This article is part of Football League World’s ‘Comment’ series, this content strand is where the author of the article issues their personal opinion on the topic at hand...

2019 is a year that, on the whole, Bolton Wanderers and their fans will be desperate to see the back of.

They were relegated from the Championship, deducted 12 points at the start of the League One season and nearly driven into liquidation by the slapdash and selfish ownership of Ken Anderson.

But they are beginning to come out of the dark tunnel and into the light. With Football Ventures completing their takeover of the club, for the time being anyway, their future is very much secured.

With established EFL boss Keith Hill taking over from Phil Parkinson at the helm of the club, they look to be in very safe hands for the season to come.

However, with the 12-point deduction came a resignation from many of their own fans that this season will be a right-off, with survival almost impossible, and it is hard to blame them. Such a large handicap is nearly always a way of guaranteeing relegation.

A plucky point against promotion favourites Sunderland on Saturday will have offered a large flash of hope, however. A reminder that their's is a club that remains one of the biggest in the division and can mix it with anyone.

And on Thursday they were offered even more reason for optimism with the news, reported by Marc Iles, that two of their late summer signings were closing in on a return to fitness: Daryl Murphy and Chris O'Grady.

Murphy especially carries a large beacon of hope with him. At 36, he was signed for the hear and now and brings with him a wealth of goalscoring experience, netting 93 times in the second tier.

There remained debate among the Nottingham Forest camp over whether it was the right move to release him which has got to offer even more hope to the Bolton faithful. They potentially have a Championship standard striker on their hands.

O'Grady too boasts a steady goalscoring record in all three tiers of the EFL and will undoubtedly prove to be a useful tool in Hill's armoury.

Whilst the Trotters still have a huge task on their hands to survive the drop, these returnees should offer a large boost to every aspect of the club.

Their fanbase is already loud and defiant. They know that survival would be a huge achievement and they are keen to see it happen. Having their strongest players available will only magnify that.

Down at the foot of any division, having people who can score goals consistently is nearly always what separates each side.

For a while it looked like Bolton's relegation battle was over before it had started but this news shows there is still a long way to go.