Bolton Wanderers: Klaidi Lolos deal will surely end Brentford transfer pursuit - View | OneFootball

The Crawley Town man looks to have filled the hole left by the Bees loanee this summer

Bolton Wanderers moved to make exciting Crawley Town man Klaidi Lolos their third summer signing last week, with the 22-year-old signing a deal with the Trotters until the summer of 2027.

The attacking midfielder became Ian Evatt’s third signing of the summer, following in the footsteps of Wycombe Wanderers defender Chris Forino and Cheltenham Town goalkeeper Luke Southwood in moving to the north west.

Having played a key part in the Red Devils’ League Two playoff winning campaign in the past 12 months, Lolos will provide plenty of spark in the final third for the third tier promotion chasers in the next campaign, with his unpredictability and creativity making him a handful to come up against.

His addition could well see Wanderers stop any interest in bringing Paris Maghoma back to the club this summer, with the Brentford loanee sure to be moving up a level after a strong showing at the Toughsheet Stadium.

Klaidi Lolos arrival must leave Bolton Wanderers, Paris Maghoma reunion hopes dwindling

Maghoma proved to be a key operator for Evatt and his side in their League One playoff push last season, with the 23-year-old netting eight times in the league for his temporary side, as well as setting up four more goals for his teammates.

The Brentford loanee’s grace and vision in the final third was influential on a lot of what Wanderers did right going forward, while his ability to finish off attacks by putting the ball in the back of the net earned his side valuable points across the campaign.

It was no surprise when the playoff finalists made their intentions clear to try to sign the creative midfielder on a permanent deal this summer, with Evatt singing his praises just before the regular season came to an end.

“I’d absolutely love to work with Paris again,” he told The Bolton News. “He knows how I feel about him and if you asked him he’d tell you how he enjoys working with us too. He’s a fantastic player and I genuinely feel like he has found a home here.

“Paris is a player who I have really enjoyed working with, he’s an extremely talented boy. He is a character, no two ways about that, but I find all the talented ones tend to be like that.

“He is blossoming, and we’d love him to stay. Paris would love to stay, we have already had those discussions, but for now he just has to continue for the standard he has set himself.”

That couldn’t be a much more obvious courting call if Evatt tried, but two months’ on from his open love letter to his creator-in-chief, the Trotters boss has explored a different avenue, with Lolos the man likely to fill the void left by the Bees star this summer.

And for Maghoma, the next step in his career development is surely at least a loan move to a Championship club, although Brentford could perhaps cash in on him on a permanent basis if there is enough interest - which there should be based on last season's performances.

Klaidi Lolos can provide plenty of spark ahead of Bolton Wanderers League One promotion push

There is no doubt that Wanderers will be looking to get out of the third tier by the easiest way possible in the upcoming campaign, having endured playoff heartbreak in each of the previous two seasons.

After suffering semi-final defeat to Barnsley in 22/23, the Trotters were left licking their wounds at Wembley in May, as Josh Murphy’s double for Oxford United saw them succumb to another season in League One.

Had Evatt masterminded a route into the second tier, it would have looked likely that Maghoma would have returned for another stint in the north west, but with Championship clubs likely to be eying him up this summer, Evatt has since had his head turned by another star who stole the show at Wembley in May.

The Greek star was on top form at the home of football in the 2-0 victory over Crewe Alexandra, with his no-fear approach helping his side to claim a remarkable promotion to the third tier, just 24 hours after Wanderers missed out.

The flair that the former Plymouth Argyle man possesses can help to unlock many an EFL defence, with the creative midfielder’s box of tricks seemingly limitless.

With 13 goals and a further five assists in the previous campaign, Lolos looks like he can be every bit the player that Maghoma was during his time under Evatt’s tutelage, with the former Barrow man eager to make the most of his talents.

Evatt [pictured] said: “He is a very talented boy, physically really good – 6ft 1in – aggressive with and without the ball and extremely technical.

“He will give us options because he can play multiple positions really well.

“He is a young player on a journey which has made him hungry and last season was extremely successful for Crawley, in general, but Klaidi was very impressive and we worked very hard to make it happen quickly.

“He is a really talented player who can lead the line, build from deeper, receive in tight spaces and play forwards. He is an exciting player who we are looking forward to working with.”

Lolos’ layers of assets make him a top signing at League One level, and with time on his side he could really blossom into one of the division’s best attacking outlets during his time at his new club.

After waving goodbye to one creative genius Wanderers look like they have welcomed another through the door, and Maghoma’s absence shouldn’t be felt too much once the season gets underway in August.