and a comfortable finish in the play-offs should be the expectation.
This positions a number of their promotion candidates as perhaps further ahead on their projects than Bolton. For example, Stockport County have had their manager and core in place for several years, and Luton Town’s recent Premier League spell positions their squad as heads and shoulders above the competition.
With these factors considered, finding themselves in League One for the 2026-27 campaign may not be a necessarily difficult reality, if this season is used for a stylistic rebrand under the former Stoke City coach.
Realising ambitions under Schumacher may prove difficult after preceding the foundations laid by Evatt; however, there is no doubt that Schumacher can eventually lead Bolton’s return to the Championship, which feels like an eventual inevitability rather than a chance under Brittan’s lead.
