WANDERERS felt they were well prepared going into the transfer window but even the best-laid plans sometimes need a review.

January was never expected to be a busy month in the market for Ian Evatt and Chris Markham, more a case of fine tuning.

Bolton’s slim squad had been a topic of debate among the supporters since the summer. Many fans felt more cover was needed in some areas, some skillsets neglected, but Evatt maintained he had enough to meet the targets set at the start of the season.

And he was right. The evidence is right there in the league table. The Whites have the best points-per-game total of anyone in the division, which if continued to May will see them return to Championship level for the first time since 2019.

A perceived shortage of goals has not been an issue. Only Peterborough United can match the 76 they have scored in all competitions so far – and while the cynical may point out that a chunk of them came against Manchester United’s kids, they do still count.

Likewise concerns that the midfield lacks defensive nous or physicality have been eased somewhat by the rise of George Thomason to a regular starter. Bolton have only been matched by Portsmouth on goals conceded so far, and it would take a brave person to suggest that goalkeeper Nathan Baxter has not been a success since signing on a free transfer from Chelsea.

Evatt was relaxed as the transfer window arrived, even with Carlos Mendes Gomes and Gethin Jones called abruptly into their respective international squads for the AFCON and Asian Cup.

The manager expected to keep his recruitment to a minimum, wary of risking a positive and hungry dressing room ecosystem with too big an influx of fresh players. There remained some worries about the depth of options in some areas – the right side of defence being one of them – but the club gave off a confident impression that it was all in hand.

Football has a funny way of detecting these things. And just as Evatt was lining up the “one or two” deals that he felt were needed, circumstances changed, and the demand increased.

First Dan Nlundulu then Will Forrester and Randell Williams, all struck down by hamstring issues. Fears over Kyle Dempsey followed, and Thomason picked up a two-game ban to leave the squad down to just 17 senior players as they contemplated a trip to Carlisle United.

Form has also faltered in a couple of cases, leaving – in Evatt’s own words – the need for new signings to “freshen up” the remaining fit players in the squad.

Should Wanderers have already acted to protect against this sort of thing? It is certainly a question being asked by some supporters as we enter into the final week of the window.

Evatt wanted to protect against having too many senior players displaced from the matchday 18, perhaps learning from what happened last year when players like Declan John and Kieran Sadlier were cut adrift at times.

‘Pre-loading’ with squad players made little financial sense, either. Bolton’s playing budget is bigger than plenty of clubs in League One it is by no means the largest, and there was a sense that any available money would be channelled into making a ‘statement’ signing, rather than being spread around.

What has happened over the last couple of weeks appears to have eased Bolton away from that plan slightly, and on Tuesday night Evatt admitted for the first time that the club might benefit from the up-lifting effect of some fresh blood.

Evatt and Markham have fallen back on their pre-window homework looking to finish January with up to four new signings.

What effect the newly discovered partnership with the Ludonautics sports data advisory firm will have on plans remains to be seen. Ian Graham and Michael Edwards – who is a non-executive director of the company – are considered geniuses in their field and have been chased by some of the top clubs in the world since leaving Liverpool in 2022.

The club hope their input will expand upon and improve the excellent work that Markham and his analysis department have done over the last few years, particularly if Wanderers aim to be playing at a higher level of football in 2024.

“What we are doing here already is fantastic – Chris and his team do a fantastic job on the performance and data side, and the recruitment," Evatt told The Bolton News.

“So what we are trying to do is improve on what we have already got. This does provide that and we are all very much on board and excited by it. I think everyone else should be as well, they are good times to be a Bolton fan.”

Talk around the club is that the partnership with Ludonautics has been made with one eye on the summer recruitment plans, which will hopefully be geared towards Championship football.

“We are always looking to be as smart as we can be – and that means value for money and looking at things slightly differently, outside the box sometimes," Evatt said.

“Again, what I will say, and this is the same message for this window, anything I have asked for from the board they have provided to me. This month will be no different.

“It is a very forward-thinking club and were excited about the future.”

In the here and now, Bolton need to ensure they finish this January window with the type of transformative deals they managed in 2021 and 2022.

Twelve months later, signings like Victor Adeboyejo, Randell Williams, Shola Shoretire, Luke Mbete, Cameron Jerome and Dan Nlundulu proved a mixed bag. It can be argued that some found their feet eventually but their impact on the 2022/23 campaign was not as significant as the club hoped it would be at the time.

With automatic promotion the aim, and within reach, the pressure on signings to be relevant is high.