Exclusive: Bolton Wanderers plot move for Wrexham striker Paul Mullin | OneFootball

The Trotters are lining up a surprise raid of Wrexham for the out of favour attacker

Bolton Wanderers were one of the pre-season favourites for promotion from League One, but they've seen their results falter in recent weeks.

The Trotters ended the 2024-25 campaign on a seven-match winless streak, which included five losses, and that saw manager Steven Schumacher make significant changes to his first-team squad, with no fewer than 14 new signings at the Toughsheet Community Stadium.

And whilst Wanderers have been in the top six of the third tier since early November, they have won just one of their last six league matches, with their latest result being a 3-1 defeat away at resurgent Peterborough United.

Currently sitting sixth in the league, Schumacher is eyeing up some extra fire-power for the final few months of the season, and an individual that has recently been playing for Bolton's rivals Wigan Athletic is being surprisingly eyed.

Bolton Wanderers eyeing deal for Wrexham outcast Paul Mullin

FLW can exclusively reveal that Schumacher is plotting a move for his fellow Liverpudlian Paul Mullin, who has returned to Wrexham this month following his half-season stint with Wigan.

Mullin was key to Wrexham's rise from the National League to League One, scoring 62 goals in 84 league matches across two promotion-winning seasons to help the Red Dragons into the third tier.

However, after taking time to get back up to speed following pre-season back surgery in 2024, Mullin failed to make much of an impact in League One, scoring three times from his 26 outings under Phil Parkinson, before being completely shunned in the second half of the season, with the likes of Sam Smith and Jay Rodriguez favoured at the Racecourse Ground.

Farmed out to Schumacher's former boss Ryan Lowe at Wigan this past summer on a loan deal, Mullin scored five goals in all competitions for the Latics, but he managed just seven league starts out of his 20 outings, and was left out of two matchday squads prior to the transfer window re-opening.

Now back at Wrexham after his recall option was triggered, Mullin is now left looking for his next move as he is significantly down the pecking order in North Wales, but the 31-year-old could be handed a lifeline by Schumacher, who is looking to add another option to his attacking unit in the form of the experienced striker.

Misfiring Bolton Wanderers strike-force could be triggering Paul Mullin interest

A move for Mullin could be being eyed up due to the profligate nature of Bolton's current attacking unit.

Despite a strong start to the season, Hull City loanee Mason Burstow's goalless streak in league action has now stretched to 14 matches, following a run where he scored seven times in his first 11 outings for Wanderers.

Marcus Forss has also failed to deliver since his move from Middlesbrough in the summer, scoring just twice, whilst the same can be said of Sam Dalby after he penned a four-year deal following his Wrexham departure — he has netted just three times from his 22 League One showings.

Mullin may not have the League One goalscoring record for Wrexham and Wigan that will excite Bolton fans, but if the service is created for him from the likes of Amario Cozier-Duberry out wide, it could be a shrewd deal if it comes off, and he will be well-known already to Schumacher given they're both from the same area, and he's also been managed by a friend of his in Ryan Lowe.