Bolton Wanderers’ Josh Vela was left out of the 1-0 defeat at Brentford.
Bolton Wanderers have taken to Twitter to lament the decision to leave midfielder Josh Vela out of the starting line-up at Brentford as the Lancashire succumbed to a 1-0 defeat at Griffin Park.
The Trotters headed into the game second from bottom in the Championship table, picking up just one win in their last 18 games and in desperate need for goals.
Brentford themselves have been on a poor run, having lost five of their last six games, and it was a fixture Bolton should have targeted as one they could show some endeavour and be more positive going forward.
Vela, their most creative and positive player in the recent 1-0 defeat to Leeds United, however, was dropped from the starting eleven and it was a decision which didn’t go down well with supporters.
Bolton named a midfield consisting of Will Buckley (29), Gary O’Neill (35), Marc Wilson (31) and Jason Lowe (27) – one of the oldest midfields in the Championship and it told as they lacked pace and movement.
The Trotters are crying out for some added youth and creativity, and while they will hope to rectify that in the January transfer window, in the meantime Vela surely represents their best option. The 25-year-old has averaged 1.4 key passes per game this season (Whoscored) – more than any other Bolton player.
Defeat for Phil Parkinson’s side leaves them in 23rd in the Championship and as the lowest scorers in the league with just 15 goals in 23 games. It was also the 12th time this season they have failed to find the net.
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