“An interesting one” – Bolton Wanderers star backed to seal Watford FC transfer.
The 26-year-old had a promising first season at the Toughsheet Community Stadium after joining from Chelsea in 2023, but, as has been the case with so many other aspects of Bolton this season, he fell out of form and thus out of favour, appearing in only 26 League One games.
Baxter and the club were unable to reach an agreement on a new contract, so he will leave at the end of June when his current contract expires. His ability as a custodian has been shown at League One level, so moving to a Watford side where he’d be primarily a backup to Egil Selvik has raised some eyebrows.
According to FLW’s Bolton Wanderers fan pundit Liam O’Meara, Baxter has the potential to become the Hornets’ starting custodian.
Fan pundit says Nathan Baxter “has the ability” to play for Watford.
When asked if he thought a move to Watford would be a bad decision for Nathan Baxter’s career, Liam disagreed, saying: “I think it’s an interesting one. He’s from London, so I can understand why Watford would appeal to him because it’s closer to home.
“I admire Nathan Baxter and believe he is an excellent custodian. A year ago, he could have probably landed a Championship move.”
Baxter previously played in the Championship on loan at Hull City and was one of League One’s top goalkeepers two seasons ago, keeping 14 clean sheets in 33 games.
| Bolton Wanderers goalkeeper stats, League One 2024/25, per Transfermarkt | ||
| Player | Nathan Baxter | Luke Southwood |
| Games | 26 | 20 |
| Clean sheets | 6 | 3 |
| Goals conceded | 43 | 27 |
“Being at a club like Watford, he could possibly pitch himself as a number one, he does have that ability in my view,” he went on.
“He could move elsewhere to be a guaranteed number one, but I believe that once goalkeepers reach the age of 24, it becomes difficult to advance up the ranks.
“Changes happen at Watford more than any other club, so he could theoretically make a case to be a number one there, so I’m not surprised at the move and I think he could make a fist of it.”
Nathan Baxter has the opportunity to finally secure a starting Championship role with Watford—but it will not be easy.
If Baxter signs for Watford after his contract with Bolton Wanderers expires, he will have the opportunity to be a recognised Championship number one for the first time in his career.
Baxter did play Championship football with Hull City from 2021 to 2023, but only made 28 appearances over two seasons. His first season at Bolton was his first as a true starter after a loan move to Yeovil Town in 2018.
At Watford, he will compete with two internationals, Daniel Bachmann and Egil Selvik, for the opportunity to showcase his abilities at a high level.
While Bachmann is no longer a regular starter for Austria, the 30-year-old has 14 caps for his country, whereas Selvik is being positioned as Norway’s regular shot stopper with Orjan Nyland in his mid-30s.
Furthermore, Selvik performed admirably when given the opportunity in the second half of the season, conceding 19 goals and keeping six clean sheets in 16 games, compared to only five clean sheets in 22 games when Bachmann was in goal during the first half of the season.
If he is given the opportunity, Baxter will have to take it in the same way that Selvik did. With a new man in charge at Vicarage Road, one of the most important decisions Paul Pezzolano will have to make during pre-season is who will line up in goal.
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