THE first games of Wanderers’ pre-season have been put in place, with Steven Schumacher’s side set to face Barrow and Shrewsbury in July.
Bolton’s summer schedule will include a game at the So Legal Stadium (Holker Street) on Tuesday, July 15 (kick-off 7pm).
Wanderers will then travel to face Shrewsbury at the Croud Meadow on Tuesday, July 22 (7pm kick-off).
Players are due to return to the training ground at the end of next month, with Schumacher confirming a “trip” was planned as part of the preparations for the new campaign.
The fixture list is announced at midday on Thursday, June 26, with the League One season commencing on the weekend of August 1.
Schumacher is expected to make several signings this summer and has already been linked with a string of goalkeepers including Chelsea’s Teddy Sharman-Lowe, QPR’s Murphy Cooper and, most recently, Crystal Palace’s Owen Goodman, who is on loan with League Two play-off finalists Wimbledon.
Although changes are afoot, the Bolton boss insists he has also seen signs around the squad in inherited that bode well for the future.
“We fell away a little bit towards the end, now injuries played a big part in that,” he explained. “We had 12-13 senior players out who had all been playing – good, senior players who you’d miss, and any squad with that number of injuries suffers.
“Also, getting the squad to play how I want to play, without that balance, it just wasn’t possible. It has been difficult but we will address that over the summer with recruitment if we can.
“I have seen loads of positives, the running stats have been higher, we have had a lot more opportunities in transition which is how I like to jobs" target="_blank">work, we have seen certain things in the team which looks like the style we want.
“But we also know we need some other players as well to execute that style and carry out the gameplan. We have got good players here, but we fell short, we need better players that can help us play exactly how I want to play next year.”
Schumacher is confident he will be able to bring in players this summer who can complement the existing squad and ensure a sustained push for promotion next season.
“I am positive about it,” he said. “When I came here in January and went through the interview process, spoke to Sharon and Nick, they said it was going to be difficult and that there would be ups and downs with the way the squad was, the balance of the squad,” he said.
“I understood that but I genuinely did feel we could make the play-offs, I was honest about that. We didn’t manage to do that but I also had one eye on next year and if we didn’t do it, what does next year look like?
“I have a really good idea now, I have had four months to assess the group and for me it’s really clear to see what needs to be done and what has to get better.”
Share