Football League World
·11 September 2023
Football League World
·11 September 2023
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Dion Charles believes being linked with other clubs is a compliment to himself and shows he is doing something right.
The Bolton Wanderers striker has been at the club since January 2022, when he joined from Accrington Stanley after impressing for the Lancashire outfit.
Since joining the Trotters, Charles has been a breath of fresh air for the club and has continued his scoring exploits. The forward netted 21 goals in all competitions last season and has already continued from where he left off in this 2023/24 League One season.
So, it didn’t come as a surprise in the summer when teams were taking notice of the Northern Ireland international and were weighing up a move.
It was reported by TEAMtalk, that Championship duo Watford and Stoke City were interested in signing the 27-year-old in the summer transfer window.
Both clubs were looking to add to their forward line in the summer, and it seemed Charles was someone they were keeping an eye on.
However, Bolton always stated he wasn’t for sale, and no bids seemed to come in for the striker, meaning he has stayed a Bolton player for the time being.
With transfer speculation gathering pace and teams obviously keen on the Northern Ireland international, Bolton acted quickly to secure his services.
It was announced towards the end of the summer transfer window, that Charles had agreed to extend his stay at the club until the summer of 2026.
Meaning he now has three years left on his contract and Bolton have a cushion if interest is revived in the January transfer window.
Charles has played seven times in all competitions so far this season, and he already has five goals to his name, with four coming in the league.
The forward will hope he can have another impact in front of goal that will help Bolton get into the Championship.
Charles has just been away on international duty with Northern Ireland but has now returned to Bolton as the club prepares to face Reading FC this weekend.
The forward has now spoken about recent links with Championship clubs and whether he takes any notice.
Charles told The Bolton News: “I take it as a compliment when you hear of getting linked with other teams. It shows you are doing something well. But I’m here, I’m a Bolton player and I enjoy coming into work every single day. I enjoy being around the management and the players and there is a real feelgood factor around the place.”
Whatever happened to Charles this summer, Bolton would still have been impacted. If he left, the club would be considerably lighter at the top end of the pitch and could struggle to replace his goals.
While him staying means their chances of promotion are still intact, and they have a real strong possibility of promotion this season.