Bolton Wanderers have begun life back in the Championship reasonably well and they will want to kick on in the winter with probable business to be done – and one man that they should be looking at is Burton Albion midfielder Charlie Webster.

Following their promotion via the League One play-offs last season, Steven Schumacher and his Bolton side have been more than competitive in the second-tier thus far.

Taking four points from away games at Wolverhampton Wanderers and then Southampton in the last week or so is another good example of that as The Trotters seek to stabilise themselves back in England’s top two divisions.

They have not been goal shy either, with that win at Molineux seeing them score three just a few weeks after notching four away at Norwich City, too – and Schumacher has plenty of options both out-wide and up-front.

One area he may want to add depth to is the attacking midfield position and Burton man Webster could be a shrewd move to be made in the January transfer window.

Charlie Webster has excelled at Burton

Having come through the academy at Chelsea, Charlie Webster spent signed a contract with The Blues in 2021 after he had previously been linked with Borussia Dortmund.

In the summer of 2023, Webster moved to the Netherlands to sign for Eredivisie outfit Heerenveen on a season-long loan deal but he didn’t majorly impress in 13 appearances in the Dutch top-flight.

The following summer saw him depart Stamford Bridge on a permanent basis and get picked up by Burton Albion in a summer that saw new owners the Nordic Football Group make 23 signings.

Despite some good-looking additions on paper and some intriguing signings from abroad such as Tomas Kalinauskas, Jake Cooper-Love and Ivan Inzoudine; there were more misses than hits.

There were some major hits, though, with the likes of Udoka Godwin-Malife and Rumarn Burrell having since been cashed in on by The Brewers but one of the hits that remains at the Pirelli Stadium is Webster.

In his debut campaign for the club in the 2024-25 season, Webster found himself on the periphery of things under Mark Robinson before forcing his way in ahead of the appointment of Gary Bowyer, initially as a defensive midfielder.

Under Bowyer, Webster began to become a more advanced midfielder and someone who had clear qualities in a box-to-box role as well as even in the ‘number ten’, scoring crucial match winners against Stevenage, Lincoln City and Leyton Orient as Burton scrambled their way to safety.

Last season, Webster further cemented himself as the key man in the middle of the park for Burton with an opening day brace against Mansfield Town contributing to 12 direct goal involvements in just 26 appearances across all competitions in a season that was disrupted by a lengthy injury that kept him sidelined from late-November until late-March.

Once fit, though, Webster almost immediately re-integrated himself straight back into the starting lineup at Burton and he has remained a key man this season – starting every game thus far and also finishing all but two of those with a couple of goals and an assist for a goal-shy Albion.

Bolton could do with adding in attacking midfield

John McAtee was mainly on the periphery of things in Steven Schumacher’s first full season at Bolton last season before beginning to contribute at the back end of the campaign, including an assist in the play-off final against Stockport County.

An injury to Ruben Rodrigues meant he started and again played very well on the opening day of this season in a 2-1 defeat of Preston North End before his profligacy in front of goal eventually led to him being demoted as soon as Rodrigues returned to full fitness.

Since Rodrigues’ return, McAtee has once again returned to the sidelines for Bolton and hasn’t even made a match day squad since the end of the international break, with Japan international Atsuki Ito deputising for Rodrigues and even starting in their goalless draw away at Southampton.

Ito has popped up with a couple of crucial goals in away wins at Norwich and Wolves but his performance against The Saints was more representative of a player that has played the vast majority of his career as an out and out defensive midfielder, rather than an attacking one.

While Schumacher may continue to persist with Ito in that role as competition for Rodrigues for the time being due to a lack of options; his future surely lies in a deeper position once Wanderers get reinforcements in that position.

Charlie Webster and his flexibility should suit Bolton

Having come through the academy at Chelsea, Webster already has good pedigree behind him and was clearly a highly-rated prospect at Stamford Bridge when playing for their famed U23 side as a 17-year-old before his move to Heerenveen.

Webster had to take a step down to League One in order to reignite his career after a frustrating time of it in the Netherlands but Albion’s hit and miss summer did uncover a few gems – and Webster was certainly one of them.

Still only 22, Webster clearly still has room to improve but to have established himself as the fulcrum of a League One battler is a sign of his quality and ability, as well as his mentality.

Wanderers will continue to need to show grit as they seek to establish themselves back in the Championship but matching that grit with extra quality in the final third, as well as the potential that Webster has, would surely suggest he is the ideal fit for a Bolton side that, with Sporting Director Fergal Harkin, have taken a ‘moneyball’ approach in identifying fading or faded talents and taking a chance to rebuild their reputation, such as Gavin Bazunu and Lewis Brunt this summer.

Webster is by no means someone that has endured a downward trajectory but is someone who falls into the category of having a higher or as yet unknown ceiling for Wanderers to tap into, too.

As Schumacher has shown with Ito, versatility in the middle of the park is also crucial and Webster has shown his ability to play in a variety of midfield roles, too, and he is someone that Bolton should target to further strengthen their squad this winter.