The 7 Bolton Wanderers first team players out of contract this summer

WANDERERS always knew qualifying for the play-offs would make their recruitment plans for the following season that bit trickier.

Different budget plans have been discussed with owners, Football Ventures, for both eventualities, be it Championship or League One football.

Should Bolton fail to go all the way this month then there are also signs that Ian Evatt will be given licence to push on and build on a squad that has evolved in each of his three seasons so far, with automatic promotion the next aim.

But what for the seven players out of contract at the University of Bolton Stadium this summer?

The club has put any negotiations on hold while full focus is placed on the run-in, which will hopefully end in a return to Wembley.

We check out the first team players whose deal runs out this summer, and what factors could come into play when thinking about a renewal.

MJ Williams – This current run, either as a central midfielder or a centre-half, has come at a great time for the Liverpudlian, who must have wondered what the future held at the start of the year.

A clean out operation on his knee in January seems to have worked a treat, and his performances over the last month to help negate a defensive injury crisis and see Wanderers into the play-offs have been encouraging to see.

Williams proved a big signing in the January of the League Two promotion season and has always been Evatt’s go-to man when a bit of physicality is needed. Proving he has more than one string to his bow cannot do his chances of a new deal any harm whatsoever.

Josh Sheehan – Side-lined by a serious knee injury in his first season with Bolton, the former Newport playmaker always knew it would be a long road back.

Sheehan has steadily built himself back into the sort of form we saw at the very start of his time with the Whites, and his winner against Shrewsbury last month felt like a pivotal moment in that comeback.

As with a few of the other out-of-contract stars it could boil down to which division Wanderers are playing in next season. Sheehan has already nudged into the international scene with Wales, however, so you wonder whether he could be worth a bet either way?

Jon Dadi Bodvarsson – Has endured some frightful luck in his 18 months with Wanderers, and there are many around who desperately want to see him get a chance to change that around.

The Icelander has shown, when fit, he can score plenty of goals at this level. And despite only featuring in 27 times this term he has scored on eight occasions, including some important strikes in the Papa Johns Trophy run.

Football can be a harsh game a times and Bodvarsson has not been able to play since January when he picked up an ankle injury in a 3-0 win against Portsmouth. Whether that has tipped the scales against him getting a new contract with the Whites only time will tell.

Joel Dixon – Consigned to the cup competitions early in the season, the former Barrow keeper has found no way past James Trafford for the vast majority of the campaign. Folk inside Lostock praise his training standards and professional attitude – which may well have rubbed off on the young City loanee – but when called upon there has been a shakiness which makes it hard to see another deal beyond this summer.

Dixon stepped in at the very start of last season and finished up playing 29 times before Trafford’s first loan spell began but six cup games this time around have left him very much in the background.

Kieran Lee – Unquestionably one of Ian Evatt’s very best signings of the last three years, there has always been a trade-off between what Lee brings when he is on the field, with how many games he can handle in a short space of time.

The former Sheffield Wednesday man will be 35 in June and has started just three of the last 13 games, with a break to settle a hip problem which has been a long-standing issue.

Few have a better tactical grasp in midfield, and both he and the club have done a sterling job of managing his body through the last few years. A new deal might well hinge on whether he can handle another big pre-season, and potentially a return to the Championship?

Lloyd Isgrove – It was noticeable that when his name was read out at the end-of-season awards it received just as big a cheer as a Dion Charles or an Aaron Morley. Isgrove remains a popular player among the Bolton fans, even though his last season-and-a-half has been decimated by injury.

The former Southampton winger was a big part of the promotion from League Two, and looked to have found a niche as a wing-back before tearing his hamstring for the first time towards the end of the year. His fitness issues since then have severely hampered his gametime, with just six appearances in all competitions his term.

His latest injury, sustained playing for the B Team, looks like it has ended any chance of a swansong before the end of this season.

Elias Kachunga – Has played 48 times for Wanderers this season, and while once again his infrequent goal-scoring record has been a matter of much debate, there is little doubt that his professionalism has been a big influence on a young squad.

Kachunga’s tactical acumen means he adapts to the high-pressing game as well as any of the attacking players. And while some may wrinkle their nose at the thought of a forward’s defensive skills being celebrated, he has set a very good example of what Ian Evatt requires.

At 31, the next contract is an important one for the German-born striker and his family. He has scored big goals in the Papa Johns Trophy final – and had at least a helping hand in the first against Fleetwood on Saturday – but has not started too many games of late.

Kieran Sadlier – Spent the second half of this season out on loan with Leyton Orient, helping to guide the East Londoners to promotion from League Two.

The versatile attacker chipped in with some good goals for the Whites but never quite managed to find a niche in Ian Evatt’s side.

A return to Bolton has never been completely ruled out by either the player or manager but would be a big surprise at this stage.

Elsewhere, several loan players reach the end of their deal, including James Trafford and Conor Bradley.

Several members of the B Team will also be looking for new deals including Adam Senior, Gerald Sithole, Conor Stanley, Nelson Khumbeni, Luke Hutchinson, Matt Tweedley, Lamine Toure, Finlay Lockett, Max Conway, Arran Pettifer, Ellis Litherland, Lynford Sackey, Matt Grivosti, Eric Yoro and Mackenzie Chapman.