Posted on January 27, 2012

By Michael Lewis
BigAppleSoccer.com Editor

VANCOUVER — Tim Ream has gone from the frying pan into the fire.

With the New York Red Bulls last season, Ream and his teammates struggled to reach the Major League Soccer playoffs.

With his new team, Bolton Wanderers, Ream will find himself in the middle of a relegation battle as Bolton tries to stay in the English Premier League. Bolton (6-15-1, 19 points) is in 17th place out of 20 teams, one point out of the relegation zone ahead of the Blackburn Rovers (4-12-6, 18).

“You want to be put in pressure situations,” Ream said on a conference call on Friday morning. “To have to fight for your life is exciting and scary at the same time.

“If you stay up, you’re there for another year. It’s not that you’re a hero, but you proved that you can stay up.”

Ream’s transfer to Bolton went through on Thursday. He was back in the United States on Friday, getting things sorted out and waiting for his work visa.

In a perfect world, Bolton would have loved to have the 24-year-old central defender for Saturday’s English F.A. Cup match against Swansea.

“Obviously, that has been able to happen,” Ream said. “I’ve been told they want me as soon as possible. I’m actually pretty fit.”

Ream said that his biggest transition will be able to keep up with the “physicality and speed of play” in the EPL.

“I’ll be in the gym every day and I’ll be working on my speed of play,” he said.

If he gets his visa by Feb. 1, Ream could be in the lineup for Bolton’s game against former Red Bulls teammate and Thierry Henry.

“That would be one heck of a story line,” he said. “When I saw that game on the schedule, I said that was one game I was looking forward to.”

Given that he was a regular with the Red Bulls and developed quickly, Ream said it was inevitable he would wind up overseas.

“This is something that I definitely wanted to do,” he said. “It was a natural progression.”

Ream, who has made seven international appearances in the past 15 months, said that U.S. national coach Juergen Klinsmann has backed his move across the Atlantic.

“He has backed the move and he wanted to see it get done,” he said. “It would not only help me, but the National Team as well.”

U.S. National Team midfielder and former Houston Dynamo midfielder Stuart Holden showed Ream and his wife around Bolton earlier this month.

“It wasn’t the deciding factor, but it certainly eased my mind,” Ream said.

Ream revealed some background on his transfer. He was married in St. Louis on Jan. 7 and less than 24 hours later he received a phone call from Bolton manager Owen Coyle “not to go on my honeymoon and go to Bolton instead.” The Reams were to honeymoon in Tahiti.

“At the time it was very disappointing and upsetting because it is a special weekend,” Ream said. “”You look back and say it was a good decision to go. It sets us up for the future.”

Ream said he enjoyed his two-year tenure with the Red Bulls, although he admitted his second season was a bumpy one. He struggled and made several mistakes that were turned into goals.

“I was not happy with my second season,” he said. “I was disappointed with that.

“I loved my time there in New York. I enjoyed every minute of it. The fans were great.”

Photo: Tim Ream: “You want to be put in pressure situations. To have to fight for your life is exciting and scary at the same time.