It came like a bolt out of the blue when it was announced that Bolton Wanderers skipper Antoni Sarcevic had left the club to drop down two divisions and join Stockport County.
The 29-year-old put pen to paper on a deal at the Hatters which lasts until 2024.
His deal at Wanderers was poised to run out at the end of this season as things stood, and with no extension or fresh terms on the horizon at the time, Sarcevic made the move to Edgeley Park last Friday.
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The first game of the post-Sarcevic era at Wanderers took place over the weekend when Ian Evatt's side came from two goals down at the University of Bolton Stadium to pick up a point at home to Gillingham.
Wanderers fell behind in the first half after John Akinde put the Gills ahead, before Kyle Dempsey doubled the visitors' advantage shortly afterwards.
But Bolton fought back after half-time as Dapo Afolayan halved the deficit as full-time approached, while Kieran Lee turned home from Declan John's low cross to give Wanderers a deserved point and put an end to the club's losing streak of three matches.
Sarcevic has been a near guaranteed starter for Wanderers since he joined the club last summer, and his departure could both lead to other players getting an opportunity in the attacking midfield and number 10 role, as well as the potential for other formations to be used.
Here we take a look at a few ways Wanderers could line up moving forwards, when all players are fully fit.
4-3-3
One option that Evatt has is to persist with formation he has used at Wanderers since January in the form of a 4-3-3.
MJ Williams anchors the base of the midfield and Sarcevic tended to operate one of the two more advanced positions in the engine room.
With Sarcevic no longer an option, Evatt can turn to the duo of Kieran Lee and Josh Sheehan, rather than choosing one out of the two.
George Thomason is also an option in this formation, while the rest of the team could line up as it has for much of this campaign.
Potential Bolton Wanderers 4-3-3 formation: Dixon; Jones, Santos, Johnston, John; Williams, Lee, Sheehan; Bakayoko, Doyle, Afolayan.
3-5-2
This was a favoured system for the first half of last season by Evatt with three central defenders and wing-backs.
It is something that Evatt has admitted he could revisit with the likes of Ricardo Almeida Santos, George Johnston, Will Aimson and Alex Baptiste among his options.
On the right flank, Gethin Jones or Lloyd Isgrove could fill that slot, with Declan John and Liam Gordon the options on the other side of the pitch.
This formation could allow the likes of Dapo Afolayan to play more centrally in a number 10 role off either Eoin Doyle or Amadou Bakayoko, with the midfield trio of the previous formation carrying over.
Potential Bolton Wanderers 3-5-2 formation: Dixon; Aimson, Santos, Johnston; Jones, Sheehan, Williams, Lee, John; Afolayan, Doyle.
4-4-2
In this more traditional formation, the back four outlined in the above scenarios would likely remain the same, but would face a decision in the middle of the park between Sheehan or Lee to partner Williams.
Bakayoko and Doyle is a potential strike partnership, but Afolayan or Nathan Delfouneso could come into the reckoning too.
Xavier Amaechi could be back in the fold in the coming weeks and provide another option on the flanks too, adding to others including Isgrove and Elias Kachunga, as well as Bakayoko and Afolayan.
Potential Bolton Wanderers 4-4-2 formation: Dixon; Jones, Santos, Johnston, John; Isgrove, Williams, Sheehan, Afolayan; Bakayoko, Doyle.
