How Bolton Wanderers struck Manchester United's Shola Shoretire deal

Anticipation had been building on Bolton’s next piece of business in the transfer market over the past two weeks, particularly with two established attacking talents, Amadou Bakayoko and Dapo Afolayan, moving elsewhere.

A season-ending injury for Jon Dadi Bodvarsson intensified the need for reinforcements even further, so when Shoretire was eventually revealed as the third new arrival of the window there was no shortage of opinion among the Wanderers fanbase as to whether he was the right move, or not.

Of course, we have been here before. Last January, James Trafford’s signing on loan from Manchester City had been given a lukewarm reception, with some unconvinced that a young goalkeeper with half a season of experience at Accrington would be a significant step up on Joel Dixon.

This summer the logic of Conor Bradley’s loan from Liverpool was also briefly questioned against bringing back Marlon Fossey from Fulham.

If Evatt can garner the same success from his latest loan capture as he did with Trafford and Bradley - now without question - then any lingering doubts will quickly fade.

Whether some folk agree or not – he is looking forward to seeing Shoretire add something different to his attack.

“I am certainly very excited about working with him,” he told The Bolton News. “We have done a lot of due diligence on him, what we think he can bring to the team.

“He has been around the United first team squad since he was a very, very young man. They think highly of him and he is super-talented.

“You very rarely see a player of his age have the game intelligence he has, playing 360 degrees. And by that I mean to occupy central areas of the pitch, be able to turn and beat an opponent, be able to receive on the turn when he has time and space because he can scan the pitch and knows where he is.

“He adds quality, and like Dapo he can get people on the edge of their seats, and that is what we want. He is a player who can unlock a door and we need that type of player with 20 big games to go.”

Shoretire has five senior appearances to show for his time at Manchester United, and will not turn 19 until next month.

For two seasons he has been on the periphery of the first team set up at Old Trafford, continuing to score goals at development level, but his opportunities this season have been limited to the Papa Johns Trophy.

Getting an agreement from United to send the versatile striker out for his first loan has not been a simple exercise for Evatt, who has faced similar scrutiny of his training, tactics and the club’s facilities as he did in doing deals with City and Liverpool for Trafford and Bradley.

But the Bolton boss is confident Shoretire comes to the club in the right frame of mind to make a difference in the promotion chase.

“His attitude is first class,” he said. “We have met with him, met with his father, met with Manchester United – and not just the academy and loan manager but with some of the hierarchy. That shows you where they think he is at, and how highly they regard him.

“Again, the positive message here is that these clubs are trusting us with their top young talents, not just any young player, but their best young players. Like James (Trafford) at Manchester City, or Conor (Bradley) at Liverpool, they want us to look after them and develop them, and it is great credit to everyone here. We should take full advantage.”

Loaning players from elite clubs is now big business, with most employing loan managers to seek out and assess the right destinations. No longer does it involve a phone call and a quick favour.

Evatt has explained how he presents the club and his own footballing philosophy when negotiating with the likes of United for a player.

“Agents will want their players to play at the highest competitive level, and if that means the Championship then that is where they want them to be,” he said. “But the top clubs get it, they understand.

“The top clubs, and the top young talents, want an education which is realistic compared with the one they face with the first team.

“For instance, it is no good Shola or Conor going to play at the bottom end of the Championship because the teams they play for might only get 30 per cent possession, they might never receive the ball where they would get it for Manchester United or Liverpool. They will not be dominating games and the ball like those clubs do, or getting into areas for a team who has to sacrifice the ball and defend, fight for their lives.

“Here, they get that influence. They have the chance to get the ball in tight areas against sides in a low block, who will make it difficult, in a team which is expected to win every week at the level we are at, a huge fanbase, high expectancy.

“Those same principles apply at the top clubs. And though we’re playing at a different level the similarities are there and it is an easier education for them than it would being thrown into the deep end with the first teams.

“That is our sales pitch and these big clubs have bought into it, they see us as a place where their best young players can be educated, which I think we take great credit for.”