Dapo Afolayan is aiming to help Bolton Wanderers get back to the top level while skipper Ricardo Santos is focussed on continually improving his game after the duo won accolades at the club's awards evening last night.
Wanderers top scorer Afolayan clinched the award for that category with 14 strikes as well as the club's player of the year accolade.
Central defender and captain Santos meanwhile clinched the players' player of the season award after a stellar campaign at the back.
READ MORE: Bolton Wanderers end of season awards: Ricardo Santos and Dapo Afolayan among winners
Afolayan has joined an elite group that have won the club's player of the season award previously, including the likes of Jussi Jääskeläinen, Jay-Jay Okocha, Kevin Davies and Ricardo Gardner.
And the Wanderers man is pleased to be mentioned in the same breath as those legends of the club, and is hoping to be part of a group that takes the club back to the top flight in time.
It has been quite the story over the past 18 months for Afolayan since arriving on loan from West Ham United in January 2021, as the attacker explained his hunger to improve and his connection with the fans who have taken to him so well.
He said: “I’ve said it all year, I think the level that those guys were playing at was at the top level and that’s where we’re trying to get the club back to. If I can be a part of that then obviously I’m more than happy to be here.
“I always knew what I could do and I always believed in my ability. Speak to anyone who was with me at West Ham in the 23s just on the fringes of the first team, I was always working my hardest and I was always making sure that I was giving it my all in those sessions and building because I knew that if my opportunity wasn’t there, I knew that it would be somewhere else and I had to make sure that when that opportunity came I was ready for it.
"I came here last year feeling ready, hungry and the season we had last year helped me build into this year. Stepping up a level gave me lots of confidence.
“Last year there weren’t any fans in the stadium and to see the fans at Longridge in the first pre-season game and signing my name, things like that make you feel special and it gives you that extra 10 per cent to go out there and perform.”
“It’s always something that I pride myself on and I try to have a good relationship with the fans and I appreciate what they do for me. I’m a football fan myself and I know how much it means to fans and for me to be an inspiration, I just want to repay that faith and go out there and give it my all.”
Central defender Santos meanwhile gave thanks to his team mates for voting him as the club's players' player of the season.
The club captain is 26 but still learning the game and he has targetted continuing to improve his game after a second full season at Wanderers.
He said: "I am obviously delighted with winning that award. I have got to give big thanks to the team, they help me a lot. I am not out there for playing by myself, so a big shout out to them.
"I am 26. People may say that is getting old but I still think I am young and I am still learning. I just want to keep working hard and keep improving."
