AFC Wimbledon: Bolton Wanderers, Bury FC imports are remembered for all the wrong reasons | OneFootball

The rather forgettable pair created a legacy for themselves that many Wimbledon fans still have a chuckle at years later

Liam Trotter and Tom Soares are not the names that AFC Wimbledon fans tend to remember the midfield pair by.

Instead, the duo are rather unfortunately called "The Wardrobes" due to their languid appearance, and, rather like a wardrobe playing football, their minimal impact on the pitch.

Despite their great EFL experience beforehand, they're remembered as almost comic figures at Wimbledon and something that fans are quite happy is now firmly in the past.

Tom Soares' and Liam Trotter's pedigrees were not on show at AFC Wimbledon

The pair arrived six months apart at AFC Wimbledon, with Trotter joining the club on a free transfer in the summer of 2017 having departed Bolton Wanderers at the end of the season prior, and Soares arriving in January 2017 from Bury, who at the time were not too far away from plunging into their financial nightmares.

And it is fair to say that both arrived with quite some excitement. Trotter had been on the books of Millwall, Scunthorpe United, and Bolton before signing for the Dons, and with all three clubs, he had achieved promotions. He had even captained Millwall during his four-year stint there, showing that with his capture, the club had got themselves a great leader and experienced head in the middle of the pitch, due to him having played over 200 times in the Championship.

Meanwhile, Soares had come through the academy of Crystal Palace to play nearly 175 games for them under Neil Warnock, before making a £1.25m move to Stoke City, then in the Premier League, where he would make a great start to life at the Bet365 stadium, before quickly tailing off and finding himself out on loan moves to Scotland and the EFL.

Getting the pair was a big deal for Neal Ardley, who was keeping the Dons fighting in League One with a budget much better suited to League Two football, and a stadium that was not a sustainable home for the long term if the Dons had ideas on moving on up to divisions above. So it must have been a big disappointment when the pair failed to work out on the pitch.

Soares had had six months to ingratiate himself to the fans, but his performances were somewhat topsy-turvy, with his versatility proving to be his only worthwhile attribute, as on the ball he was not the best technical operator. He failed to impress and could not dislodge the trio of Dannie Bulman, Dean Parrett, and Jake Reeves, who were all favoured ahead due to their far-superior playing style.

Ultimately, despite the departures of all three during his time at the club, he never truly wowed supporters or won their confidence with his performances, with many wishing the club had perhaps done more to convince the aforementioned trio to continue on with the Dons.

Meanwhile, for Trotter, from the moment he stepped onto the pitch for the Dons, he never seemed likely to repeat the performances and form that he had shown at all three of his previous clubs.

He had been joined by his former Millwall teammate Jimmy Abdou at the Dons in the same window, and the Comoros international, who was five years his senior, managed to outrun him in most games during the 17/18 season, and looked much more energetic in the middle of the park.

Trotter, who was 28 in his first season at the Dons, was much slower on the pitch, looking as though he never wanted to get out of second gear, and when he did look like he wanted to make an effort, it was rarely of any use, as they were usually weaker in another area on the field which meant the extra effort was all for nothing.

Soares and Trotter remembered as "The Wardrobes" at AFC Wimbledon

The pair have left a legacy at AFC Wimbledon but not in the traditional sense.

Over the remainder of their contracts, their performances, despite a handful of goals being contributed by the pair, did certainly not pick up, and instead of being sold on for any money to reinvest into buying some midfield upgrades after their disastrous spells at the Dons, both were released.

So where exactly does their legacy come from? Well, simply put, they managed to get themselves some rather unique nicknames.

Their effort on the pitch, or lack thereof, and overall contributions to the efforts of the Dons' midfield while they were contracted to the club, meant that a fair number of supporters around the ground ended up calling the duo, "The Wardrobes", as like their furniture counterparts, they were just two, slow-moving, cumbersome players on the pitch.

And their nickname still emerges from time to time, especially when a midfield signing is made, in the hopes that Dons fans do not have to bear witness to similar midfielders, and so far, they seem to have avoided that.

From players that have had interesting careers that are still developing, such as George Dobson and George Marsh, to more recent operators who have really become modern-day cult icons such as Anthony Wordsworth and Jack Rudoni, there have not been too many duds coming through the door at Wimbledon.

So, while it is a memorable title to go by among fans in the present day, the signings of Trotter and Soares are really and truly remembered by all for reasons that footballers would rather they were not.