Tye with his spiffy new shirt
Bolton's third or fourth signing this offseason (depending on which member of Meagles put pen to paper first) is Tyrone Mears. It's now officially official that Chris Eagles and Tyrone Mears have signed for Bolton Wanderers in a deal worth around £2.75 million for the pair. It's common knowledge that the pair both played under Owen Coyle in his time at Burnley but each of their histories are much more extensive.
With that, we give you the opportunity to learn a little more about Tyrone Mears.
Tye, as the back of his kit read for one season, started out at Manchester City before being purchased by Preston North End where he spent three seasons before moving to West Ham in 2006 for six months before going out on loan. During his time in London, he made just six appearances in the same struggling side that featured Nigel Reo-Coker. With the opportunities few and far between, Mears went to Derby County on loan where he helped Derby gain promotion to the Premier League. The following season, Mears made the move to Derby permanent and quickly broke into the side, making 26 appearances before being sidelined by a stress fracture (an issue that also had him sit at Preston).
Mears then went behind the back of then Derby manager Paul Jewell by going on trial with Marseille without the gaffer's permission. Jewell said that Mears would never play for Derby again while he was in charge and allowed Tye to go on loan at the French side where he again struggled for playing time. Marseille declined Mears' option for a permanent move and he returned to the Premier League where he was signed by Owen Coyle and Burnley. In two seasons with the Clarets, Mears made 88 appearances and scored twice in all competitions.
Tyrone Mears is a promising prospect because he's a very attack minded right back that isn't afraid to go up the wing. At just under 6 feet tall, he's smaller than Gretar Steinsson but will serve as more than a suitable backup. Still, his history of injuries, and stress fractures specifically, is a concern. We can only hope that he won't go behind Coyle's back.