Bolton's Ian Evatt name checks Ipswich and Sheffield Wednesday in League One promotion claim | OneFootball

Bolton Wanderers boss Ian Evatt has suggested that 2023/24 could be "a good year" to be competing for promotion in League One with Ipswich Town and Sheffield Wednesday now in the Championship.

Evatt admitted there are "no guarantees" that his side will be competing at the top of the division but that they were "excited" and "very much looking forward to" what the upcoming campaign will bring.

Bolton Wanderers 2022/23

In just their second season back in the third tier, Bolton secured a fifth-place finish in 2022/23 and booked their place in the play-offs as a result.

They were edged out across the two-legged semi-final by Barnsley - with Liam Kitching's header in the second leg at Oakwell proving to be the difference between the two sides over 180 minutes.

Wanderers finished 17 points below the automatic promotion places last term but a top two finish should be more achievable this season and will ultimately be the North West club's target.

Ian Evatt's 2023/24 promotion claim

Last season's top three - Plymouth Argyle, Ipswich, and Wednesday - looked a cut above the rest of the division for most of the campaign but with all three promoted to the Championship, the field looks much more open in 2023/24.

Evatt recognises that and, speaking to The Bolton News, suggested that the departures of Town and the Owls, in particular, would give his side a better chance this term.

He said: "I am firmly of the opinion that leagues go in cycles.

“If you look at the Championship last season, for example, I think that was a weak year for that division. And that is no disrespect to any teams that were there – but if you look at the top two and the distance they put between themselves and the others, I think it was fundamentally quite a weak year.

“If you look at it this time around, with the three relegated from the Premier League, then the ones promoted from our division – Ipswich and Sheffield Wednesday are really big clubs with big financial power – it will be a really tough one this year.

“League One does look slightly weaker in the cycle of divisions. League Two looks a bit stronger, National League looks slightly weaker. It has a cycle which goes around every year, divisions get stronger and weaker depending on the clubs and the resources they have that get promoted and relegated.

“I personally think this could be a good year in League One to be competing at the top end.

“But there are no guarantees and we have to go out there, do it, earn it. We are excited by it, very much looking forward to it.”

Who are frontrunners for League One promotion?

Bolton are certainly among the teams fancied for promotion this season and have the advantage of continuity. Evatt has managed to keep the majority of his squad together and the alterations he makes this summer are likely to be fine-tuning in comparison to some of their rivals.

Derby County will be strong in Paul Warne's first full season at the helm but are expected to undergo something of a squad overhaul in the current window while play-off finalists Barnsley are yet to replace manager Michael Duff, who has joined Swansea City.

Peterborough United look to be set for a rebuild, with a number of key players departing, while the likes of Portsmouth, Charlton Athletic, Oxford United, and Wycombe Wanderers are trying to bridge the gap after missing the top six last term.