How Bolton Wanderers fared against players in England World Cup squad

Kick-off has been brought back to enable the sell-out away contingent to travel to Shropshire and then get back in time to watch the World Cup quarter-final in what could be a great day of action, provided it all goes right.

The curious mix of club and international football got us wondering – with the club now more than a decade out of the Premier League, how many of Gareth Southgate’s squad have ever played against Wanderers? The answer? A surprisingly large number.

Here we break down all the occasions that England’s stars have faced Bolton in senior games.

Jordan Pickford

Kept a clean sheet whilst on loan at Preston North End from Sunderland in a forgettable goalless Lancashire derby on Halloween 2015.

Wanderers hadn’t won in their previous seven but the future Everton stopper pulled off the save of the game to deny Gary Madine late in the game.

Nick Pope

Another England keeper involved in a bore draw – this time playing for Charlton Athletic in April 2016.

Wanderers were in the caretaker charge of Jimmy Phillips and Peter Reid at the time and lost keeper Ben Amos to injury, with Paul Rachubka called off the bench – the last instance of a Bolton keeper needing to be replaced.

Aaron Ramsdale

He’d described his exit from Bolton as a 15-year-old as “nothing short of devastating” but the Arsenal keeper went on to do pretty well for himself.

As a Sheffield United player he made only his second and final appearance for the Blades in the FA Cup against Wanderers, losing the game 3-2. Gary Madine, Josh Vela and Sammy Ameobi did the damage.

Conor Coady

An old head when it comes to playing against Bolton Wanderers, having done so six times.

He scored in a 4-0 win for Wolves at the Macron Stadium in April 2018, having played his first game in Bolton four years earlier. On that occasion he played in midfield for Huddersfield Town as a Craig Davies goal secured a 1-0 win for Dougie Freedman’s Wanderers.

Harry Maguire

Has faced Wanderers three times, the first being in a little-known loan spell with Wigan Athletic in March 2015. The game ended 1-1 with Tom Walker scoring the Bolton goal.

He also played twice in Hull City colours, replacing Michael Dawson early on in a 1-0 win at the MKM stadium in December 2015 and then a 1-0 defeat – courtesy of Stephen Dobbie’s second-half effort – at the Macron the following April.

Kieran Trippier

Back in his Burnley days Trippier came up against Wanderers four times, including their first game back in the Championship in August 2012, which ended 2-0 to the Clarets.

Later that season Craig Davies and David Ngog gave the Whites a measure of revenge in a 2-1 win at the Macron. The following season Trippier helped Burnley to a 1-1 draw at Turf Moor and a 1-0 win in the reverse fixture.

Kyle Walker

One of the very few members of the Three Lions squad who has played against Wanderers in the Premier League.

Walker’s first meeting was as a loan player for Sheffield United in the FA Cup in January 2010 where goals from Johan Elmander and Gretar Steinsson earned a win for Owen Coyle’s Whites.

Manchester City then loaned him to Aston Villa the following year and he was part of an action-packed 3-2 defeat at the Reebok, with Gary Cahill scoring twice against his former club, Ivan Klasnic snatching an 86th minute winner and Jussi Jaaskelainen saving a penalty from Ashley Young. He also played twice for Spurs in the 11/12 season.

A little further down the line Walker was in the Tottenham team the night Fabrice Muamba collapsed at White Hart Lane during an FA Cup quarter final. He also played in the rearranged match, won 3-1 by Spurs.

Jordan Henderson

Understandably, the top appearance-maker against Wanderers, having played against them in the colours of Sunderland and Liverpool.

Henderson’s first game against Bolton was on the opening day of the 09/10 season when he replaced Frenchman Steed Malbranque in a 1-0 win for the Black Cats. And his good run continued the following season with wins home and away.

After moving to Liverpool for around £20million in the summer of 2011, he scored his first goal for the Reds in a 3-1 win against Bolton at Anfield. The following January he lost by the same scoreline at the Reebok – Mark Davies, Nigel Reo-Coker and Gretar Steinsson scoring in a rare highlight for the Whites that season.

And Henderson would return to Bolton again, creating the winner for Philippe Coutinho after a tight FA Cup game in February 2015 which had gone to a replay.

Mason Mount

Came up against Wanderers twice with very different results in the 18/19 season whilst on loan from Chelsea to Derby County.

Beaten 1-0 at the Macron Stadium, Mount then scored a hat-trick in a comprehensive 4-0 win at Pride Park. The Derby team that day also included Fikayo Tomori, Ashley Cole and was managed by Frank Lampard.

Kalvin Phillips

Boasts an unbeaten record over five games against Wanderers in a Leeds United shirt, spread over three seasons.

His first was a fleeting appearance off the bench, replacing Lewis Cook, in a 1-1 draw at the Macron in October 2015.

The game he will remember most fondly, however, was in August 2017 when he scored twice in a televised 3-2 win at Bolton on the opening day of the season. Chris Wood also scored for Leeds, with Gary Madine and Adam Le Fondre netting for the Whites.

Declan Rice

His one-and-only game against Bolton was in the Carabao Cup in 2018 and finished 3-0 to the Hammers. Rice played centre-back, enjoying a relatively trouble-free night, and Jeff King made his debut for Wanderers.

Jack Grealish

In his Aston Villa days Grealish met the Whites three times – losing his first game on a snow peppered night, with Adam Le Fondre supplying the winning goal.

The following season was much more successful. Both games ended 2-0 to Villa, with Grealish scoring in each. He also grabbed an assist on each occasion – creating goals for James Chester and Tammy Abraham.

Harry Kane

Fans take solace, the England captain – and soon-to-be all-time top scorer – has never finished on the winning side against Wanderers.

Although he has been an unused substitute for both Leicester City and Tottenham, the only time Kane took to the pitch against Bolton was in a loan spell at Millwall, where he curiously played on the opposite wing to Liam Feeney in an FA Cup third round tie won by a goal from Ryo Miyachi in February 2012.

James Maddison

Another England player never to get the better of Bolton.

Maddison twice played against them for Norwich City in the 17/18 campaign but after losing 2-1 at the Macron – Gary Madine and Adam Armstrong scoring the goals – the return game at Carrow Road ended goalless.

Raheem Sterling

Played in both games of the FA Cup nail-biter in 2015 and scored the equalising goal at the Macron after Eidur Gudjohnsen had opened the scoring from the penalty spot.

Callum Wilson

The striker’s two games for Bournemouth in 14/15 proved very profitable. After scoring both the Cherries’ goals in a 2-1 win at the Macron, he then grabbed another in a 3-0 home win which all-but sealed their first promotion to the Premier League.

Never had the pleasure: Trent Alexander-Arnold, Eric Dier, Luke Shaw, John Stones, Ben White, Jude Bellingham, Connor Gallagher, Phil Foden, Marcus Rashford and Bukayo Saka.