Opinion: Bolton Wanderers can rely on 28-year-old at Wembley despite 'surprise' Barnsley struggle
08/05/2024 13:15
Bolton Wanderers were beaten by Barnsley last night but they managed to book their spot in the League One play-off final regardless.
Bolton Wanderers headed into the second-leg of their play-off semi-final with Barnsley as big favourites to book their place at Wembley, but the Tykes ran them close and made them work for the aggregate win.
The hosts lost 3-2 on the night but having won 3-1 at Oakwell, Wanderers won 5-4 on aggregate.
Barnsley striker Sam Cosgrove got the scoring underway but a rapid response from Bolton Wanderers ensured they went into the break ahead despite only going 1-0 down in the 36th minute.
Aaron Collins fired home from range before Eoin Toal’s stoppage time header made it 2-1.
Caretaker manager Martin Devaney must have delivered a great half time team talk though, with an impressive response coming from the visitors. They would then equalise through Adam Phillips shortly after the hour-mark before Cosgrove bagged a second on 76 minutes.
It set up a tense finish but ultimately, Bolton Wanderers held on.
A one-sided battle
Cosgrove brace capped off a fine individual performance from him. He was a real handful for the Bolton Wanderers backline and especially centre-back Ricardo Santos.
It was somewhat of a one-sided battle with the Barnsley man coming out on top on the night, although his best efforts weren’t enough to pull off a surprise comeback.
Santos’ display drew some criticism, and his surprise struggle with Cosgrove having managed him well in the opening tie caught the eye of The Bolton News‘ Marc Iles. He rated the captain’s performance only 5.5/10, writing this:
“Considering how well he'd played in the first game, his errors in this one were a real surprise. Won lots in the air but needed to be more sensible.”
A dependable figure
It was a tricky night at the office for Santos, but Bolton Wanderers fans will be the first ones to say these don’t come around too often. On his day, the Portuguese ace is up there with the very best in League One and many would back him to manage the step up to the Championship too.
His experience, leadership and dependable character means he’ll be putting his all into producing a better display next time out, and therre’s no better place to do that than in the play-off final at Wembley.
Santos has been a talismanic figure for Bolton Wanderers since signing in August 2020 and if he’s at the top of his game, many would back Ian Evatt’s side to win that long-awaited promotion.
His Barnsley outing may have been poor, but Bolton fans and Santos’ teammates alike can rely on him to produce a big performance when they face either Peterborough United or Oxford United in the play-off final.
The post Opinion: Bolton Wanderers can rely on 28-year-old at Wembley despite ‘surprise’ Barnsley struggle appeared first on The72 - Football League News.
