Ten things that Bolton Wanderers fans always see on transfer deadline day

We wake up. Anything is possible. Hints have been dropped that Wanderers will be in the market to sign someone but by lunchtime that optimism starts to fade. By teatime there is anger, some of it aimed towards the local journalist who has left himself exposed by running a live blog.

Things are tense. Fans start to scour Twitter accounts with dozens of followers hoping to unearth a nugget of news. Emojis with skeletons drumming their fingers at a desk are posted. And then it happens.

The club announce a signing, all is right with the world.

2. Middlebrook sightings.

From Peter Odemwingie to Lionel Messi, every footballer worth their salt has been spotted queueing for a lottery ticket in Horwich Tesco, or sitting down for a cheeky Nandos a couple of hundred yards away from the UniBol.

Since the transfer window system started in 2003, eagle-eyed Wanderers fans have spotted a couple of potential signings, so don’t worry about how outlandish it sounds, guys, let us know.

3. Someone asks about a loan deal with Chelsea.

Long, long ago, a story was published about an agreement with Chelsea that would see at least one of their best young players loaned to Bolton as a makeweight in the deal which sold Gary Cahill to the Blues in 2012.

Wanderers denied it at the time. But nevertheless, the rumour continued to circulate, year after year, gaining legendary status among the supporters.

Owen Coyle – the Bolton manager at the time – may well have struck a personal agreement with the then-Stamford Bridge chief Andre Villas-Boas but neither man was long for this parish and the chances of it happening came and went when they left the job.

4. Miguel, my belle.

It is 13 years since Miguel Veloso first appeared on Bolton Wanderers’ radar, at a time when spending £12million on a player did not seem ridiculous.

The Sporting Lisbon midfielder had international pedigree with Portugal and Gary Megson felt he was the deep-lying playmaker who could transform his team from scrappers into contenders.

The story rumbled on until the erstwhile Ginger Mourinho left the club but Bolton had balked on the asking price and eventually settled on signing Sean Davis on a free transfer.

The ghost of the rumour lingers on. Veloso is 35 now and captaining Verona in Italy. Don’t write it off.

5. Shine a Lita!

Before Veloso, there was Leroy Lita. Quite why the striker was so regularly linked with Bolton no-one really knows, but for several deadline days fans waited with bated breath to see if they could snag some cheap printing on the back of their shirt.

Nowadays, Lita is 37 and playing for Stratford Town. You can get a Memmo message from him for a tenner. Fair play to the lad.

6. X Marks the spot.

All joking aside, it is one of the great tragedies of Bolton Wanderers’ recent history that one of their most talented players, Mark Davies, never managed to fulfil his potential.

In full-flow, the Midlander was a modern Gascoigne, able to run with the ball at his feet faster than most folk could sprint.

Sadly, those days were few and far between. Injuries struck again and again, until in August 2016 he succumbed to yet another cruciate ligament tear and played his final game.

Without a proper announcement marking his retirement there has long been an interest in Bolton on what Davies is doing now and whether he will pull on a pair of boots again.

He was pencilled in to play in Gethin Jones’ fundraiser late last year but sadly could not attend. And each deadline day, Wanderers fans gather to raise a glass to one of the great unfulfilled talents.

7. Tickle me, Emo.

There was a time in Bolton Wanderers’ recent history that a certain person, known to most supporters, would choose to hint at a potential signing using a string of emojis on Twitter.

The advanced warning would send folk inside the club into a rage – as it rarely coincided with the deal being a) done, or b) ready for the general public to be whipped into a frenzy. But it probably got the person responsible some likes on Twitter and a few more followers.

In honour of this peculiar method of communication, Bolton fans often choose to talk only in the language of emoji on Transfer Deadline Day. Lol.

8. What the Fax?

Perhaps the most famous transfer miss of them all at Bolton happened in 2004, when Brazil star Rivaldo appeared to be on the verge of playing at the Reebok.

Even now, writing that sentence, it feels odd. But the man himself confirmed to The Bolton News in an interview in 2008 that he had seriously entertained moving to Lancashire.

Wanderers’ late chairman Phil Gartside once claimed to possess evidence of the deal – a fax in his pocket, in fact – which has since passed on into Bolton legend as a knowing wink towards a transfer that was never going to happen.

9. Paperwork is in…

Wanderers are beggars for leaving things late. Even when the window has slammed shut, we sometimes don’t know whether a deal has been done in time to fit in with the league rules.

We all remember Marvin Sordell’s move from Watford. Confirmed at 2am it remains one of the latest deals Bolton have done. It would be nice to see Ian Evatt sort his business out in daylight hours, if possible, we have all got a game on Tuesday.

10. Biscuits.

Don’t ask us why, but biscuits have become synonymous with Wanderers’ transfer deadline days. And never one to scoff at tradition, our chief football writer has vowed to play his part. From Bourbon to Custard Cream, Garibaldi to Hobnob, no dunkable delight will be left in the packet before 11pm.