Bolton Wanderers manager Ian Evatt has revealed that Kyle Dempsey is not set to make his return to action in this afternoon's showdown with Accrington Stanley.
Dempsey has missed the club's last two league games due to a hamstring injury that he suffered during the Trotters' 1-1 draw with Portsmouth.
In the absence of the midfielder, Bolton managed to secure four points from their meetings with Sheffield Wednesday and Doncaster Rovers.
After netting a late equaliser against the Owls, Bolton sealed victory at the Keepmoat Stadium on Friday thanks to goals from Amadou Bakayoko and Kieran Sadlier.
Set to face an Accrington outfit who have only picked up one win from their last five league games, Evatt's side will be confident in their ability to secure a positive result in this fixture.
Currently 11th in League One, the Trotters will move above Ipswich in the standings if they beat Stanley at the University of Bolton Stadium.
Ahead of this game, Evatt has shared an update on Dempsey.
Speaking to the Manchester Evening News about whether the midfielder will feature today, Evatt said: "No, I don't think so.
"He hasn't trained.
"He's desperate to get back, but he'll need a full week's training before we think about putting him back in.
"It's just not worth the risk at the moment."
The Verdict
Evatt's stance regarding Dempsey is understandable as Bolton really do not need to be taking a risk on the midfielder at this stage of the season as they will be playing League One football again during the 2022/23 campaign.
Since joining Bolton in January, the midfielder has shown glimpses of what he is capable of producing at this level in the 10 league games that he has participated in for his new side.
Although he has yet to score for the Trotters, Dempsey has provided one assist in this division and will be keen to improve his output next season.
Providing that MJ Williams and Aaron Morley are able to deliver the goods this afternoon in the absence of their team-mate, Bolton could go on to defeat Accrington in this clash.