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Phil Parkinson hopes to put off-the-field complications behind him as he prepares for a vital run over the Christmas period.
After wage rows and job offers dominated the agenda for the last fortnight, the Wanderers boss wants all focus on preparation for this weekend’s game at Brentford – the first of four in 11 days.
Bolton face three teams currently placed in the bottom eight of the Championship between this weekend and New Year’s Day, and Parkinson wants no further complications to give his players the best possible chance of pulling clear of the relegation zone.
“It would be good to have a week of calmness now. And I think it will be,” he said.
“All the money issues have been settled with the lads, so we need to move on.”
Saturday’s 1-0 home defeat to Leeds left Bolton without a win in their last 12 outings – the longest wait since Parkinson took charge in the summer of 2016.
“We’ve played two top teams in the Championship very, very close.
“We have got to take that into the next game. Equally, we have to improve.
“The next two games are huge for us. Playing against Norwich and Leeds, everyone knew it would be difficult but this is a big opportunity now, we just have to keep the lads’ spirits up and try to put in a big performance down in London at the weekend.”
One silver lining for Parkinson is the welcome return from suspension of Sammy Ameobi for the trip to Griffin Park.
Wanderers did not register a single shot on target against Leeds and, in the manager’s view, would have made a considerable difference.
“In terms of quality of attack, Sammy was missing,” he said. “When you look at the Norwich game he scored a goal, made chances for players, and he’s a big player for us. When you give him the ball he’ll give you a rest. We probably did miss him.”
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After wage rows and job offers dominated the agenda for the last fortnight, the Wanderers boss wants all focus on preparation for this weekend’s game at Brentford – the first of four in 11 days.
Bolton face three teams currently placed in the bottom eight of the Championship between this weekend and New Year’s Day, and Parkinson wants no further complications to give his players the best possible chance of pulling clear of the relegation zone.
“It would be good to have a week of calmness now. And I think it will be,” he said.
“All the money issues have been settled with the lads, so we need to move on.”
Saturday’s 1-0 home defeat to Leeds left Bolton without a win in their last 12 outings – the longest wait since Parkinson took charge in the summer of 2016.
“We’ve played two top teams in the Championship very, very close.
“We have got to take that into the next game. Equally, we have to improve.
“The next two games are huge for us. Playing against Norwich and Leeds, everyone knew it would be difficult but this is a big opportunity now, we just have to keep the lads’ spirits up and try to put in a big performance down in London at the weekend.”
One silver lining for Parkinson is the welcome return from suspension of Sammy Ameobi for the trip to Griffin Park.
Wanderers did not register a single shot on target against Leeds and, in the manager’s view, would have made a considerable difference.
“In terms of quality of attack, Sammy was missing,” he said. “When you look at the Norwich game he scored a goal, made chances for players, and he’s a big player for us. When you give him the ball he’ll give you a rest. We probably did miss him.”
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