Bolton Wanderers should look to Coventry City if going gets tough: Opinion | OneFootball

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Bolton Wanderers have started the 2023/24 campaign in a similar vain to how they ended the previous one.

The club have won eight of their first 13 games, and currently sit fourth in the league.

Off the back of a more than stellar 22/23 season, where they reached the playoff semi-finals, the expectations would be that they'd at least replicate, if not build on, the success of the prior campaign.

So far, things are on track. But there have been a few shaky moments for Ian Evatt's side, this year.

The most recent of which was a 3-1 home loss to newly promoted Carlisle United. They looked toothless going forward, sticking vehemently to their principles of building out from the back.

That loss to Carlisle may end up being a minor blip in their season, but it had Bolton fans a bit worried; and it's not the first time that a game against the Cumbrians has had fans questioning the Wanderers' manager.

We have to go back to the pandemic-riddled 2020/21 season for this scenario. Bolton were down in League Two, a place that the club hadn't been in for over 30 years.

A game took place between the two clubs at a time when Carlisle looked like they'd be fighting for the top spots of the fourth tier. The Trotters were sat down in 15th place, having been relegated from League One in the prior season.

Evatt, who formerly managed Carlisle's rivals Barrow, came into the game with pressure mounting from above. If he left Brunton Park without any points, his job would have been in serious danger.

The Blues looked in control for much of the game, and were 3-1 up with five minutes left to play of the 90. But then, two late goals, in quick succession (86th and 88th minute), from Nathan Delfouneso and Peter Kioso, who would be sent off six minutes after finding the back of the net, snatched a point for Bolton.

Not only did it mean that they didn't lose the game, but it just about prolonged the manager's time with the club. Evatt would go on to massively turn things around.

From January onwards, they only lost three games and went on to clinch automatic promotion with the 41-year-old in charge.

All signs were pointing to a lack of patience in the Bolton boardroom, and that one game was one of their most important in recent history, because they kept the right man in charge.

Had the club's patience with him have run out even earlier than it was going to, they may not be in the position that they are in now.

Patience and backing a manager for an extended period has been proven to work across the leagues. A great example of that is at Coventry City.

Why Bolton should take Coventry's approach to patience with a manager

City appointed manager Mark Robins back in 2017. Since his arrival to the CBS Arena, he's lost almost as many games as he was won- 133 victories, 111 defeats.

A record like that doesn't tend to buy you too much time in a job in football, but the higher-ups at the club believed in the man that they'd selected to lead the club forward into the future.

Ultimately, they were right.

Despite the very poor start to last season, and the not brilliant start to this one, Coventry were a Fankaty Dabo penalty away from playing in the Premier League this season.

Robins was a huge part of that.

The way that he managed the team, and developed and nurtured certain players, allowed the club to get the best versions of what they'd paid for.

If Coventry didn't have the patience and foresight to see what Robins was trying to achieve, the likelihood is that City wouldn't have gotten near the Premier League in this time. But he managed it because he was given time.

The same can be said for Bolton and Evatt; then, now, and in the future.

There's a reason why he was able to achieve what he's achieved with Bolton and Barrow. In time, as long as the people above him don't get hindered by short mindedness and a lack of patience, he is capable of taking them to where they want to be, and maybe more.