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Owen Coyle was the man at the helm of Bolton Wanderers for just over two-and-a-half seasons. In that time, Coyle was able to make a large number of signing for the Trotters in hopes of putting together the team that he envisioned Bolton to be. Some signings were strokes of sheer brilliance, some were great signings that were misused in the Bolton system, others were nothing special, while a large amount were sheer crap.
We're going to go through each of the men that Owen brought to Bolton, season by season, and tell you just what we thought of them.
2009 / 2010
| Player | Date In | From | Reported Fee | Rating |
| Vladimir Weiss | 25-Jan-10 | Manchester City | Loan | Decent talent but awful attitude |
| Stuart Holden | 26-Jan-10 | Houston Dynamo | Free | Master stroke. Unfortunately, we are all well aware of Stuart's unlucky injury problems. |
| Paul Robinson | 29-Jan-10 | West Bromwich Albion | £1 million | Decent at best. Previously on loan at Bolton, this just made it permanent. A tenacious defender not afraid to go in hard on a tackle but would often be left for dead. |
| Jack Wilshere | 29-Jan-10 | Arsenal | Loan | Master stroke. The then 18-year-old slotted very well into the Bolton side and pulled the strings in the center of the park. |
2010 / 2011
| Player | Date In | From | Reported Fee | Rating |
| Martin Petrov | 1-Jul-10 | Manchester City | Free | A great signing that badly needed an attitude adjustment. He's proven his worth on the pitch but has been mismanaged in recent outings and has found himself riding the bench for no apparent reason. |
| Robbie Blake | 1-Jul-10 | Burnley | Free | A head-scratcher and an awful. The man scored once for Bolton, from a free kick. All indications point to the signing happening because Blake and Coyle were friends. |
| Marcos Alonso | 27-Jul-10 | Marcos Alonso | £1.6 million | A good prospect that's yet to prove his worth on the pitch. At the moment, we hold out hope but this one hasn't turned out like Owen hoped |
| Ivan Klasnic | 4-Aug-10 | FC Nantes | Free | Another loan signing made permanent, Ivan Klasnic was a good pickup with a poor attitude and worse work ethic. The fox in the box was undoubtedly the best finisher at the club but often failed at putting in a good 90 minute performacne. |
| Tom Eaves | 12-Aug-10 | Oldham Athletic | £0.2 million | A young signing that hasn't made an impact on the first team yet. Eaves scored his first goal on loan for Bristol Rovers recently. He is coming back from a major injury |
| Rodrigo Moreno | 31-Aug-10 | Benfica | Loan | Another young striker, never got much of a run in the first team despite showing talent. Had a number of Champions League appearances for Benfica after the fact. |
| David Wheater | 20-Jan-11 | Middlesbrough | £1.5 million | A good, young, strong defender that had carved out his place in the team prior to injury. Despite mental lapses from time to time, this was a good signing. |
| Daniel Sturridge | 31-Jan-11 | Chelsea | Loan | Master stroke. Sturridge made an impact for Bolton right from the off and scored eight goals in 12 games. After returning to Chelsea, he has been played out of position by the managers. |
2011 / 2012
| Player | Date In | From | Reported Fee | Rating |
| Darren Pratley | 1-Jul-11 | Swansea City | Free | A decent pickup at the time, Pratley was coming off a career year in the Championship with Swansea. He never really clicked for Bolton and has not been given much of a chance this season. |
| Nigel Reo-Coker | 27-Jul-11 | Aston Villa | Free | A great signing for Bolton. Proved to be the engine in midfield in Stuart Holden's absence. Still without a club following him leaving Bolton after relegation. |
| Chris Eagles | 29-Jul-11 | Burnley | £1.5 million | A signing that's come into his own this season in the Championship. Failed to perform for much of last season in the Premiership |
| Tyrone Mears | 29-Jul-11 | Burnley | £1.5 million | Broke his leg in training immediately after signing for Bolton. Been consistently in the side this year but whether that's a good thing or not is up for debate. |
| Tuncay Sanli | 11-Aug-11 | Wolfsburg | Loan | Never performed well at Bolton despite a good debute in the League Cup. Often slow, off the pace, and rarely troubled the goalkeeper. Interesting penchant for backheel flicks. |
| Dedryck Boyata | 26-Aug-11 | Manchester City | Loan | Provided decent defensive cover for Bolton but struggled to come into his own. Was often at fault in the center of defense and was eventually played out of position on the right. |
| David Ngog | 31-Aug-11 | Liverpool | £4 million | A striker that doesn't shoot and doesn't score many goals. Ngog has yet to come good but does show some of his worth when providing hold-up play in advanced positions. |
| Gael Kakuta | 31-Aug-11 | Chelsea | Loan | Many hoped he would turn good like Sturridge did but Kakuta was largely awful at Bolton. He made four Premier League appearances and didn't provide much of anything. |
| Tim Ream | 26-Jan-12 | Red Bull New York | £2.4 million | Slotted into the side right away but has not had much of a chance after only a couple matches in the Championship. Ream needs to get stronger and better in the air to come good. |
| Marvin Sordell | 31-Jan-12 | Watford | £3 million | Another signing that has not been given much of a chance. To date, Sordell has made only 7 appearances with the majority coming off the bench. He has been labeled the best finisher at the club but not allowed to play his trade on the field. |
| Ryo Miyaichi | 31-Jan-12 | Arsenal | Loan | Highly touted for his skill and pace on the ball but didn't show much of that at Bolton. Miyaichi tried to beat defenders for pace but often failed as he was very predictable on the ball. |
| Gregg Wylde | 17-Mar-12 | Rangers | Free | Signed for free after Rangers went into administration. Wylde has yet to make an appearance for Bolton after Owen Coyle had tried to sign him on previous occasions. |
2012
| Player | Date In | From | Reported Fee | Rating |
| Keith Andrews | 1-Jul-12 | West Bromwich Albion | Free | Was signed to provide experience in midfield. Andrews hasn't done much but hasn't done little. Not good, not bad. |
| Matt Mills | 4-Jul-12 | Leicester City | £1.5 million | Become the first choice central defender since signing. Mills still makes mistakes but he's been largely decent for Bolton. |
| Joe McKee | 5-Jul-12 | Burnley | Free | Slotted right into the U-21 squad. Not had a chance to do anything for Bolton yet |
| Andy Lonergan | 17-Jul-12 | Leeds United | £0.2 million | Signed to provide competition for Adam Bogdan as well as be the backup goalkeeper. Has had one first team appearance, in the League Cup. |
| Benik Afobe | 3-Aug-12 | Arsenal | Loan | Has yet to really make an impact for Bolton up front. Doesn't have great finishing ability and thus hasn't turned nine Bolton appearances into any goals. |
| Jay Spearing | 31-Aug-12 | Liverpool | Loan | The best signing for Bolton this season, Spearing's game is a simple one. The midfield bulldog wins the ball and plays simple passes to maintain possession |
| Stephen Warnock | 21-Sep-12 | Aston Villa | Loan | Experienced cover at left back, Warnock has been good in the few appearances he's made for Bolton apart from conceding a penalty against Leeds United. |
Yes, Owen Coyle was hampered by the spending of previous managers like Gary Megson, but a lot of people before him have done a lot more with a lot less. What do you think? Any personal standouts? Was there one you absolutely despised? Let us know in the comments