Bolton Wanderers are preparing to let £500,000 striker Victor Adeboyejo move on during the January window as interest builds from within League One.
The 27-year-old striker is understood to have accepted that his future lies away from the Toughsheet Stadium, with Bolton open to offers as they look to reshape their squad for the second half of the season.
Adeboyejo has found opportunities limited since returning from a serious knee injury sustained in February. While he featured briefly under current boss Steven Schumacher earlier in the campaign, his absence during pre-season and the club’s subsequent recruitment left him playing catch-up.
By the time he was available again in November, Bolton had strengthened their attacking options, with Sam Dalby, Mason Burstow and Marcus Forss all ahead of him in the pecking order.
Possible destinations
Interest in Adeboyejo is said to be strong, with Mansfield Town among the clubs keen to offer him a route back to regular first-team football. A loan move for the remainder of the season has been discussed, although there is also background talk around a permanent transfer. That could price out the Stags, considering Bolton have previously turned down £1m for him.
Financially, Wanderers are unlikely to recoup anything close to the fee they paid, particularly with Adeboyejo’s contract entering its final months. However, a departure would free up an over-21 squad place, something that could prove valuable as Schumacher looks to address other areas of the pitch.
Victor Adeboyejo to date
Bolton paid a reported £500,000 to sign Adeboyejo from Burton Albion in January 2023, making him their most expensive signing in a decade at the time. In total, he has made 99 appearances in all competitions for the club, scoring 17 goals. While that return never quite matched expectations, his spell included flashes of the physical presence and work rate that made him such an appealing option during his Burton days.
Adeboyejo’s career to date has followed a well-trodden EFL path. Born in Ibadan, Nigeria, he came through the youth systems at Arsenal, AFC Wimbledon and Charlton Athletic before beginning his senior career at Leyton Orient. Spells at Barnsley, including Championship experience, followed, alongside a series of loans that shaped him into a robust League One forward.
His most productive senior season came at Burton Albion, where he scored 11 league goals in 2022–23, form that prompted Bolton’s investment.
The future
With minutes scarce and competition fierce, a move now looks the best outcome for all parties. For Adeboyejo, it represents a chance to relaunch his career at a crucial stage. At 27, he may favour a permanent move and a decent contract, and that could come from abroad, rather than Mansfield Town. If the permanent interest isn’t there, a loan puts him in the shop window.
For Bolton, it is a pragmatic decision as they balance squad management with longer-term planning. It is also a reflection of the ‘haves’ in League One, able to drop half a million on a player and see that more or less written off a couple of years later, something the likes of Mansfield could only dream of.
