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Ian Evatt hopes his Wanderers squad are finally in the right place to give him a cup run.
With confidence high after Saturday’s comprehensive win against Wycombe, the swaggering Whites host League Two Salford City in the Carabao Cup looking to keep the party going.
Evatt has had little luck in the main knockout competitions since becoming a manager - and is yet to win in either the Carabao Cup or FA Cup in 90 minutes - but hopes tonight’s game (7.45pm kick-off) will signal a change in fortune.
“There’s no denying it, I have been useless in the cups,” he told The Bolton News.
“I have no idea why – it isn’t by design. I don’t want to be out of them.
“Last season I thought we were unlucky, to be honest, losing the Wigan game on penalties was disappointing having beaten a Championship side here in the first round.
“We thought we were on a good roll in the Papa John’s then Joel (Dixon) passed straight to a centre forward at Hartlepool and we were out again.
“It wasn’t that bad – the FA Cup the less said about that, the better – but it isn’t by design. We want to go through, I want to do better, and the club and the board want that too because financially it could be a huge thing for us.”
Evatt remained uncommitted on whether he would make many changes for Salford’s visit. Players like Joel Dixon, Will Aimson, Elias Kachunga, Jon Dadi Bodvarsson and Kieran Sadlier have yet to start in the league but with a visit to Port Vale to come at the weekend, the Bolton boss says he is under no pressure to rest or rotate.
“Last season we made some changes for the cup competitions and you would argue there was a significant drop off from the first team but I don’t think that is the case this season,” he said.
“That’s by design – you want as many good players in your squad as possible. Keeping them happy is the challenge and that is one that we will have to face.
“Players will always believe they should be in the team regardless of who you are up against or how the team is performing. It is just how we manage the environment.
“All you can do is be honest and treat people with respect. If they are unhappy then we wouldn’t want to keep anyone who is unhappy, so we would have to look at things. But right now we have a hungry group of players who love it here and want to go and prove their worth to themselves, to me, to everyone.”
Praise was rightly lavished upon Evatt and his squad after Saturday’s home win – adding to what has been a positive early-season mood.
Things were similarly euphoric after promotion 12 months ago but the Bolton boss is keen to ensure any euphoria is consigned to the terraces.
“It looks good but things change pretty quickly in football,” he said.
“As much I was a hero and the players were heroes on Saturday, we know if we get beat on Tuesday we’re back to being useless again, that’s just the way the game goes.
“I was looking at last season’s results, early on, and they were pretty good until October, November and December, but then it was a disaster.
“We can’t rest on our laurels. It is always about how you manage the downs because when things are going well, everyone is happy, things are easy. That’s the way it is now after Saturday and the expectancy has gone through the roof. It is up to us to keep feet on the ground, stay humble and keep improving.”
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