Huddersfield Town, Cardiff City and MK Dons in battle to sign Bolton Wanderers star | OneFootball

Bolton's most recent Player of the Season is being targeted by their EFL competition.

Bolton Wanderers forward Aaron Collins has emerged as a transfer target for Cardiff City, Huddersfield Town and MK Dons.

While the Wanderers, overall, had a pretty disappointing season last time out, missing out on the post-season for the first time in three campaigns, their Welsh attacker was certainly a bright spark for them. He scored a dozen goals and won the club's Player of the Season award.

For boss Steven Schumacher, making sure that Collins is firing next season could be the key to success as he pursues the pinnacle that the Trotters were unable to reach under his predecessor, Ian Evatt, who bought Collins from Bristol Rovers for £750,000 in January 2024.

There is, however, growing interest in the 28-year-old, and that could leave Bolton without one of their prized assets heading into Schumacher's first full season in charge of the club.

Triple EFL interest emerges in Bolton's Aaron Collins

Cardiff, Huddersfield and MK have all been linked with interest in the Welshman. The Bolton News first reported that the latter, who have already made a sizable impact on this summer's transfer window by signing players like Nathaniel Mendez-Laing and Rushian Hepburn-Murphy, are keen on bringing Collins back down to League Two.

Their manager, Paul Warne, reportedly wanted to sign the forward when he was still playing at the Memorial Stadium, before his move to Lancashire, but were unable to match what the likes of Bolton were willing to pay. Now he has reignited that interest.

He is also wanted by the Bluebirds and the Terriers, as per Darren Witcoop.

Town, like MK, have made some brilliant additions to first-time boss Lee Grant's squad, putting them among the very early favourites to go up next season. Cardiff, meanwhile, are yet to sort out their manager situation, although they are said to be close to bringing in Leicester City coach Brian Barry-Murphy.

A move to the Cardiff City Stadium would mean a return to Wales for Collins, who last represented a Welsh side in 2018 when he went back on loan to hometown club Newport County from Wolverhampton Wanderers.

Aaron Collins would be a marquee signing for any of Cardiff, Huddersfield or Bolton

Collins would be a fantastic addition to any of these teams. His record since moving to the Toughsheet Community Stadium tells you all you need to know about the prowess he has in front of goal. He does only suit particular systems, though, as he prefers to play off of a recognised striker rather than being the main man, the number nine, himself.

If Bolton were to sell, they'd surely look to get upwards of £1 million for Collins. He has another two years left on his deal, giving them great protection and even less reason to look to sell.

But, with a number of players on their books who may be able to do a similar job as the 28-year-old, like John McAtee and Klaidi Lolos, an extra seven figures to add to Schumacher's transfer kitty may be tempting.