WANDERERS face an international tug-of-war to land the free agent Ian Evatt hopes can make a big difference to their League One fortunes.

After opting against bringing in a loan from a Premier League club on deadline day, Bolton have left one space free in the squad they submitted to the EFL this week.

The Whites have been keen to keep details of the deal private and it was hoped that the player in question could be signed up over the international break, but Evatt has revealed that interest from abroad has now made negotiations more difficult.

“We are working hard to make it happen,” he told The Bolton News. “The issue we have is that other leagues are still trying to sign players too – and not necessarily just in this country.

“We have a battle and a wrestle on our hands but we are doing as much as we can, within reason, but we are hopeful and we have left a spot clear. Everyone will see that when we publish the list with the EFL, so we want to fill it.”

Wanderers hope to have a few players back from injury after the international break, and Evatt says his medical and sports science staff are looking hard at ways in which absences – particularly muscular problems – can be reduced in the future.

Victor Adeboyejo and Scott Arfield are among the players set to return, and the club also hope that Eoin Toal will not be far away after he returns from international duty.

“We need them back fit because we have had some challenging times so far already this season, it seems to be our way,” Evatt said.

“We are looking at it all the time on how we can make the players more robust and how we can prevent these scenarios and situations.

“Some of it is not our fault, Klaidi’s injury was something we could do absolutely nothing about, but we are trying to do all we can to try and avoid the muscular ones. It is a challenge but we want to be better all the time.”

Wanderers have lost back-to-back games in the league against Charlton and Exeter City and has only lost three in a row on three previous occasions in his four years in charge.

Evatt remains adamant that his team can turn a corner once they have players back from injury and intends to use this week’s break to maximum advantage.

“We need to reset now and that is what I have said to the players,” he added. “Everyone needs to forget last season, stop talking about it, myself included. And we need to focus on this season.

“Yes, we lost two games, two games out of seven. I still think we had control in both those games but it was down to us that we lost them. We need to improve and get better, find our shooting boots. We have done it before, won games and gone on lengthy winning runs and I believe this team can do the same.”