Steven Schumacher must be concerned by Bolton Wanderers trend - It needs sorting ASAP | OneFootball

The Trotters' away loss to Northampton continued a worrying statistic

Bolton Wanderers’ promising start to the season suffered a sharp jolt at Northampton on Saturday.

The Trotters hold realistic and tangible aspirations of returning to the Championship in what is Steven Schumacher's first full season in charge, but have endured mixed fortunes thus far by falling to a succession of draws and winning just three of their opening 10 games.

And while the 2-0 defeat at Sixfields was disappointing in isolation, it also shone a light on a pattern that Steven Schumacher cannot afford to ignore.

Wanderers have yet to win away from home this season, and if they want to be considered serious contenders for automatic promotion, that trend has to change — and quickly.

A familiar problem on the road for Bolton Wandererers and Steven Schumacher

For all their progress under Schumacher, Bolton are developing an unwelcome reputation on their travels.

Saturday’s reverse at Sixfields followed draws at Leyton Orient, Blackpool and Barnsley, plus a defeat at Stockport County on the opening day of the season.

Those results are not disastrous, but they reflect a team struggling to impose itself outside of the Toughsheet Stadium.

In a division as tight and competitive as League One, such fine margins can make or break a promotion push and, with the likes of Cardiff City - still unbeaten away from home - Bradford City and Stockport all boasting strong records on the road, Bolton need to match those levels in order to meaningfully compete for a top-two spot.

The Northampton game was a case in point. Wanderers started well enough but squandered early chances and allowed the hosts to wrestle back control.

When Cameron McGeehan and Sam Hoskins struck in quick succession, the contest was effectively over. It was another afternoon in which Bolton looked competitive without being clinical, busy without being decisive.

There is no lack of quality in the squad. Marcus Forss, Mason Burstow and Amario Cozier-Duberry all have the talent to hurt teams, but the killer instinct has been absent on the road.

At the other end, moments of defensive hesitation have proved costly.

Those lapses, coupled with a lack of cutting edge, explain why Bolton currently sit 11th on 14 points rather than nestled in the top six.

Bolton Wanderers promotion ambitions may begin to hinge on away form

League One is already shaping up to be as congested as ever, with just four points separating the Trotters from the play-off places after 10 matchdays.

That proximity offers reassurance, but it also underlines how quickly a season can drift if small weaknesses are left unchecked.

Wanderers’ home form has been reliable, yet their inability to turn away draws into wins is stalling momentum.

Schumacher knows that automatic promotion is rarely achieved by home dominance alone. It requires resilience and ruthlessness away from familiar surroundings – the ability to dig out wins in tight games, to turn pressure into points.

Bolton have not shown that yet this season. Instead, they have too often allowed opponents to dictate terms once the initial spark has faded.

This does not feel like a crisis, but it is a crossroads. The raw ingredients are there: energy, attacking invention, defensive organisation. What is missing is the sharp edge that separates contenders from nearly-men.

Unless Bolton address that imbalance, they risk spending another campaign in the play-off pack rather than chasing the top two.

For a club with their stature and ambition, that would not be enough. Schumacher must find a way to translate promise into results away from home, because until Wanderers prove they can win on the road, doubts over their promotion credentials will only grow louder.