Bolton Wanderers backed to sign creative star as bid is accepted | OneFootball

With Joel Randall rumoured to be joining the Trotters' already bloated creative midfield, is this the sign of a long-term plan at the Toughsheet?

This article is part of Football League World's 'Terrace Talk' series, which provides personal opinions from our FLW Fan Pundits regarding the latest breaking news, teams, players, managers, potential signings and more...

Bolton Wanderers have reportedly seen their bid for attacking midfielder Joel Randall accepted, according to Peterborough Today.

Wanderers' continued interest in Randall began in the summer, when a lucrative £1.5m offer was turned down by current club Peterborough United.

Already a known quantity in League One, the 25-year-old has so far collected five goals and two assists in this season's third-tier.

The Trotters currently sit nine places and twelve points above a struggling Posh, though bizarrely, the Cambridgeshire side have been among the highest scorers in the division, despite finding themselves in a very real relegation battle.

This rare combination of attacking talent in abundance and gloomy fortunes make Peterborough a sitting duck for intra-divisional transfer interest, with Randall purportedly the first to jump a potentially sinking ship.

The Wilshire-born playmaker is undoubtedly a top talent at League One level, but with Bolton already possessing at least five players capable of playing in his preferred position, could this move be an unnecessary one for Ian Evatt's play-off-chasing side?

Joel Randall would represent "long-term improvement" says pundit

We spoke to our resident Trotters pundit, Liam O'Meara, about whether he would be happy with the acquisition of Randall, or whether another creative attacking midfielder was the last thing that the Greater Manchester club needed.

"It would be quite right to assume that a creative midfielder is the last thing that Bolton need. However, what I think they may be looking at is upgrading on options longer-term rather than looking at a short-term solution for this season.

"When looking at the situation with Kyle Dempsey, he is a potential out, and they may be looking at an upgrade on him. There is a similar potential for Carlos Mendes Gomes; they may be trying to get him out, also.

"These are not things I would necessarily do, but I think Bolton are looking at long-term improvement, and the purchase of Randall, in the eyes of Bolton, represents that."

While O'Meara acknowledges that the creative midfield roster is somewhat bloated already, the acquisition of Randall is indicative of a wider plan to improve the squad long-term.

Randall would have competition at Bolton Wanderers

With Peterborough's promotion hopes all but extinguished, a move to Bolton Wanderers represents a slim, yet entirely realistic, chance of Championship football next season for Joel Randall.

Despite this, for the former Exeter man to be confident of the move, he will undoubtedly require some assurances regarding his playtime.

Having started six of the Wanderers' last seven games, summer signing Klaidi Lolos has seemingly commanded the number ten role for the time being, and will presumably be Randall's direct competition for minutes should the deal go through.

The Greek forward has recently found his feet in England's North West, with three goal-involvements since Boxing Day.

While his transfer fee from Crawley remains unknown, it is reasonable to assume that it didn't come close to the believed £1.5 million fee proposed for Randall in early July.

With this in mind, it is reasonable to suggest that Lolos would indeed be immidiately placed down the pecking order.

It would be unfortunate timing for Lolos to lose his starting berth, but as O'Meara states, this could be a ruthless, yet calculated, statement from Bolton, who may be attempting to curate a Championship-ready side, regardless of their eventual fate.