Bolton Wanderers: Notts County transfer swoop would help heal divided fanbase | OneFootball

Bolton have been linked with Notts County's Alassana Jatta, bringing him in would go a long way to lifting the mood at the club.

Bolton Wanderers making a transfer swoop for 15-goal Notts County striker Alassana Jatta in the remainder of the January transfer window would likely go some way towards bringing joy back a fanbase that has been well and truly divided in recent weeks.

This season’s saga regarding the future of Ian Evatt arguably created a split in the Trotters fanbase. There are several supporters who believe the club waited too long to sack Evatt, who has created something of a negative atmosphere at the club of late.

A move for Jatta could go some of the way to repairing that, by providing some sort of positive news for the Bolton faithful.

Jatta has been outstanding for Notts County this season and would be the type of signing that is sure to excite a fanbase.

Bolton Wanderers fanbase left divided over Ian Evatt saga

It’s fair to say that things haven’t been rosy at Bolton so far this season. The Trotters have been horribly inconsistent and, as a result, find themselves sat in ninth position in League One - a far cry from where many expected them to be before the season kicked off.

The Bolton board finally made the decision to part company with Evatt earlier this week after Charlton won 2-1 at the Toughsheet Community Stadium, with the Addicks coming from behind to take all three points back to London.

Evatt had made himself a fairly unpopular figure within sections of the fanbase in the latter stages of his reign and was forced to apologise last weekend for swearing at a section of fans after his team had been booed off at half-time against Cambridge - a match in which Wanderered scrambled to a 2-2 draw against the strugglers.

Bolton endured a run of three wins, five defeats and two draws between the start of December and the Charlton game, highlighting just how unpredictable they have been for most of the campaign.

There are many fans who felt the club waited far too long to sack Evatt, with many believing his actions and decisions had brought a negative feeling to the club - FLW's Bolton fan pundit Liam O'Meara believes that the ex-Barrow boss should've gone after losing the 2024 play-off final to Oxford United.

Ultimately, the fanbase have been divided over whether Evatt should stay on until the end of the season or should he have been sacked weeks or months ago - now that the board have decided to part company with him, the supporters can now at least try to come back together, and what can help is not only results like a win at Huddersfield Town on Saturday, but also exciting new signings.

Notts County striker Alassana Jatta could lift the mood at Bolton Wanderers if he joins

When you also throw in the fact that top goalscorer Dion Charles has been sold to potential promotion rivals Huddersfield Town, there hasn’t been much for Bolton fans to be happy about lately.

Therefore, a move to bring a proven goalscorer like Jatta to the club would likely go some of the way to lifting the mood a little moreso.

Earlier in the week, The Guardian reported that Bolton were interested in the 26-year-old frontman as well as Championship relegation battlers Plymouth Argyle and Portsmouth.

The reports stated that Argyle had had a bid of £750,000 rejected for the Gambian, with Notts County holding out for a fee in excess of £1million.

That is undoubtedly a lot of money for a League Two player, but Jatta has been excellent for the Magpies since his move from Denmark.

He featured in English football for the first time in his career last season, so he would’ve easily been forgiven for needing some time to adapt to the style and physicality, as well as competing with Macaulay Langstaff.

It’s fair to say though that Jatta has taken to life in the Football League with ease. He notched five goals and two assists from just 10 games last season and has improved again in 2024/25.

He currently has 15 goals and four assists to his name from 24 games in all competitions, and is firmly in the hunt for the fourth tier's Golden Boot, with the only two current League Two players having more goals than him being Mat Stevens of AFC Wimbledon and Bromley's Michael Cheek.

Jatta also brings a strong physical presence, as well as possessing the pace to be a threat in behind defences. In terms of lower league strikers, he has all the attributes that make him fairly close to the complete package.

While his services certainly wouldn’t come cheaply, Bolton have already shown they aren’t afraid of digging into their pocket this window, having already added midfielder Joel Randall from Peterborough United for an undisclosed fee (believed to be in the region of £1.2million).

If the Trotters could win the race for Jatta, it could provide the entire club with the boost it needs to continue pushing forward until the end of the campaign.

Despite their issues this term, the recent win at Huddersfield has left Bolton just one point outside the play-off positions – there is still plenty of time and opportunity for them to still achieve something from this season.