Bolton Wanderers heartbreak may open Stoke City, Watford transfer door: View | OneFootball

Bolton Wanderers’ League One play-off final defeat to Oxford United on Saturday will likely have more consequences than just what division the Trotters are playing in next season, with interest in their top talent likely to intensify,

A Josh Murphy brace was enough to condemn Ian Evatt’s side to another season in the third tier and make it back-to-back playoff defeats in their quest to return to the Championship, and the following months will determine just how detrimental that Wembley defeat proves to be.

One player who has already been said to be sparking interest from teams higher up the football pyramid is frontman Dion Charles, with Stoke City and Watford both said to be keen on the 28-year-old in the past.

Having been one of the standout performers in the third tier, both with Accrington Stanley and with Wanderers, it would be no surprise to see Championship clubs sniffing around again this summer, with his attacking play destined for a higher level.

Dion Charles deserves Championship move after Bolton Wanderers form

Charles came to prominence with Stanley after signing from non-league Southport in 2019, and has since gone on to become a menace for many a side who he faces in League One.

After nine goals in his first season in the Football League, the striker came to prominence in the 20/21 campaign, where he plundered 20 goals in all competitions for the Lancashire side, including a hat-trick in a 6-1 rout of Bristol Rovers.

International recognition soon came with Northern Ireland as the striker continued to excel, before a £320,000 move to Wanderers was sealed in the January of 2022.

That six-figure sum has proven to be a bargain for the Trotters, with Charles continuing to terrorise whoever he comes up against as part of Bolton’s frontline, with his efforts contributing to their continual rise over the past three seasons he has been at the club.

After finishing ninth after joining midway through the season, Evatt has guided his side to finishes of with and third in successive seasons, before ultimately falling short in the playoffs on both occasions.

Charles has netted 38 league goals over that time, with only five players bettering his 0.52 goals per 90 metric achieved in the most recent campaign, making his record better than a goal every other game.

Those sort of performances and underlying figures are exactly what makes the striker standout when it comes to frontmen in the third tier, and it would be no surprise to see Championship clubs come flocking this summer.

With Tyrese Campbell and Wesley recently released by Stoke after the Championship season came to an end, Steven Schumacher will be looking to add to his side’s frontline ahead of the next campaign, and Charles could be an ideal replacement in the final third.

Schumacher will know all about the forward from his time at Plymouth Argyle, having been on the wrong side of a fantastic showing by the striker and his teammates in their emphatic 4-0 drubbing of Argyle in the Football League Trophy final last season, where Charles netted the second.

Bolton Wanderers are in control of Dion Charles' destiny due to his contract

Wanderers fans can rest easy knowing that Charles is contracted with the club until June 2026, having signed a new deal with the club in the August of last year.

Bolton boss Evatt paid testament to his striker’s skills that day, and after another strong season under his belt his ability will have been turning heads left, right, and centre.

“I believe he is one of the leading strikers in the EFL and this is further proof that Dion, and the club, are determined to keep progressing,” Evatt said.

With Charles reaching a pivotal point of his career where he will want to play as high as possible for as long as possible, any Championship club showing an interest could have a chance of taking him off Bolton’s hands, with the lure of the second tier surely going to tempt the striker away from his current club.

If the pain of a Wembley defeat wasn’t bad enough, losing key personnel who got them to the famous arch will make the loss even harder to take, with interest in Charles only likely to grow as the summer progresses.

Stoke and Watford may now come back to the table for Charles, knowing that another play-off failure will surely make him open for a move up the football pyramid - both clubs are attractive propositions, but the exits of Wesley and Campbell from the bet365 Stadium, plus the proximity to his home city of Preston, make the Potters a great option.