As the carcass of Bolton Wanderers sinks into the abyss of League One, other clubs have begun to circle in the hope of picking up some of their better players.
Given Bolton’s predicament at the bottom of the Championship, it will come as a surprise to many that they currently have the second highest wage bill in the division. So it’s no wonder that they almost went out of business this season, or that the new owners are desperate to cut costs as they prepare for life in League One.
One of their senior players is central defender David Wheater, who will not be offered a new contract when his current deal expires in the summer, and Leeds are reported to be interested. He is currently on £18,000 a week, but we’ll be able to get him for a lot less than that if no other club is willing to match his current deal.
We all know that central defence has been one of our problem areas this season. Liam Cooper is reliable but injury-prone, while Sol Bamba has always lacked pace, and seems to be increasingly prone to making basic errors. Bellusci claims that his grasp of English is improving and that this will help him communicate with his colleagues, but I still feel nervous every time the ball goes anywhere near him.
There is always the option of playing Wooton in the centre now we don’t need him at right-back, but Steve Evans seems reluctant to give that a try. Instead, he is known to want a central defender as part of his squad rebuilding in the summer, and the experienced Wheater could fit the bill. The 29 year-old has played for Bolton, and made 157 appearances for Middlesbrough before that.
But the likelihood of signing Wheater will of course depend on whether Evans is still at the club after the start of May. If a Cannavaro comes in he will probably prefer to recruit from Italy rather than put his faith in good old-fashioned British types, so as ever with Leeds United, it’s impossible to guess what’s going to happen.