Home
Nathan Delfouneso is in no doubt Bolton are in good hands with Ian Evatt after being reunited with his former Blackpool team-mate.
The striker has arrived from Bloomfield Road tasked with helping make Wanderers’ stint in League Two a short one under their new head coach.
Along with goalkeeping coach Matt Gilks and returning defender Alex Baptiste, there is a tangerine flavour to parts of the dressing room.
It has all helped Delfouneso settle in and the 29-year-old has quickly seen the qualities that made Evatt a success in the Seasiders’ backline reflected in his management style. The former Aston Villa man admits though that changing tone with the boss has taken some getting used to.
“It’s been really good but it was a little bit strange at first, making sure that I called him ‘gaffer’ and not what I used to call him as a team-mate,” Delfouneso told The Bolton News.
“I knew what he was like as a person, a player, he was always demanding, and you could see the traits as a player that he has as a manager.
“He was always a massive leader at Blackpool, he’s a legend there. It was great to play with him and he was one of the big characters around the team.
“That real drive and hunger he had as a player he’s got as a manager.
“You saw how Barrow benefited from it and I’ve got no doubt whatsoever that Bolton are going to benefit from it as well.”
Bringing in someone he shared a dressing room with means Evatt knows exactly what he is getting from Delfouneso, the frontman in the early stages of what looks like a promising partnership with fellow new boy Eoin Doyle.
“He knows my game, he knows what I can do and he literally wants me to enjoy playing, embrace it and go and use my attributes,” he said.
“It’s exciting. He wants me to go and express myself, be me and go and do what he knows I can do.
“I believe I’ve got the capabilities with everything that’s being given me to go and make a real success of it. I can’t wait, I’m really excited.”
Delfouneso arrives as one of several past League Two promotion winners having helped Blackpool get out of the fourth tier via the play-offs in 2017.
And he has a warning for any Wanderers fan thinking their side will breeze through the season.
“Bolton are going to be a big scalp for a lot of teams. They will be thinking if they can get a result against us then they’re on to something,” he said.
“If we’re going to do anything we’ve got to live with that pressure.
“If we’re going to achieve anything, achieve our goals, we’ve got to take on and adapt to every game and make sure we’re on it.
“I’m not saying we’re going to be outstanding every game but we’ve got to make sure we’re committed and we’ve got to make sure in our mindset that we are looking to get promoted but it’s going to involve a lot of hard work Saturday-Tuesday against some really tough teams.”
Source
The striker has arrived from Bloomfield Road tasked with helping make Wanderers’ stint in League Two a short one under their new head coach.
Along with goalkeeping coach Matt Gilks and returning defender Alex Baptiste, there is a tangerine flavour to parts of the dressing room.
It has all helped Delfouneso settle in and the 29-year-old has quickly seen the qualities that made Evatt a success in the Seasiders’ backline reflected in his management style. The former Aston Villa man admits though that changing tone with the boss has taken some getting used to.
“It’s been really good but it was a little bit strange at first, making sure that I called him ‘gaffer’ and not what I used to call him as a team-mate,” Delfouneso told The Bolton News.
“I knew what he was like as a person, a player, he was always demanding, and you could see the traits as a player that he has as a manager.
“He was always a massive leader at Blackpool, he’s a legend there. It was great to play with him and he was one of the big characters around the team.
“That real drive and hunger he had as a player he’s got as a manager.
“You saw how Barrow benefited from it and I’ve got no doubt whatsoever that Bolton are going to benefit from it as well.”
Bringing in someone he shared a dressing room with means Evatt knows exactly what he is getting from Delfouneso, the frontman in the early stages of what looks like a promising partnership with fellow new boy Eoin Doyle.
“He knows my game, he knows what I can do and he literally wants me to enjoy playing, embrace it and go and use my attributes,” he said.
“It’s exciting. He wants me to go and express myself, be me and go and do what he knows I can do.
“I believe I’ve got the capabilities with everything that’s being given me to go and make a real success of it. I can’t wait, I’m really excited.”
Delfouneso arrives as one of several past League Two promotion winners having helped Blackpool get out of the fourth tier via the play-offs in 2017.
And he has a warning for any Wanderers fan thinking their side will breeze through the season.
“Bolton are going to be a big scalp for a lot of teams. They will be thinking if they can get a result against us then they’re on to something,” he said.
“If we’re going to do anything we’ve got to live with that pressure.
“If we’re going to achieve anything, achieve our goals, we’ve got to take on and adapt to every game and make sure we’re on it.
“I’m not saying we’re going to be outstanding every game but we’ve got to make sure we’re committed and we’ve got to make sure in our mindset that we are looking to get promoted but it’s going to involve a lot of hard work Saturday-Tuesday against some really tough teams.”
Source