Exclusive: Bolton Wanderers and Bradford City eyeing Exeter City star | OneFootball

Bolton Wanderers and Bradford City are both eyeing a move for Exeter City star Jayden Wareham, Football League World understands

Bolton Wanderers and Bradford City are both vying to achieve promotion from League One in the remainder of the 2025/26 campaign, with the two sides still sharing aspirations of catching second-placed Cardiff City in pursuit of a Championship return.

Steven Schumacher and Graham Alexander's outfits have both occupied spots within the top-six for much of the campaign, with the Bantams having emerged as shock early-season contenders for automatic promotion immediately after going up from League Two before losing their footing deeper into the season.

Indeed, Bradford usurped Bolton to return to third position following Easter Monday's second-half comeback victory at Wycombe Wanderers, which fired City a point and place ahead of their promotion rivals ahead of the Trotters' crunch trip to Cardiff this weekend.

Bolton have been frustrated by their inability to capitalise upon a slump in fortunes for Cardiff, who appeared poised to clinch the league title before enduring mixed form in recent weeks to hand top spot over to Lincoln City.

The Bluebirds still boast a game in hand over both Bradford and Bolton, with the two sides separated from Brian Barry-Murphy's men by seven and eight points respectively, and just one victory from Wanderers' last five outings means that there remains much to play for in the third-tier's top-two race.

The outcome of that pursuit could just open the door for either Bradford or Bolton to complete a move for one of League One's breakthrough stars this term, who, as Football League World can now exclusively reveal, has emerged firmly onto the radars of the two promotion-chasers.

Bolton Wanderers and Bradford City eyeing Exeter City, Jayden Wareham transfer deal

Football League World can disclose that the player in question is Exeter City's Jayden Wareham, with the Grecians starlet representing a hot property ahead of this summer's transfer window following an eye-catching debut campaign at St James' Park.

Sources have exclusively revealed to FLW that interest is mounting in the services of Wareham, who has found the back of the net on 18 occasions in League One and 21 times from 49 appearances across all competitions after joining the Devon-based outfit from Reading last summer.

FLW has learned that Bolton and Bradford are just two third-tier clubs to have been monitoring the 22-year-old in recent times, and it's understood that much will depend on whether either side can achieve promotion to the Championship.

That's because FLW has also been made aware of developing interest from a number of lower-end Championship clubs, with such moves potentially contingent on the outfits in question being able to retain their second-tier statuses.

Either way, it appears as though a potential bidding war could well take place for Wareham's signature, which is only garnering further admiration after the ex-Chelsea prospect scored a brace in his side's crucial 3-0 victory over Doncaster Rovers yesterday afternoon.

Bolton Wanderers, Bradford City could solve same issue by signing Exeter City's Jayden Wareham

It's no great surprise to see Bolton and Bradford both in the market for additional firepower, which will need to be addresed if either - or both of them - are to be playing Championship football next season.

Bolton have been aided by the efforts of Sam Dalby in recent months, although loanee Mason Burstow remains the Trotters' leading scorer for the campaign despite only adding four strikes to his account since the start of October.

Bradford's success, meanwhile, can be attributed to a collective team effort as opposed to individual quality, with goals coming from across the pitch instead of from a select few individuals.

Attacking midfield pair Bobby Pointon and Antoni Sarcevic have, it must be said, combined to devastating effect by registering ten strikes apiece, but with strikers Stephen Humphreys and Will Swan having just scored seven and five respectively while Paul Mullin and Ethan Wheatley await their first goals after arriving on loan in January, it's clear that there's room for improvement at the very top end of the pitch for the Bantams.

That's exactly why a move for Wareham is an appealing one for both sides. He has scored 40% of Exeter's league goals on his own and has certainly proved his worth at League One level, even if the Grecians' divisional status for the following campaign remains very much in the balance despite the powerful frontman's best efforts.

Wareham is set to have no shortage of interest ahead of the summer, and it will be interesting to see how the potential battle between Bradford and Bolton plays out after the two sides lock horns in a late race for promotion to the second-tier.