While last night’s 3-1 win over Manchester City Under 21s in the EFL Trophy should have been a moment for celebration as Bolton earned their first back-to-back wins since August 2018, the occasion was marred by the late injury to midfield dynamo Ali Crawford.
The full extent of the injury is yet to be revealed but Keith Hill told the Bolton News after last night’s match that the injury appears to be “a potentially serious” one.
The news comes as another huge blow for Bolton as the team’s injury list is already up into double figures with 11 first-team players out injured.
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(Photo by Andrew Kearns – CameraSport/Getty Images)
Crawford’s injury leaves Bolton with just four fit midfielders in the squad, Luke Murphy, Sonny Graham, James Weir and Jason Lowe.
However, Bolton boss Kieth Hill has not done himself any favours with former Hull man James Weir after the 24-year-old midfielder was substituted after just 37 minutes after putting in a below-par performance.
It’s the second time since Keith Hill took charge that James Weir, who was the only pro to continue playing among the ownership chaos earlier in the season, has been substituted before half time and it certainly won’t do the player’s confidence much good knowing that the manager has such little faith in him.
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(Photo by Andrew Kearns – CameraSport via Getty Images)
If the injury to Ali Crawford, which appears to be a knee-related issue which is never good, is as serious as Keith Hill fears, he could be out for some time, leaving the Bolton boss in quite the predicament regarding James Weir.
After dragging him off the field in unceremonious fashion twice now, Hill could be forced to include James Weir in his first-team plans regardless of his recent performances thanks to the ever-increasing injury list at Bolton.
Wanderers are next in action on Saturday as they welcome fourth-placed Fleetwood Town to the UniBol for another tough fixture and with Ali Crawford expected to miss out, Keith Hill really is down to the bare bones in midfield.