WANDERERS have reached a symbolic crossroads after three successive defeats, which left them at the exact midway point of the League One table.

When a gritty home win against Shrewsbury Town parked the club on the fringes of the play-off spots three weeks ago, excitable fans chatted about promotion possibilities and the impressive depth of Ian Evatt’s squad.

Three weeks later, a pounding by Wigan at the UniBol and a rain-soaked lesson from league leaders Plymouth Argyle dampened the hubris considerably.

A particularly concentrated run of injuries has exposed weaker spots of the squad and magnified a loss of goalscoring form among a handful of Bolton’s attacking players.

It has been a spectacularly quick fall from grace for a side who – rightly or wrongly – were being billed as the ‘best in League One’ until very recently. But is it time for real concern, or are Bolton Wanderers just finding a natural level as a side only just promoted from League Two?

Some have reacted to the recent drop in form by calling for a bigger transfer budget to be given to Evatt in January.

Such a move seems unlikely. Not only is planning already in place for the next window, but also for the following summer thanks to a freshly bolstered recruitment department.

Everyone from Sharon Brittan, to Evatt, Chris Markham and Neil Hart has discussed shopping “smarter” in the transfer market, and to change tack at this stage and throw money at it – assuming it is available - would be an unusual move indeed.

Budget-wise, Wanderers are understood to have brought themselves within ‘a few million’ of break-even, which would appear to be Football Ventures’ eventual aim.

The word “sustainability” has rarely been far from people’s lips at the UniBol and the decision to stick with the vast majority of last season’s squad and using their promotion momentum was unquestionably a cost-effective gamble.

The challenge for Bolton’s owners, for any owners, in fact, is when financial prudence finds itself challenged by supporters’ ambitions. And were the Whites’ current problems to persist towards the New Year, that might well happen sooner than we all thought.

The best-case scenario for Football Ventures and Brand Evatt is to vie for promotion this season with the current mid-level budget, for the goodwill to continue and relationships continue to flourish in the town, and for the remedial work to continue within the club, the training ground, the hotel and the stadium.

For that to happen, however, a blip in form cannot be allowed to snowball, or for the gap between Wanderers and the promotion pack to become greater than those concerned with relegation.

On paper, Bolton’s run to Christmas and the window looks more appetising than that of the last couple of months, and so they should have ample opportunity to fix the issues which have cropped up.

Eoin Doyle’s worrying run of games without a goal is all the more concerning because there is no other player in the squad with a proven scoring record at this level.

Amadou Bakayoko has struggled to make an impact in his two league starts since returning from injury and the optimistic view is that he just needs some more time before recapturing the sort of dominant form he showed at the very start of his Bolton career.

Alternatively, some will point out that his record at Coventry was more of a supplementary goal-scorer and that he is really just confirming to type.

A similarly pragmatic view can be taken of several starters in Evatt’s side, who are currently playing in the top range of football their career has allowed them.

“I have been here long enough to know there is always expectation,” said Evatt earlier this week, when it was suggested that the pressure had eased off a little as his side went to league leading Plymouth.

And part of that expectation is self-imposed. Just as they did last season, Evatt and his players have set their targets sky high, even when many of the Wanderers fans would be content with progress, in their heart of hearts.

Thus far it has been a campaign of all or nothing. Rarely has a Bolton team walked off the pitch without damning criticism or joyous praise, and perhaps that is the middle ground that Evatt needs to find next.

A win against Gillingham this weekend won’t mean a promotion chase is back on but it will show that this team can shake off disappointment and start again without the need for crisis.