KEITH Hill insists Wanderers are doing everything they can to strengthen their squad before the close of the January window.

The Bolton boss has thus far brought in two permanent signings, Muhammadu Faal and George Thomason, and two loanees, Brandon Fleming and Ethan Hamilton, since the start of the month.

But it is understood he is targeting at least two more signings before deadline day and Hill is talking confidently about getting new blood on board by the time his side host Bristol Rovers on January 28.

Nobody at the UniBol is giving up on survival in League One despite being 17 points from safety with 20 games to play – a gap no side has ever managed to retrieve at this stage of the campaign.

But eager not to allow the next few months to disappear into insignificance, owners Football Ventures and Hill are keen to inject some fresh impetus.

“Hopefully, leading into the next game, we’ll be getting more business done,” he told The Bolton News. “We have to recruit – we want the fans to be proud. We don’t want it to become It’s a Knockout for the next 20 games. And it wouldn’t be fair on the supporters or the team.

“Trust me, there’s a lot of work being done to make sure I get a better team out there, so the supporters have got something to really grasp going into the end of the season and next season as well.

“People are trying everything they possibly can but we have to be patient and we have to get the right players in this window. If not, we run with what we’ve got.

“I accept anything as long as there’s honesty and the people I am working for are honest with me.”

Wanderers ran Portsmouth close on Saturday – and Hill accepts his own squad lacks the same depth at this moment in time.

“I think fans realise we were beaten by a better-equipped football side, not the better one on the day,” he said. “The league table doesn’t lie, and where they are going as a club, they are better equipped for the rigours of a 46-game season.”