Bolton Wanderers closing in on transfer agreement for Championship striker | OneFootball

Wanderers look set to bolster their forward line with a signing from the Championship.

Cardiff City striker Kion Etete is reportedly moving closer to securing a loan move to League One side Bolton Wanderers.

That's according to a report from Wales Online on 28 January, as the Wanderers look to bolster their attacking arsenal ahead of a big play-off push over the coming months.

Etete has been linked with a move away from the Cardiff City Stadium this month, with a number of League One clubs said to be interested in a move for the 23-year-old.

However, it now appears that Bolton are leading the chase to secure the signature of the out of favour centre-forward from Omer Riza's side.

Bolton Wanderers closing in on loan swoop for Cardiff City striker Kion Etete

After a week of murmurings over which third tier clubs may be eyeing up a move for Etete, a new report from Wales Online has named Bolton Wanderers as the side leading the chase for the former Tottenham youngster.

They state that Wanderers are closing in on a deal for the striker, who is a player that the Bluebirds seem keen to source regular game-time for before the transfer window shuts.

Journalist Darren Witcoop has further solidified these claims, as posting to his X account on 28 January, he states that Bolton are set to beat Charlton and Bristol Rovers to his loan signature.

Etete is yet to play a single minute of league football for the Bluebirds this season due to injury, but is ready to get back to action for the final few months of the campaign away from south Wales, having re-appeared in the FA Cup earlier this month.

Callum Robinson has fired home 11 goals in 23 Championship matches so far this season, whilst the arrival of Danish centre-forward Yousef Salech has knocked Etete down the pecking order even further.

Isaak Davies is also nearing a return from his lengthy injury absence, which would only serve to place yet another roadblock in Etete's path towards carving out a meaningful role in Riza's squad for the rest of the campaign.

So, with him being out of contract at the end of the season, these next few months are critical to Etete's Cardiff City future, and in order to give himself the best chance of winning a new contract with the Bluebirds, securing a loan move would give him the opportunity to impress the Cardiff hierarchy.

Having lost popular and prolific striker Dion Charles to Huddersfield Town midway through the January window for an initial fee of £750,000, Bolton have been left thin on the ground in their centre-forward department.

Aaron Collins, Victor Adeboyejo and Carlos Mendes present as the only natural and senior options available at the moment, with players such as John McAtee and Joel Randall capable of operating as makeshift strikers if required.

Therefore, the signing of a new striker has become a main priority before the end of the window at the Toughsheet Community Stadium, and Etete could provide them with something a little bit different up top.

Etete stands at approximately 6'6" tall, with that height and presence in attack being something that Bolton don't currently possess. Adding a player like that to the forward line would provide a different way of hurting teams and scoring goals, as Bolton look to climb into the play-off positions over the coming weeks.

Given his contract situation with Cardiff, Etete would surely be hungry and highly motivated to come and score goals in a Wanderers shirt, and as such, he could be a really shrewd addition for the club to make.