To say it’s been a difficult start to the season for Bolton Wanderers is an understatement. 

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Neil Lennon's Bolton are bottom of the Championship

One win in their opening 13 games has already raised fears of a relegation battle and talk of the departure of manager Neil Lennon.

Sitting bottom of the Championship and already out of the Capital One Cup after an embarrassing home defeat to third-tier Burton Albion, it’s set to be a long year for the Trotters.

The news this week that the Lancashire side had signed former Newcastle United striker Shola Ameobi is unlikely to ease any fears for the Bolton faithful either. Far from prolific, Ameobi notched only 79 goals in 14 years on Tyneside, only breaking double figures in two seasons.

One obvious flaw with Bolton is that they quite simply do not score enough goals, which is perhaps why Lennon chose to bolster his attacking options, albeit desperately.

With nine goals so far this term, they are the lowest scorers in the division, and the joint-lowest in the Football League. Three of these nine came in a single game, away at Queens Park Rangers. They still lost 4-3.

Last year however, goal scoring wasn’t that much of an issue.

Bolton finished the season with a tally of 54 goals, which is comfortably more than the three relegated teams (Millwall were the highest scorers of the three with 42). Bolton have averaged 0.75 goals per game this year which is even less than Lancashire rivals Blackpool score of 0.78 per game last season.

Ameobi’s signing may not contribute many goals to the team, but maybe spur on his teammates and provide competition up front.

He certainly made an instant impact at the Macron Stadium. He marked his debut with a goal to help Bolton to a 1-1 draw with Leeds United, although it does not lift them off the bottom of the division.

Bolton’s midweek defeat at home to Birmingham City has highlighted the urgent need for improvement, and Lennon noted a lack of quality in his squad as the reason for Wanderers’ poor form.

Lennon started with former England international Emile Heskey up front who, despite having made over 25 appearances, is yet to score in 2015.

Defensively as well, Bolton are far from secure.

The Trotters have leaked 19 goals this term which, despite not being the highest total in the division (QPR, Rotherham and Bristol City have all conceded more), is nowhere near good enough for a team who in pre-season were aiming for a strong top-half finish.

Unsurprisingly, pressure has been mounting on boss Lennon with many fans angered by his recent trip to Dublin to pundit on the Champions League coverage for Irish television. Lennon also has to deal with Brazilian striker Wellington Silva’s hamstring injury which is set to rule him until Christmas.

Lennon, who came to Bolton after a successful managerial spell north of the border in which he won five trophies in four years with Celtic, has never really convinced at Bolton since taking over in October last year.

A win percentage of around 27% and a team struggling for goals aren’t exactly hallmarks of a good manager so don’t be surprised to see the Trotters make a scapegoat of Lennon in the near future.

Bolton fans... do you agree? Can Ameobi help keep you up? Is Lennon to blame for your poor start? Or are there problems higher up at the club? Let us know your thoughts and opinions in the comments below!