Six-week injury layoff for Tom Eaves following toe fracture

Injuries are nothing new to Bolton Wanderers with fans expecting an injury crisis or two every season. Anything else could be considered outside the norm. As such, it's no surprise that the Trotters are starting early this season and this time around, young striker Tom Eaves is the victim. What's frustrating is not the injury itself, it's the fact that it arguably could have been prevented.

Per a report from the Bolton News, Tom Eaves aggravated an already-existing toe injury while on holiday in Brazil. The injury was not detected by the club's medical staff ahead of the players leaving on their respective breaks this summer. Eaves had returned home for scans where a small fracture in his toe was discovered.

The injury is similar to that of Joe Riley's where a small foot fracture went undiscovered before ultimately getting worse and ending Riley's season prematurely.

Dougie Freedman has been overhauling the club's backroom staff this summer and the medical/sport fitness department has been a major point of concern for the manager. One such move was letting Dr. Tobin go earlier this summer. The doctor was instrumental in Fabrice Muamba's recovery but this latest injury news seems to indicate why the department is seeing so many changes. Bolton Wanderers have recently added Head of Sport Development Mark Leathers to the mix alongside new fitness coach, Danny Birdsall.