Bolton Wanderers boss Ian Evatt has opened up on the situation his side are in after their hefty loss to Stockport County.
The Trotters were completely outmatched by their Greater Manchester rivals and with the international break giving them a week off, they have slipped down to 11th place in League One after other team’s results.
Pressure Builds Once More
Ian Evatt has already found himself under pressure this season after a horror start to the campaign and had spoken to the board in mid-September about his future. He finally began to get the results to save his short-term future, but with the gap between them and their aim of automatic promotion sizable it has led to murmurs to rise once more.
Speaking to the Bolton News ahead of their next game against Blackpool, former Barrow boss Evatt revealed he had spoken to the board following the County result.
“My relationship with the board is second to none and we always have open, honest dialogue. We are on the same page that we are trying to get better.
“I am not naïve or delusional, I have been part of this game all my life and I understand that we need results. We are not where we want to be right at this moment.
“But I believe we can get those results, and I believe that the board support me, so while that is the case we will keep moving forwards.”
Writer’s View
Ian Evatt’s future shouldn’t be in question right now. He has been delivering big results in the past month and the only real hiccups came against Birmingham City and Stockport County, two of the best-performing teams in the league. It was a very poor result at Edgeley Park but every team will have an off day. The answer to the dilemma around Ian Evatt’s future is to give him the rest of the season to push as high up the table as possible and then reassess if he can continue at the end of the season.
Football journalist with The Real EFL since 2023. A 2024 Multimedia Journalism graduate from the University of Salford, Lewis specialises in Salford City FC and EFL coverage.
