ANY one of three goalkeepers could lay claim to being Bolton Wanderers’ number one right now – yet all three could disappear in a month’s time and never represent the club again.

It would be a brave person to put money on which man will start next season in goal for the Whites. It is quite possibly a question Neil Lennon could not answer himself.

Adam Bogdan, Andy Lonergan and Ben Amos are all up for grabs this summer, and each has a decent case for being considered the best man for the job.

Lennon’s thinking must be guided as much by finance as any personal preference.

Ideally he would keep two from three, encouraging the sort of competition Wanderers has enjoyed in the last few seasons in the Championship.

But existing contracts for Bogdan and Lonergan were handed out in a very different financial climate. Likewise, Amos steps down from a deal at Manchester United which would make him one of the higher earners at the Macron Stadium.

All three men would argue they are worth it.

Bogdan has Premier League experience, has been courted on the continent and is a fully-fledged international. Given the time and effort put in by the club to make him such an asset, it would be a sad day to see him walk away for nothing.

After his heroics at Liverpool earlier in the year Lennon made no secret of the fact he was trying to tie the Hungarian down to a longer deal. The lack of progress in the meantime, coupled with an ill-timed ankle injury, opened the door for the other two candidates.

A popular figure with the Bolton fans, Lonergan has let no-one down when he has been called upon.

The experienced stopper showed at Preston, Leeds and Wanderers that he is among the best shot-stoppers in the business at this level; few among the 40-odd players in this season’s squad have been as consistent.

Amos might end up winning what looked like a two-horse race on Lennon’s arrival in October. Answering an emergency call the soon-to-be free agent came in from United and has been in exemplary form.

Lennon has not exactly hidden his interest in signing him on a permanent deal, either, but whether he will be able to match offers which are bound to come from elsewhere in the Football League remains to be seen.

Perhaps the manager gave an insight into what fans can expect when announcing Bogdan would take up the number one role once Amos’s loan expires on April 7?

Whether they are farewell appearances hinges on the club’s ability to tempt the 27-year-old into a longer deal – but his words offer little by way of security for Lonergan.

Meanwhile, Wanderers played a behind-closed-doors friendly against Burnley yesterday, with new Liverpool loanee Jordan Lussey and Kaiyne Woolery on the scoresheet in a 3-1 win.