A double from Gary Hooper increased the pressure on Neil Lennon as Sheffield Wednesday sent Bolton to a 3-2 defeat.
The result leaves Bolton at the bottom of the Championship, six points adrift of safety while predators move in on Lennon’s squad with the threat of administration hovering over the club.
Bolton twice equalised after Wednesday had gone ahead but when Hooper struck in the 77th minute there was no reply from the visitors.
“I thought we were excellent and I didn’t think we deserved to lose,” Lennon said afterwards. “In the second half we had two or three great chances to win the game. I thought Gary Madine was outstanding and I need more performances like that from him.
“We were playing against a team who’ve invested a lot and I was very encouraged by the performance.
“There’s a lot of speculation surrounding a lot of our players and it’s not an ideal situation but we have to raise money soon to keep the club going.
“I’ve not seen Mark Davies since Thursday and I don’t know if the deal (to Sheffield Wednesday) is done. I’d like to know one way or the other.
“Zak (Clough) was down at Bristol (City) on Sunday and again that’s not been concluded either so he’s back in the squad.”
Hooper had only scored twice since joining Wednesday on loan at the end of October with his deal due to expire later this month.
On Monday Bolton face a winding up order in the High Court over a £2m bill owed to HMRC.