The Championship does not hand out sympathy, and it certainly does not care that Bolton Wanderers have just dragged themselves out of League One and League Two. But Chris Forino has made the case for why this group should not be written off before a ball is even kicked: youth, hunger and a dressing room that actually appears to like one another. In a division that punishes softness, that may not be everything. It is, however, a serious starting point.
Bolton’s summer has already told a story. Their involvement in the play-offs shortened the break, they headed to Slovakia for a training camp at the Xbionic Sphere in Samorin, and the week ended on Friday evening with a friendly against DAC Streda near the Hungarian border. That is the reality of a club moving back up the ladder: less comfort, less time, more demands. For Forino, though, that is not a reason to panic. It is a reason to get to work.
A young squad, but not a naive one
Forino was clear that Bolton are not trying to pretend they are something they are not. He pointed back to last summer and said you could see what the club were building, with younger signings arriving on longer contracts. This was never going to be a squad built on a long list of old heads. It was built on energy, potential and the idea that the group could grow together rather than rely on a few expensive shortcuts.
That is the key point here. Forino admitted Bolton have “not got a massive amount of experience in the Championship,” which is the blunt truth of it. The Championship is a ruthless place, and experience matters. But he also stressed that this is a “young and hungry squad” with the ability and potential to step up. That is not empty optimism. It is the argument that young players can sometimes bring the one thing richer, older squads do not always have: the willingness to run through a wall every single week.
Why spirit still matters
Forino’s view is built on more than age profile. He said last season’s hard work has left the group with genuine trust, insisting they “have got each other’s backs.” That matters when the pressure arrives, because Championship seasons are rarely smooth. There will be bad runs, there will be ugly afternoons, and there will be games where quality alone is not enough. In those moments, a squad that believes in itself can keep the season alive.
That does not mean Bolton can stroll into the division and assume togetherness will beat better football. It will not. The step up after time in League One and League Two is real, and Forino said as much, describing it as a challenge for a side that has been away from this level for a while. But the point is not that Bolton have solved the Championship. The point is that they have at least identified the right kind of ingredients to compete in it.
The hard work has already started
Forino also gave a useful reminder of just how brutal pre-season can be. This is his sixth pre-season now, and he said the first few days always hit like a truck, no matter what shape you think you are in. Bolton have just four-and-a-half weeks to get the details right, and with week two now underway, he believes the squad is in a good spot. That is encouraging, even if it is only summer football and not the real thing yet.
There is also the practical side of the rebuild. If you are not involved in the play-offs, he suggested, there is a little more downtime and a slightly easier build-up. Bolton did not have that luxury because they achieved what they set out to do: promotion. That shortened break can be awkward, but it also sharpens the focus. There is less room for drifting. Less room for excuses.
So what is the honest read on Bolton’s Championship chances? Forino has not claimed they are ready to conquer the division. He has said something more sensible, and maybe more important: that this squad is young, hungry and willing to prove itself. That will not guarantee anything. But in a league that eats weak-minded teams for breakfast, it is not a bad place to start.
Elsewhere at the club, the wider rebuild continues too, with Grace Vella joins Bolton Wanderers Women underlining that this is a busy period for Bolton Wanderers across the board. For now, though, the message from Forino is clear enough: this is not a squad asking for comfort. It is one preparing to earn its place.
