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Dougie Freedman regrets not being able to bring Premier League football back to Wanderers.
The Scot insists there are no hard feelings as he leads Nottingham Forest to the Macron Stadium this afternoon, his first appearance in Bolton since leaving the manager’s post last October.
And while a hot reception may await the 41-year-old, who struggled to win over Whites fans in two years at the helm, he feels he did everything he could during his time in charge.
“We worked very hard there (at Bolton) and we were a goal away from the play-offs in the first season and we managed to stay away from relegation in the second season,” he said.
“I would have liked to have taken them up. But we worked very hard in the circumstances we had to work within and we left on good terms. There are no hard feelings there.”
Matt Mills is another former Wanderer walking back into his old haunt this afternoon – and Freedman knows the red carpet is unlikely to be rolled out.
“I am looking forward to it,” he said. “It is always challenging when you go back to a former club as a manager or a player. There is always extra spice involved.
“But I do look forward to it, because they are good people there. I will look forward to seeing some of them.
“It was a challenge and it will be again for us there tomorrow.”
Freedman is also happy to secure the future of captain Henri Lansbury – a midfielder who has scored twice in his last four starts against Wanderers.
The former Arsenal man looked set for Burnley at the start of the week in a deal that would also have seen Lukas Jutkiewicz move the other way only to have a last-minute change of heart.
“The chairman saw Henri and explained the situation we are in and also spoke to him about what we would like to do, moving forwards,” Freedman explained. “Now we can put this whole thing to bed.
“I have a good relationship with Henri. He is a model professional. He has been fantastic for me on and off the field.”
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The Scot insists there are no hard feelings as he leads Nottingham Forest to the Macron Stadium this afternoon, his first appearance in Bolton since leaving the manager’s post last October.
And while a hot reception may await the 41-year-old, who struggled to win over Whites fans in two years at the helm, he feels he did everything he could during his time in charge.
“We worked very hard there (at Bolton) and we were a goal away from the play-offs in the first season and we managed to stay away from relegation in the second season,” he said.
“I would have liked to have taken them up. But we worked very hard in the circumstances we had to work within and we left on good terms. There are no hard feelings there.”
Matt Mills is another former Wanderer walking back into his old haunt this afternoon – and Freedman knows the red carpet is unlikely to be rolled out.
“I am looking forward to it,” he said. “It is always challenging when you go back to a former club as a manager or a player. There is always extra spice involved.
“But I do look forward to it, because they are good people there. I will look forward to seeing some of them.
“It was a challenge and it will be again for us there tomorrow.”
Freedman is also happy to secure the future of captain Henri Lansbury – a midfielder who has scored twice in his last four starts against Wanderers.
The former Arsenal man looked set for Burnley at the start of the week in a deal that would also have seen Lukas Jutkiewicz move the other way only to have a last-minute change of heart.
“The chairman saw Henri and explained the situation we are in and also spoke to him about what we would like to do, moving forwards,” Freedman explained. “Now we can put this whole thing to bed.
“I have a good relationship with Henri. He is a model professional. He has been fantastic for me on and off the field.”
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