IAN Evatt has a plan for targeted improvement this summer which he feels can push Wanderers closer to promotion contention in League One.

Seeking to put the days of mass recruitment behind him, the Bolton boss has identified a smaller group of players he wants to add to his squad.

Goalkeeper James Trafford and wing-back Marlon Fossey – who both played on loan at Bolton last season – are well-known targets.

Manchester City are yet to indicate what level Trafford will be pitched at next season but Fossey’s move from Fulham is understood to be close to completion.

Elsewhere, Wanderers are among a cluster of clubs believed to be interested in AFC Wimbledon’s Ayoub Assal, who could leave the London club this summer after relegation to League Two.

Tom Barkhuizen, another winger recently released by Preston North End, has also been heavily linked.

Evatt has kept schtum on the finer details of his recruitment but says the creation of a new B Team will enable him to spread his players further and establish for the first time the level of competition he wants in the squad.

“I think now we’re getting to a stage where we’ve got the squad layered to how we want it in terms of ability level,” he said.

“The B team coming to fruition in the summer will help us manage some of the ones that we don’t feel are ready for the first team but we feel are too good to be letting go right now to give them some more development time.

“I think that how the team has performed over the second half of the season, we can now be not necessarily be more picky but we can identify certain areas of the team that we specifically want to improve and go out and get those positions.

“I think the first two years have been pretty much everywhere all of the time to improve.

“I think we’re at a stage now where we’re happy with certain parts of our game and certain parts of the team.

“We now need to be really choosy and picky as to what gets us over the line to the next level and really gets us ahead of the top 10 teams in this division.”

Evatt hopes the momentum gained post-January can spill over into next season and is now tasked with a squad which can remain more consistent over the course of 46 games.

But taking a step back from his summer search, the Bolton boss says it is important to recognise the progress made in the last couple of years.

“I think where we’ve got to right now is incredible and I think sometimes you can lose sight and lose perspective because we’re all people that want to win, we’re involved in a wonderful game and a wonderful industry,” he said. “The business of football is all about winning and we want success here and now, but sometimes we’ve travelled such a long way in the two years I’ve been here and we’re getting to the stage now where there are no excuses. We want to be challenging, we need to be challenging and I know that more than anybody else.

“But I’m really proud of what we’re building, I’m really proud of how we’ve done it and the most important thing is our connection again with our town and fanbase is extraordinary so lots of positives but we know the hard work is coming.”