Bolton Wanderers: Squad

Morning to you all, and a warm welcome from a Belfast so soggy there is a real chance that myself and Mrs X will be kayaking down the Falls Road sometime this afternoon.

And that, I`m sure, will be a bundle of fun.

This will be a short one I`m afraid, as I have a feeling that the restaurant will be running out of soda bread. So, just a word on the start of pre season training.

Well, it`s started and, by the looks of the photos on the official site, everyone is up and running. Chris Eagles has had a haircut and the large sight of Tom Eaves at the back of the group is sure to be taken as a sign by some that he will play some part this season. The club also announced the capture, if that is the right word, of Joe McKee, two days after he announced it himself, whilst the likes of Sanmi Odelusi and Alex McQuade, whose name makes him sound more like an elephant hunter than a footballer, have signed professional contracts.

Of course, the main thing is the change in squad numbers. Stuart Holden has taken over Jussi`s number 22 shirt, as he considers it to be lucky. So, all those who had Holden shirts last season in sympathy with his year long injury will find themselves more out of date than others. Keith Andrews takes over Holden`s number 8 shirt whilst Tim Ream moves to the number 5 shirt vacated by Gary Cahill in January. Matt Mills is given the number 4, now that Paul Robinson no longer needs it and David N`Gog is given number 9. No pressure there then. Tyrone Mears has been given Steinsson`s vacant number 2.

In a squad game, the number that a player is given doesn`t necessarily correlate with whether they will be first choice, but you feel that quite a lot of these number should correspond with how often a player will feature. Ream and Mills and their low numbers will, hopefully, mean that Zat Knight will be seen more on the bench and Keith Andrews number 8 should see him line up alongside Holden in midfield, especially with OC saying that Mark Davies is DEFINITELY not being signed by anyone, meaning that he would really like someone to sign Mark Davies. N`Gog`s number 9 should see him get more games than its previous incumbent.

Naturally, players like Ricketts and SKD stay the same, as why should they change. Sordell and Vela have had their squad numbers changed but kept high, looking like they will be used more from the bench. Again.

Naturally, this is all pure guesswork as we have no idea who will be staying and who will be leaving the club before the season kicks off. However, it should give us some idea as to who will be lining up against Burnley come August.

Right, I`m off for a rather large Irish. So, the top of the morning to you.