FM14 Bolton Wanderers F.C.

[Vipertitan]

Welcome To the Bolton Wanderers F.C. thread

HISTORY

Early history (1877–1929)

The club was founded by the Reverend Thomas Ogden, the schoolmaster at Christ Church in 1874 as Christ Church F.C.It was initially run from the church of the same name on Deane Road, Bolton, on the site where the Innovation factory of the University of Bolton now stands. The club left the location following a dispute with the vicar, and changed its name to Bolton Wanderers in 1877. The name was chosen as the club initially had a lot of difficulty finding a permanent ground to play on, having used three venues in its first four years of existence.

Bolton were one of the 12 founder members of the Football League, which formed in 1888. At the time Lancashire was one of the strongest footballing regions in the country, with 6 of the 12 founder clubs coming from within the boundaries of the historic county of Lancashire. Having remained in the Football League since its formation, Bolton have spent more time in the top flight (Premier League/old First Division) than out of it.In 1894 Bolton reached the final of the FA Cup for the first time, but lost 4–1 to Notts County at Goodison ,A decade later they were runners-up a second time, losing 1–0 to local rivals Manchester City at Crystal Palace on 23 April 1904.The period before and after the First World War was Bolton's most consistent period of top-flight success as measured by league finishes, with the club finishing outside the top 8 of the First Division on only two occasions between 1911–12 and 1927–28.[9] In this period Bolton equalled their record finish of third twice, in 1920–21 and 1924–25, on the latter occasion missing out on the title by just 3 points (in an era of 2 points for a win).On 28 April 1923, Bolton won their first major trophy in their third final, beating West Ham United 2–0 in the first ever Wembley FA Cup final. The match, famously known as The White Horse Final was played in front of over 127,000 supporters. Bolton's centre-forward, David Jack scored the first ever goal at Wembley Stadium. Driven by long-term players Joe Smith in attack, Ted Vizard and Billy Butler on the wings, and Jimmy Seddon in defence, they became the most successful cup side of the twenties, winning three times. Their second victory of the decade came in 1926, beating Manchester City 1–0 in front of over 91,000 spectators,nd the third came in 1929 as Portsmouth were beaten 2–0 in front of nearly 93,000 fans.

In 1928 the club faced financial difficulties and so was forced to sell David Jack to Arsenal to raise funds. Despite the pressure to sell, the agreed fee of £10,890 was a world record, more than double the previous most expensive transfer of a player.

Top flight run and cup success (1929–1958)

From 1935 to 1964, Bolton enjoyed an uninterrupted stay in the top flight – regarded by fans as a golden era – spearheaded in the 1950s by Nat Lofthouse. The years of the Second World War saw most of the Wanderers' playing staff see action on the front, a rare occurrence within elite football, as top sportsmen were generally assigned to physical training assignments, away from enemy fire. However, 15 Bolton professionals, led by their captain Harry Goslin, volunteered for active service in 1939, and were enlisted in the 53rd Bolton Artillery regiment. By the end of the war, 32 of the 35 pre-war professionals saw action in the British forces. The sole fatality was Goslin, who had by then risen to the rank of Lieutenant and was killed by shrapnel on the Italian front shortly before Christmas 1943. 53rd Bolton Artillery took part in the Battle of Dunkirk and also served in the campaigns of Egypt, Iraq and Italy. Remarkably, a number of these soldiers managed to carry on playing the game in these theatres of war, taking on as 'British XI' various scratch teams assembled by, among others, King Farouk of Egypt in Cairo and Polish forces in Baghdad.On 9 March 1946, the club's home was the scene of theBurnden Park disaster, which at the time was the worst tragedy in British football history. 33 Bolton Wanderers fans were crushed to death, and another 400 injured, in an FA Cup quarter-final second leg tie between Bolton and Stoke City.There was an estimated 67,000-strong crowd crammed in for the game, though other estimates vary widely, with a further 15,000 locked out as it became clear the stadium was full. The disaster led to Moelwyn Hughes's official report, which recommended more rigorous control of crowd sizes, In 1953 Bolton played in one of the most famous FA Cup finals of all time, the inappropriately named – The Stanley Matthews Final of 1953. Bolton lost the game to Blackpool 4–3 after gaining a 3–1 lead. Blackpool were victorious due mainly to an serious injury to the Bolton left half and thanks to the skills of Matthews and the goals of Stan Mortensen. Bolton Wanderers have not won a major trophy since 1958, when two Lofthouse goals saw them overcome Manchester United in the FA Cup final in front of a 100,000 crowd at Wembley Stadium,The closest they have come to winning a major trophy since then is finishing runners-up in the League Cup, first in 1995 and again in 2004.

Return to the top flight, into Europe (1995–2008)

Bolton reached the Premiership in 1995 thanks to a 4–3 victory over Reading in the Division One play-off Final. Reading took a 2–0 lead before Bolton scored two late goals to take the game to extra time, scoring twice more before a late Reading consolation. The same year Bolton progressed to the League Cup Final, but were defeated 2–1 by Liverpool.Bolton were bottom for virtually all of the 1995–96 Premiership campaign and were relegated as they lost their penultimate game 1–0 to Southampton.The club won promotion back to the Premiership at the first attempt thanks to a season in which they achieved 98 league points and 100 goals in the process of securing the Division One championship,the first time since 1978 that they had finished top of any division. This season also marked the club's departure from Burnden Park to the Reebok Stadium, the last game at the stadium being a 4–1 win over Charlton Athletic.Bolton were relegated on goal difference at the end of the 1997–98 Premiership campaign.he following season they reached the 1999 Division One play-off Final but lost 2–0 to Watford. In 2000 Bolton reached the semi-finals of the FA Cup, Worthington Cup and play-offs but lost on penalties to Aston Villa, 4–0 on aggregate to Tranmere Rovers, and 7–5 on aggregate to Ipswich Town respectively In 2000–01 Bolton were promoted back to the Premier League after beating Preston North End 3–0 in the play-off final.

Bolton struggled in the following two seasons, but survived in the Premier League. The 2001–02 season began with a shock as they destroyed Leicester 5–0 at Filbert Street, to go top of the table. Despite a 2–1 win away at Manchester United, becoming the first team since the formation of the Premier League to come from behind and win a league game at Old Trafford, they went into a deep slump during the middle of the season and needed a Fredi Bobic hat-trick against Ipswich Town to survive. Despite losing the final three games, 16th place was secured. The 2002–03 season began with poor start and, despite another win away at Manchester United, they were bottom until a 4–2 win against Leeds United at Elland Road. Despite suffering from a lack of consistency, Bolton achieved the results needed and secured survival in a final day 2–1 victory over Middlesbrough. Bolton reached the League Cup final in 2004, but lost 2–1 to Middlesbrough. Nevertheless, the club finished eighth in the league, at the time the highest finish in their Premiership history, In 2005 Bolton finished sixth in the league, thus earning qualification for the UEFA Cup for the first time in their history. The following season, they reached the last 32 but were eliminated by French team Marseille as they lost 2–1 on aggregate.[37] Between 2003–04 and 2006–07, Bolton recorded consecutive top-eight finishes, a record of consistency bettered only by the big four of Chelsea, Manchester United, Liverpool and Arsenal. The 2007–08 season saw Bolton survive with a 16th place finish, their safety being confirmed on the final day of the season, as they went on an unbeaten run for their final five games, as well as getting to the last sixteen of the UEFA Cup. During the European run, Bolton gained an unexpected draw at former European champions Bayern Munich as well as becoming the first British team to beat Red Star Belgrade in Belgrade. They also defeated Atlético Madrid on aggregate,

before being knocked out by Sporting Lisbon. Bolton broke their record transfer fee with the signing of Johan Elmander from Toulouse on 27 June 2008, in a deal which cost the club a reported £8.2 million and saw Norwegian striker Daniel Braaten head in the opposite direction. Bolton survived in the 2009–10 season as they finished 14th with 39 points. This secured a tenth successive top flight campaign for Bolton.In the 2010–11 FA Cup, Bolton progressed all the way to the semi-finals, but were beaten 5–0 by Stoke City at Wembley with the match being described as "a massive anti-climax.The following season began as the previous one had ended with just one win and six defeats, their worst start since the 1902–03 season when they were relegated.On 17 March 2012, then-manager Owen Coyle travelled to the London Chest Hospital with Fabrice Muamba who had suffered from a cardiac arrest whilst playing against Tottenham Hotspur at White Hart Lane in a FA Cup match. Muamba stayed in a critical condition for several weeks and Coyle was widely praised for the manner in which he represented the club during the period.On 13 May 2012, Bolton Wanderers were relegated to the Championship by one point on the last day of the season after drawing 2–2 with Stoke City, with Stoke scoring a controversial opener in which former player Jon Walters appeared to push goalkeeper Adam Bogdan into the net, and then a questionable penalty.

The Championship season started badly for Bolton, with only three wins in ten league matches and a second round exit from the League Cup following a loss at Crawley Town. As a result of poor performances leaving them in 16th place, Bolton sacked manager Owen Coyle on 9 October 2012. On 23 October 2012, then Crystal Palace manager Dougie Freedman joined the club as manager. However, the change in management did not bring the change in fortunes expected straight away. By the end of 2012, Bolton were 14th.

Freedman's first transfer window led to the signings of Medo Kamara for an undisclosed fee and Craig Dawson on loan, two signings that seemed to cause the upturn in Bolton's fortunes.On 9 February 2013, Bolton defeated rivals Burnley 2–1, began a successful run in the league taking them up to 6th place, with many suggesting they would finish the season in the play-offs in spite of their poor start to the season. On the last day, 4 May 2013, Bolton drew 2–2 with Blackpool, while Leicester City won 3–2 against fellow play-off rivals Nottingham Forest, meaning that Bolton finished outside the play-off places, in 7th place – losing out to Leicester on goal difference.

The 2013/14 began again with a trip to Turf Moor, this time in celebration of the 125th anniversary of the Football League. Bolton came away with a point after Darren Pratley cancelled out a Danny Ings opener. Later in the week, the club completed the signing of Jay Spearing, who had become something of a fan favourite after his season-long-loan with the Trotters. Their first home game of the season ended with a 1–1 draw against relegated Reading, with Pratley again on the score sheet. A 3–0 loss to Nottingham Forest at the City Ground highlighted the sides lack of creativity without last season's top scorer Chris Eagles, who was sidelined due to injury. It also reinforced the fans' opinion that club needed to recapture Dawson either on loan or permanently in order to compete for promotion back into the Premier League.Freedman signed Cardiff full back Kevin McNaughton, Liam Feeney of Millwall and Leicester City's Neil Danns in an attempt to halt the club's poor form.

PLAYERS

1 Hungary GK Ádám Bogdán

2 England DF Tyrone Mears

3 Scotland DF Alan Hutton (on loan from Aston Villa)

4 England DF Matt Mills

5 United States DF Tim Ream

6 England MF Jay Spearing

7 England MF Chris Eagles

10 Jamaica FW Jermaine Beckford

11 England FW Robert Hall

12 England DF Zat Knight (captain)

14 Brazil MF André Moritz

15 England DF Alex Baptiste

16 England MF Mark Davies

17 England MF Liam Trotter (on loan from Millwall)

18 England MF Neil Danns (on loan from Leicester City)

20 England DF Joe Riley

21 England MF Darren Pratley

22 United States MF Stuart Holden

23 England DF Marc Tierney

24 England GK Andy Lonergan

25 England MF Josh Vela

26 Republic of Ireland FW Joe Mason (on loan from Cardiff City)

27 South Korea MF Chung-Yong Lee

29 England FW Lukas Jutkiewicz (on loan from Middlesbrough)

31 England DF David Wheater

33 England DF Hayden White

34 England GK Jay Lynch

36 Republic of Ireland DF Cian Bolger

37 England GK Arran Lee-Barrett

39 Northern Ireland MF Chris Lester

40 England FW Zach Clough

41 England DF Oscar Threlkeld

42 England MF Luke Woodland

43 England DF Andrew Kellett

44 Sierra Leone MF Medo

45 England FW Tom Youngs

— Luxembourg MF Yannick Bastos

Reebok Stadium

Full name The Reebok Stadium

Location Burnden Way

Horwich

Bolton

England[1]

Coordinates 53°34′50″N 2°32′8″WCoordinates: 53°34′50″N 2°32′8″W

Built 1996–1997

Opened 1997

Owner Bolton Wanderers

Operator Bolton Wanderers (1997–present)

Surface Desso GrassMaster[2]

Architect Populous (then HOK Sport)[3]

Capacity 28,723[4]

Record attendance 28,353

Field dimensions 110 x 72 yards (100.6 x 65.8 metres)

[Vipertitan]

season expectations

looks fairly decent

[Vipertitan]

squad overview:

the squad looks fairly good for this league.

[Vipertitan]

Star Man1:

Tim Ream

star man 2

Jay Spearing:

star man 3

Lee Chung-Yong

star man 4

Lukas Jutkiewicz

[Vipertitan]

formation and tactics.

im debate to try a 4 4 2 like so

formation one

formation two for away games is a 4-1-2-1-2 style that i like to use when i play away.

and im going to use 4 3 3 for the cup games only like so,

[Vipertitan]

Lets be honest, this is going to be a challenge and a half so if your the player who likes a real challenge on Football Manager then Bolton is certainly a one can you lead them back into the premiership and back into Europe,.

[Vipertitan]

recommended transfers.

Goalkeeper Alex Smithies

Defender: Jean Beausejour

Midfielder:Will Buckley

Forwards: Connor Wickham

[Vipertitan]

reserved for more updates.

[D0bi]

Always enjoy playing with Bolton, this year they're a real challenge because of the large debt, as well as the fact the two star players in the team; Mark Davies and Stuart Holden both miss the majority of the first season due to injury.

[Vipertitan]

i forgot about them