Bolton Wanderers fan column: Charlton defeat & Matete impact

The duality of the last week has shown both what Bolton Wanderers can do when they are on top form, and what happens when they are not.

Saturday’s 2-0 defeat to Charlton Athletic was tough to watch, more so because they were just second best across the pitch. Even Ian Evatt admitted that the Addicks got it right on the day whilst Wanderers did not, which says a lot about the job that Nathan Jones is doing down there and the type of team who will be challenging at the right side of the table.

You could argue that both goals were very poor to concede and of Bolton’s own doing, but especially the first in which an errant Ricardo Santos pass allowed Greg Docherty to find space on the edge of the box and fire home. After that, Bolton could just not break down a resolute Charlton defence after falling behind.

John McGinlay made a note on commentary about how Bolton needed to expose the wide areas more, saying how as a striker he would always want to attack the ball as it is crossed into the box. It is a fair point, and who am I to argue about the intricacies of the forward position with a legend like that?

I understand the way Bolton play and sometimes there is a need to pass the ball into the box by linking up numerous players, but watching the outlay of passes on the edge of Charlton’s box whilst being unable to break them down was a tough watch.

I made this argument on social media but the one complaint is that when Bolton attack there is a lack of true pace, it is normally death by a thousand cuts in the form of passing. Saturday was not fun to watch, especially when it seemed like mistakes from last season were being repeated.

As for Tuesday in the Carabao Cup, Bolton were much better. Yes, Shrewsbury are hardly a top side and will struggle this season, but the intensity and pace in which Bolton attacked and dominated was more of what we need to see.

Evatt himself was pleased after the game, but the test is to now carry that back over into the league. Alongside that will represent some tough choices - Does Eoin Toal get dropped for Chris Forino? Does Kyle Dempsey get a run in the starting line-up? Does Victor Adeboyejo (should he not leave) come in for Aaron Collins?

It would be fair to summarise that Bolton have not looked like world beaters to start the season. They did beat Leyton Orient on the opening day, but they should have won against Wrexham and have not been at their best whatsoever.

But the season is still very early and we are a long, long way from the panic alarms sounding.

A team to believe in

By Becca Ashworth

(Image: Bolton Wanderers)

When, in 2022, the Lionesses’ Euro’s victory provoked a surge in interest for women’s football and the WSL, I felt as though I had been left on the bench. 

Like the rest of the country, I was jubilant at England’s victory and newly invested in the women’s game, but when the regular season returned, I was sidelined by my loyalties.

Jealously watching as my friends picked up support for women’s teams with ease, I tussled with a fundamental support for the sport and an ambivalence to the teams I was watching on the pitch. I simply couldn’t brand myself a Liverpool, Arsenal or Chelsea supporter, to name just a few of the dire options laid before me.

As much as I wanted to throw myself into women’s football, the sport felt just out of reach. I kept watching as the Switzerland of the sport, unable to declare any one allegiance, but deeply invested. Secretly, I held myself back in hope that a Bolton Wanderers Women’s team would come to my rescue. This season, they have.

Out of all the announcements over the past year, new signings included, the one that got me most excited (up on my feet, jumping for joy type of excitement) was the reveal of the plans for the women’s side of the club. I have not been disappointed since. As I write, the newly arranged team has secured three successive victories, and are about to kick off in search of a fourth. Not only that, but these victories have been resounding, from a 6-0, to a 1-0 and, most impressively, a 9-0. The players have burst onto the scene in impressive form and have made a very compelling case for our support.

I’m grateful: not just for the calibre of their performances, but for the team at all. It’s exciting to see the club investing in the women’s game, especially with the ambitious aspirations to reach the Women’s Championship within a few years. The club and team’s enthusiasm has been contagious, and I have well and truly caught the bug. 

This is the first season when I have been lucky enough to be as excited for a women’s team as I am for the men’s season. Bolton Wanderers Women have done for me what the Lionesses did for England back in 2022: they have reignited my excitement for the female side of the sport we all love – an excitement that never left me, but that faltered when faced with teams I just couldn’t bring myself to support. Now, Wanderers fans, we have a team to support, and they’re crushing it. It’s time to back them all the way to promotion.

In Defence of xG

By Becca Ashworth

Well, this has all felt familiar. It’s almost enough to make you feel nostalgic: 90 minutes of running around with 68% possession, zero goals but an xG statistic that knocks the opposition out the water. 

Ahh, xG, often branded as the most useless statistic in football. I see it differently: it’s the most painful statistic in football. Sure, we should have scored more goals than them, but we didn’t. XG is not the pat on the back, the “well done for trying” statistic that everyone makes it out to be. Rather it’s that intrusive thought that nags at you late at night: “you didn’t do well enough – you let yourself down”. It’s a haunting reminder — the ghost of the goals we simply didn’t get. Moreover, it’s the ghost of the mistakes that cost us last season.

I’ll relent: XG is a reminder that things are not as dire as they first appear. We’ve dominated possession and created chances. Saying that, I realise I should dig my happy clappers out now. I can feel your groans and eye rolls even as I write. Look, I get it, and before you slam my article down in a huff, let me reassure you: I don’t think we’ve been good enough in the league so far this season.

The happy clapper in me is desperate to say, “it’s early doors,” to remind me that there’s plenty of time to turn it around. That happy clapper is right — the team is still clicking, we’re still learning this season’s vastly changed league, and there is indeed plenty of time to turn things around. However, that change will not come unprovoked, and despite its eye-roll-inducing capacity, xG might provide the perfect kick up the backside needed to turn things around.

It’s not the answer in itself, obviously; it’s simply a number on a piece of paper, and, as we all know, football isn’t played on paper. It does, however, create questions: if we had an xG of 1.62 to their 0.23, how come we came away with nothing?

When people see or hear xG mentioned, they envision it as the defence against a poor performance — the lawyer coming in with excuses on behalf of its defendant. It is deployed this way, granted, but there is more use in the opposite. XG has the potential to be a vicious prosecutor, proving that something has gone wrong and inquiring into what that might be.

It is a signpost to address an issue that let us down last season and threatens to do so again. If we use it as a starting point — a tool to recognise and address our shortcomings — then I’ll gladly take the xG trophy, so long as it’s accompanied by some goals to write home about too.

The Josh Sheehan conundrum

By James Scott

(Image: Camerasport)

Perhaps the biggest victim of the formation tweak has been Bolton’s Player of the Year last season, Josh Sheehan. Having notched up double figure assists from the base of a midfield three, the Welshman has found himself struggling to get into games in this campaign so far.

Other than a solid first half against Wrexham where the visitors failed to close down Bolton’s number eight, Sheehan has been hounded consistently, finding himself on the fringes of the action and unable to deliver decisive passes or make an impact.

Last season, Sheehan was protected by two strong and energetic players in front of him that consistently helped out in defensive scenarios. George Thomason’s grit is a trademark of his game, and although less talked about because of his attacking exploits, Paris Maghoma got stuck into some key battles, allowing Sheehan time on the ball to work his magic.

After tweaking the system, a structured midfield three has become a more fluid defensively minded midfield two. As a result, Bolton have lost the battle in all three of their opening league fixtures, most notably when the Sheehan and Thomason were dominated by the power of Charlton on Saturday.

By sacrificing a spot in midfield in search of unlocking opposition defences more freely, Bolton need to make sure that the duo in the middle can cope with the power and physicality of League One. On the evidence so far, Sheehan needs to work on the more dogged side of his game if Bolton are to make the new formation work. His on the ball work is excellent but his presence and grit lacks in part.

On Tuesday, Thomason lined up with Jay Matete in the middle, both of whom possess more natural defensive abilities and the power to compete in this division. Although Shrewsbury did not provide the toughest test, they are still a side that Wanderers will have to face twice more this season, and for the first time the midfield battle was dominated by Bolton’s pair.

It would seem crazy to leave out the player who single-handedly dragged Wanderers through a tough patch in February and March, as injuries all around saw Sheehan as one of the few consistent starters, and he stepped up to the plate. He is a fantastic footballer with arguably the best passing range and vision in League One.

And yet, if Ian Evatt is to persist with the new formation, Sheehan may be the player who is left out of tough encounters that might suit the aggressive Matete slightly more. He has the ability to keep his spot, but for Bolton to reach their goals for the season, there might need to be some extra defensive firepower necessary in the middle.

Can't put your finger on it

By Chris McKeown

Football is unique, it can bring up emotions that can change in an instance, and then change them back again, just as quick.

Outsiders look at it as ‘just a sport’ but if you’re a fan you know it’s much more, for some it’s a way of life, it’s also a step away form the normal day to day pressures and for 90 minutes you get transported to a different realm.

There’s something about it you can’t quite describe, it’s more of a feeling. You either understand that (almost innately) or you’ll forever wonder what all the fuss is about!

So, that brings me to BWFC...

It’s fair to say we’ve experienced a fair share of emotions already this campaign.

Just two weeks ago and after a very decent pre season, Bolton beat Leyton Orient and made the dream start - definitely things to work on but some of the play and the strength of the bench, made for plenty of optimism.

Fast forward to a cup win and then a hard fought draw against Wrexham, it was looking promising. Then came Charlton.

Now to lose isn’t the end of the world, the Addicks are much improved and it was always going to be a tough match. However, the luckless mistake which gifted the opening goal to them, seemingly took away some of the players momentum, and more noticeably, dented the supporters confidence.

I have spoken before about the need for a fast start to build conviction that this team was ready for the promotion battle. For a blip to come, and come so soon, is unfortunate, it opened up the (not so old) wound from Wembley.

That’s not to say it is the be all and end all. However, there does appear to be a fragility and perhaps a wariness of a fanbase that has been hurt, scared to put their heart on the line once more. But they always do - it is a loyal fan base, one that will continue to turn up and shout the Wanderers on.

I have to say that if the rebuild of confidence is akin to a ‘house of cards’- we need positive results to add concrete to its foundations. To look at it differently, or to try to take a positive, hopefully the ‘bad game’ is out of the way, the response at Shrewsbury lifted the spirits ever so slightly.

Another bonus is how the fixtures have now fallen, with the international break postponement, it gives Ian Evatt the perfect opportunity to regroup his efforts on the training ground.

Added to that, we now have three home league games on the trot, which is just what the doctor ordered. If we can come out of this period with a significant points tally, it gets the fans buzzing again and removes any scepticism in the air, then the push for the top two is very much on.

It does feel like it’s time to push on, the team is full of enough quality to do the job (perhaps with more to happen in the transfer window before it shuts this weekend?)

A Community Day this Saturday at the Toughsheet will guarantee another bumper crowd. The opportunity presents itself to put last week's result out the minds of both the players and supporters alike by having a convincing performance and taking the three points against Exeter.

The season will definitely have its ups and downs but we must keep on track. The emotional rollercoaster continues!

Are you Paris in disguise?

By Lee Sidebotham

I’m not a fan of letting Morley leave on loan.

I feel his style of play, as well as his passing and set pieces, will be severely missed. Sure, he’ll probably get more game time at Adams Park, but take last Saturday as an example as to why we need as much creativity in the squad as we can. However, there is another player we could look to.

I thought Matete was our Man of the Match against Charlton, despite being on the pitch less than half an hour. I mentioned last week how his ability to carry the ball from defence into attack mirrors Paris last year. He did exactly that when he came on against the Addicks.

The only time we seemed to get anywhere near their penalty area was when he had the ball. Matete coupled with Dempsey, who also deserves some credit for his performance when he came on, looks to be a great alternative to Sheehan and Thomason when things aren’t going our way. They should have come on a lot sooner in my opinion.

Santos made two mistakes by trying to play the ball on floor from the back which ultimately cost us the game. Perhaps if Matete was there to retrieve it from midfield, we’d have been less susceptible to these errors. Sheehan also found himself once again marked out of the game. I can’t help but think he would have found more space with someone like Matete alongside him.

Now, I’m not saying we should start reverting to our old tactics to fit him in the side. We’ve learnt from previous seasons that we can’t just rely on one player. But we should find a way to get him in, especially when the midfield just can’t seem to create anything like last week. We shouldn’t be afraid to change back to a 5-3-2 if what we’re doing isn’t working.

I also thought he had a solid game Tuesday night against Shrewsbury. There was no issue getting the ball into the final third this time and I think Matete had a big part to play in that.

Just like Paris, it seems like he can do it all in midfield. He can drive the ball forward 15 to 20 yards up the pitch, he can play through balls into the quick forward runners, and he can make crucial challenges in support of the defence. It proves yet again how good our recruitment system is and how we’ve managed to get a player of his calibre on loan.

He’s a proven box-to-box midfielder who has already helped Plymouth clinch promotion two years ago. And, if given the opportunity, I believe he can help us do the same this season.