Bolton Wanderers eyeing double European deal, says Ian Evatt

Ian Evatt has had to wait patiently for his targets to become available at home and abroad this summer but has confirmed that this week’s fixtures in the Champions, Europa and Conference Leagues should see him closer to completing one of his transfer missions.

Kilmarnock’s English-born Danny Armstrong has been strongly linked with a move to Bolton, and the club are also known to have scouted central Europe extensively over the last 12 months.

New rules introduced by the FA allow clubs in League One to sign two players per season who do not meet the current points requirements of the international visa system.

Evatt says the deal closest to completion does not hinge on the result of the player’s game in midweek.

“It’s not necessarily rooting for other teams – but in one case, certainly, we are waiting for the conclusion of that match to get to the next stage,” he told The Bolton News.

Wanderers have been able to expand their network of data in the last 12 months, Chris Markham’s recruitment department also now aided by Ludonautics, the company owned by former Liverpool FC director of research, Ian Graham.

That has enabled them to get better information on players in foreign markets, with the Belgian league one of their earliest projects. It is understood that the net has now been widened to central European countries such as Hungary and Poland.

As The Bolton News went to press links had emerged online with Hungary international Szabolcs Schon, who has been playing in the Conference League for Fehérvár.

Szabolcs Schön, right, in action against England's Kyle Walker in 2021 (Image: PA)

The club has kept tight-lipped over the identity of their targets all summer but Evatt is optimistic that the groundwork laid over the past year can yield results in the current window.

“Since the rules have changed and we have two spots, we are in a position to take advantage of them,” he said. “It opens up the market for us and players who would not necessarily have been accessible to us in the past.

“Certain positions are very hard to find in this country, for instance, it is a really big help to be able to recruit from overseas.

“We are doing our best to bring the right ones in and both of those spots could be filled this summer.”

Meanwhile, Wanderers could use the weekend’s B Team game at Atherton Colls to give some of their returning first team players some much-needed minutes.

The game at Port Vale will be geared towards the line-up likely to start at Leyton Orient on August 10 but Evatt is keen to bring other players through as fast as possible as they return from injury.

He said: “I think we can still be very competitive but I think we will get better as the season starts and progresses. Titles and promotions, any rewards, are not handed out in August. Obviously we know the importance of trying to start well, and we will do what we can, but this has been a summer of chasing our tail a little bit.

“Post-Wembley, which was obviously a late finish, we had injuries which have been carried over into pre-season, and a lot of them as well. It isn’t ideal.

“Our recruitment has been slow because of the context I have talked about. We are going to get better but we just need to be a little bit better.”