Scott Arfield

Strange one for me. Is he a winger or a number 10 type player?

Always liked Arfield. Played attacking midfield in the Prem and the Scot Prem and had a decent goal return. But his style of play might just work for us as he's a ballwinner and a good athlete. Slight concern is his age and that his goal return dropped off in the MLS but that may be because he is playing deeper now he's getting on a bit? He will undoubtedly be fit though. TBH I could see him fitting in as a DM or central. Not quite Gary O'Neil but not far off.

Another active rumour is Kite from Exeter - basically a Morley type player on a free. Slightly shorter, but more energetic. Value could be in selling Morley and putting Kite on a lower wage for basically the same player?

Gone quiet about Dan Armstrong. Hope that's not dead as he'd be excellent by our standards. It's the money though.

Also gone quiet about the Nigerian LWB playing in Hungary. Lad played in Poland and last season in Russia before moving to Hungary. Not sure about him but it piqued my interest that we may well be casting our net further afield.

A few other rumours knocking about but nothing solid - and some of them a very strange indeed, but not impossible.

Well, I'll say it - I don't understand this signing?

Hardly fits in with this supposed 'Moneyball' we were told about (although I've always had my doubts that that was what we were doing in the first place, seeing that we've not sold anyone in the last four years apart from Dapo when Evatt changed the system and froze him out).

Where is he going to play in the team?

Not the Maghoma role, not a winger at his age, so that only leaves the midfield creator role (Sheehan) or the enforcer (Thomason).

If we've got him to be the hard man in midfield, do we drop George who arguably was our best player last season, if we play George and him, then where is the creativity in the team without Maghoma and Sheehan?

The only way I can think this will work is to play two defensive midfielders George and Arfield, and push Sheehan further forward (so in effect we've swopped Arfield for Maghoma).

I guess to recover some of the creativity we've lost from Maghoma we upgrade our wingbacks, presumably starting with the £400k Danny Armstrong?

So the team would look something like...

GK - Baxter

CBs - Johnston, Santos and Toal

WB - Armstrong, JDC

DM - Arfield, Thomason

AM - Sheehan

Strikers - AC, DC,



If so is that an improvement on last season?

I guess the thinking is that it most be?

I think Arfield was brought in to add some stong mentality into the team. When sheer bollocks has been required last season, we have fallen short: Wigan, Derby and Oxford to name a few. A man who has played in the Old Firm derbies as well as in the Premier League is unlikely to worry about our promotion rivals in League One.

CJ showed last season that there is a motivator/mentor role for an older player in the squad. Personally I thought he made a great contribution when he was asked to play.
He's moved on to a Turkish team which leaves a role for someone like Arfield.
Remember, Arfield only made 6 starts for Charlotteville but was used as a sub loads of times, so I wouldn't be expecting him to start every game for us.

Why Scott Arfield decided to ditch the MLS for Wanderers

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Scott Arfield knows the pressure will be on next season as Wanderers aim to reach the Championship – but he wouldn’t want it any other way.

The experienced midfielder has played in plenty of big games, having reached the Premier League with Burnley before helping Rangers clinch the Scottish Premiership.

Arfield spent the past season in the MLS with Charlotte and while the lifestyle was great, he missed the cut throat nature of British football.

“I had an amazing time over there and I'm so glad that I did it,” he told the club website.

“I had different options when I made the move from Scotland over to America, but I just felt I needed the pressure.

“I think I'm a player that needs that expectation. Being at a club like Rangers, it's a necessity and drawing games is not good enough, never mind losing them.

“I felt that when you go over there, although the lifestyle and everything around it was absolutely magnificent, I felt as if there was something still missing in terms of this, so it certainly brings me back to it at a club of this size - knowing how many people come to home games and travel.

“I'm that sort of player. I feel after that year away - although I loved it - that's what's really brought me back here and hopefully I can repay everyone.”

The 35-year-old has experienced promotion with Huddersfield and Burnley, as well as reaching the Europa League final with Rangers.

Arfield is eager to make an impact on the pitch next season but knows he will also have a big role to play in the dressing room.

“As you get older you realise it's not going to go on forever, you want special memories,” he continued.

“You've tasted success in different ways, whether it's promotion or cups or whatever, and the happiness you can bring people is the one thing you remember.

“To bring it here is what my aim is going to be. Obviously, there will be a key role for me on and off the pitch regarding my experience and maturity, so it's a role I'm very excited to get started with.

“Since the rumours started that I was coming back, all my nearest and dearest and me were hoping that it was this club.

“This is the club they wished it was because of the history and because of the players that have walked through the door.

“There are some big names and big profiles who have been here and if you can add your picture to this stadium, you have done OK.”

It looks set to be a tough season in League One, on paper, but the Canada international is relishing the challenge ahead and wants to help the club keep progressing.

“The most important thing is to stay together and strive for greatness, and greatness is being as successful as you can - individually, collectively and everybody on the same page.

“There’s obviously an expectation to get up and that's why I'm sat in this chair, I won't shy away from it.

“When finish your career, that’s what you’ve got to look back on, and there's a massive chance here to get a club of this profile back to where it belongs.”

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wanderlust wrote:CJ showed last season that there is a motivator/mentor role for an older player in the squad. Personally I thought he made a great contribution when he was asked to play.
He's moved on to a Turkish team which leaves a role for someone like Arfield.
Remember, Arfield only made 6 starts for Charlotteville but was used as a sub loads of times, so I wouldn't be expecting him to start every game for us.

Keegan wrote:I think Arfield was brought in to add some stong mentality into the team. When sheer bollocks has been required last season, we have fallen short: Wigan, Derby and Oxford to name a few. A man who has played in the Old Firm derbies as well as in the Premier League is unlikely to worry about our promotion rivals in League One.

Iles article in Bolton News wrote:Scott Arfield knows the pressure will be on next season as Wanderers aim to reach the Championship – but he wouldn’t want it any other way.

Arfield spent the past season in the MLS with Charlotte and while the lifestyle was great, he missed the cut throat nature of British football.

“I had an amazing time over there and I'm so glad that I did it,” he told the club website.

“I had different options when I made the move from Scotland over to America, but I just felt I needed the pressure.

“I think I'm a player that needs that expectation. Being at a club like Rangers, it's a necessity and drawing games is not good enough, never mind losing them.

“I felt that when you go over there, although the lifestyle and everything around it was absolutely magnificent, I felt as if there was something still missing in terms of this, so it certainly brings me back to it at a club of this size - knowing how many people come to home games and travel.

“I'm that sort of player. I feel after that year away - although I loved it - that's what's really brought me back here and hopefully I can repay everyone.

Seems to me Arfield is talking about playing "a player that needs expectations", "drawing is not good enough" - no?

Yes he can/will add to advice, experience, etc off the pitch but it doesn't sound to me that he's here to play twenty minutes, end of game, cameos as Cameron Jerome did.  His comments don't sound to me as though he will be brought on to see games out, does it you?

Sounds more to me that he wants to compete, to be out on the pitch, to be the engine driving the team on to win.

Great if he can do it.

Can he last two games a week over a season at the age of 36?

Maybe he will.

So I come back to how he would fit into the team.

If I'm on the right track then we seem to suddenly find ourselves with a lot of expenses purchases (for us) now sat on the bench - Williams, Dempsey, Morley, Adeboyejo, Nlundulu, Mendes Gomes.



It also (in my mind) begs the question why Evatt after four season suddenly decides to sign a hardman (is Arfield really such a player?) whilst for the best part of those four years stubbornly determined we didn't need one?

Let's be honest if we had won the play-offs does anyone think Evatt would have changed his thinking on this - I don't.

I just don't get it - Evatt has just been a one trick pony - tippy tappy football - no Plan B, no hardman, and no decent back-up keeper (to be fair I thought Coleman was decent but he seems to be blamed for the midseason dip in form we had by Sharon at least).

Since the play-off defeat we now have a hardman, another (apparently) decent keeper and we are linked with a winger (Dapo and Sadlier were wingers and Evatt froze them both out of the club).

Saying all this though I've called for a Plan B (and C and D...) because tippy tappy simply does not work every time, I've called for a decent keeper to be at least on the subs bench for games, and along with everyone else saw the need for a decent 'hardman' on the pitch because teams can and do bully us.

Fair play if a 36 year old can last the season, I'd be surprised if he does.

I'd be very happy if Evatt has had a bump on the head or something and realised we DO NEED a Plan B (and it simply isn't Plan A (tippy tappy) but now with a single hardman in the team!).

I'd also be happy for Santos NOT to be captain - he simply isn't a leader on the pitch!

I'd be further happy with a £400k winger (if we actually played him as a winger) but I do wonder where the money keeps coming from and surely I would have thought we would need to get some of our expensive 'failures' off our books?

Doesn't seem that is happening though?

Wonder what other players we end up signing - if any?

I think this is a really smart signing, seems a really bubbly character with bags of experience. Unless IE changes his thinking very few will get 90 minutes so I’d hope Arfield is a starter to set the tone then replaced later and not just Jerome cameos at the end of games. I expect a few other signings yet so it’s probably inevitable that there will be some leavers so it will be interesting to see who. The other question is will IE stick with wingbacks or if he is looking at a winger choose full back solidity instead. I think there could be a few surprises in the next few weeks and I still expect Rico to depart.

Interesting post match interview with Evatt today (on club site) in which he spoke about transfers implying that as we're looking to buy players in a different market than we're used to, negotiations are more protracted and generally harder, but they're working on it. Given that Killie value Armstrong and need him for Europe I think there was a nod to that deal still being on the cards. Also confirmed that Arfield is viewed as a replacement for CJ in the role of mentor/motivator as I thought, but that he's fit and keen to play. Forino injured along with 6 others but it is what it is.
And TBF, the 14 first teamers and 7 B teamers involved today did pretty good so we'll be fine.

wanderlust wrote:Interesting post match interview with Evatt today (on club site) in which he spoke about transfers implying that as we're looking to buy players in a different market than we're used to, negotiations are more protracted and generally harder, but they're working on it. Given that Killie value Armstrong and need him for Europe I think there was a nod to that deal still being on the cards. Also confirmed that Arfield is viewed as a replacement for CJ in the role of mentor/motivator as I thought, but that he's fit and keen to play. Forino injured along with 6 others but it is what it is.
And TBF, the 14 first teamers and 7 B teamers involved today did pretty good so we'll be fine.

Doesn't make any sense to me then.

Jerome was brought on late into the game to see the game out (and con his way to a penalty or two).

No point having Arfield as the 'hardman' if he's only coming on for games with 20 or 30 minutes to go - we would have been bullied off the pitch by then - if that was his intended roll?

Surely we've not signed another Robbie Blake like Coyle did - he was brilliant in the dressing room apparently (and in the meantime we got relegated!)

So that worked out well them - really happy players as we crashed out the Premier League and sunk to the bottom of the Championship.

Brilliant plan Owen.

If that's the plan (and I can't believe it is) then we haven't got the 'hardman' on the pitch still, and he can't influence and change a game much by getting splinters in his arse, off the bench, can he?

Evatt could have had his pick of hundreds if not thousands of end-of-playing-career footballers to play the CJ role but if Arfield is intended to do that then it won't change us still getting bullied off the pitch will it?

In Evatt's interview he made it clear they were still working on bringing players in - I imagine there will be some leaving too if it all comes together.
The speculation about having a "hard man" in midfield was not a stated ambition by the club or Evatt although a lot of us think it may make sense - it was fan speculation.
Therefore it's possible that either a) Arfield starts games regularly - and I think that unlikely as he only started 6 games (and was primarily used as a sub to shore things up - hence his comparatively low goal return) in the last 18 months or b) the "hard man" - if that's what Evatt is actually after - is yet to be signed.

Well fwiw I never claimed him to be a 'hardman' and went on to question why Evatt would suddenly reject four years of stubborn refusal to have one in his team.

Sluffy wrote:It also (in my mind) begs the question why Evatt after four season suddenly decides to sign a hardman (is Arfield really such a player?) whilst for the best part of those four years stubbornly determined we didn't need one?

I also questioned whether a 36 year old could play two games a week for a whole season...

Sluffy wrote:Can he last two games a week over a season at the age of 36?

Maybe he will.

...both points of which led me to my original comment...

Sluffy wrote:Well, I'll say it - I don't understand this signing?

Hardly fits in with this supposed 'Moneyball' we were told about (although I've always had my doubts that that was what we were doing in the first place, seeing that we've not sold anyone in the last four years apart from Dapo when Evatt changed the system and froze him out).

Where is he going to play in the team?

Again fwiw I don't see how he can play the Jerome role on the pitch - namely because Jerome played as a striker and Arfield is a midfielder...

Sluffy wrote:Jerome was brought on late into the game to see the game out (and con his way to a penalty or two).

No point having Arfield as the 'hardman' if he's only coming on for games with 20 or 30 minutes to go - we would have been bullied off the pitch by then - if that was his intended roll?

...and so again questioned what his actual role would be?

Sluffy wrote:Surely we've not signed another Robbie Blake like Coyle did - he was brilliant in the dressing room apparently (and in the meantime we got relegated!)

And to further confuse the situation more Arfield seems to say that he's here to play and not be a wallflower and not being a part of the team in America was the driving force behind him wanting to come back to England!

“To bring it here is what my aim is going to be. Obviously, there will be a key role for me on and off the pitch regarding my experience and maturity, so it's a role I'm very excited to get started with.


If he sees he has a KEY ROLE ON THE PITCH then it doesn't square with a 20 minute, end of game cameo that Jerome did - would it?


So that is why I've simply said from the start I didn't understand his signing with us.

I therefore suspect he will play substantially more (meaningful) games from the starting line up than Jerome ever did (not the micky mouse cup games for instance) but his game time will be 'managed' as Kieron Lee was in the sense of longer recovery times between appearances.

I can't think there is any other point in him being here otherwise as the need is for experience on the pitch to stop teams bullying us, rather than an old head in the dressing room, which any number of end of sell by date pro's could fulfil.

Bolton Wanderers' Scott Arfield on when he plans to retire

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Scott Arfield knows exactly when he will consider hanging up his boots.

The Scottish midfielder, signed by Bolton Wanderers this summer to add experience and guile to their League One promotion push, says he will call it a day once he stops enjoying himself.

About to re-enter the 18th chapter of a successful career, Arfield has already been through one pre-season in MLS with his former club Charlotte. But after making his first public appearance in a Whites shirt in defeat at Middlesbrough on Saturday, the 35-year-old says he is relishing the challenge to start again in League One.

“I love doing what I do,” he told The Bolton News. “Since I was 16 years old I have promised myself that I’d try and play as late as I could, play to 40, that’s what I want.

“The biggest thing for me is to keep enjoying it. People will tell you that pre-season is a grind, and there’s no doubt about it, it’s hard. This is my second one in five months because they start a bit earlier in January over in the US.

“You still love it. You get experience and you learn that results aren’t the be-all and end-all at this time of year. I have had some terrible pre-seasons where you can’t win a game but then gone on and had a great season. It has worked the other way as well.

“I think you grow to not read much into the scores and just look at the fitness and the bits and pieces you’re being asked to do. It’s all about when the big stuff starts.”

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Arfield left Rangers a hero in 2023 having played 233 games for the Glasgow giants and scored 43 goals. His two seasons in America for the newly-established MLS franchise of Charlotte were solid – the team finishing ninth in his first season and currently sitting eighth in the Eastern Conference under ex-Aston Villa boss Dean Smith.

The midfielder played 33 times in the Queen City before answering Bolton’s call and moving back to the UK but he says comparing the standard between the two leagues is a difficult call.

He said: “It’s a very similar standard, I think.

“The league in MLS is very physically demanding but certainly what I have seen of this division players learn to keep the ball a bit better than over there. They have got some fantastic players but it is often a case of getting the ball to the front players and seeing if they can make a difference. Here, it is about getting it, keeping it and trying to rotate.

“It is quite hard to compare the two in that aspect but it is great to be back.”

Saturday’s friendly against Boro in Bishop Auckland finished on a down-note as Wanderers conceded three goals in the last half-hour following a raft of changes from the bench.

Injuries have prevented Ian Evatt from playing his strongest team in the opening two friendlies, but Arfield has played down the importance of results as they travel up the road to Chorley for the third outing tonight.

“It’s always good to get in and the more minutes you clock up the fitter you get, so that’s the most important thing,” he said.

“There are certain movements and rotations that need to get better but that’s what these games are for. We have a few more of them now before the real business starts, so it’s important we use them to iron out any issues.

“The big stuff starts at Leyton Orient so everything we do to that point is building up to that one.

“As a club we know what we want to do, we want to get promotion. I’ve said before, I’m not worried about having that pressure. Right at this minute the results aren’t the important thing for us, it is just steps along the way.

“The manager wants to try out certain things with the senior players and it has been difficult with a few of the lads being out but it’s good experience for the young boys to come in and try to make an impact.

“It’s there for them, the first team, that’s their aim, so hopefully they can carry on progressing.”

Tickets have been put on sale for Wanderers’ final pre-season friendly at Port Vale on Saturday, August 3 (3pm kick-off). The club has been given an allocation of 1,389 tickets at Vale Park, priced at £10 for adults and £5 for concessions.

Discounted travel is also available through the club at a cost of £14, with coaches leaving the Toughsheet Stadium at noon.

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