Cambridge United boss believes Bolton Wanderers are now competing at the level they would expect to be at the top end of League One and is looking forward to seeing former U's defender Jack Iredale when he returns with his old side.
The Whites make the journey down to the Abbey Stadium tomorrow in a 3pm kick-off in League One. Bolton sit sixth in the table as things stand, while the U's are 18th but five points above the drop zone.
Wanderers will be seeking to return to winning ways after back-to-back defeats at the hands of Oxford United in League One and last weekend against Barnsley in the FA Cup. Cambridge meanwhile have won just one of their last six League One games, the rest being defeats.
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U's boss Bonner believes with Wanderers in the play-off places, the Whites are competing at the level they ought to be competing at. The respective histories of both clubs show the difference in expectations between the two sides.
This weekend also sees the return of defender Iredale to his old club, after departing Cambridge over the summer and joining Wanderers on a three-year deal. Bonner is looking forward to catching up with the defender and paid tribute to his efforts while at the Abbey Stadium.
He said: "What you probably find now is they're at the level they expect to be at, in terms of competing at the top end of this league, and with a number of teams wanting to show they can get to the level above.
"If you go [back] 20 years, they've probably spent more time in the Premier League and Championship than any other league, we've spent more time in the National League and League Two than any other league. That in itself just shows the significant difference between the two clubs, and probably the expectations.
"It'll be great to see Jack. He obviously did a great job for us when he was here. He's a really good character, and I look forward to catching up with him at the weekend.
"His ambition was to play in a bigger club higher up the league, with a chance of getting promoted and earning more money. In those senses, I'm sure it's been a success (the move), because it's playing out exactly as he would've hoped."
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