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Former skipper Gudni Bergsson hopes the next Wanderers manager makes mending the club’s fractured relationship with its supporters his number one aim along with getting the points on the board.
Speaking to The Bolton News from Iceland, the Whites legend admits grave concern with how fortunes have dipped at his beloved club.
Phil Gartside is currently looking for his fourth manager in seven years with Wanderers sitting bottom of the Championship and still struggling to come to terms with financial life outside the Premier League.
A shortlist of candidates is currently being formed, with names such as Steve Clarke, Chris Hughton, Malky Mackay, Jimmy Phillips , Phil Brown, Tony Mowbray and Neil Lennon linked closely with the vacant job.
Bergsson is keen to stress that a key role of the new boss must be a willingness to build bridges with fan base that has become disaffected in recent years. We need as well to see some show of spirit and players earning their pay.
“This is a crucial time for Bolton Wanderers,” he said.
“Appointing a manager is always the biggest decision that a board makes at a football club. In this case we really need to get it right.
“Managerial appointments since Sam Allardyce have not worked out.
“The next person appointed needs to have the ability to reach out and connect with both players and supporters alike. It does not seem to be a happy place at the moment but I am confident the club can learn from previous mistakes, rebuild and be positive about the future. Results certainly need to improve and I am sure they will. Now and in future it is all about using our resources effectively with the right manager at the helm.
"I read that the chairman has spoken to the newspaper and that is also a step in the right direction."
Bergsson, who made 317 appearances for Bolton between 1995 and 2003, believes the club need to balance a short-term objective of getting out of trouble in the Championship with the longer-term aim of forming a team, which supporters willidentify with and a sense of unity restored. “If it is not there already , then we need to use this time to form a philosophy on exactly what we are, where we are going and what we expect from the manager and the players,” he said.
“I would point towards Swansea City and how they approach things, having come through the lower divisions.
“Although they have gone through a few managers in recent years they have maintained an attractive style of play and turned a profit too.
“I don’t agree with those people who said we punched above our weight when we played in the Premier League – of all the clubs, Bolton have spent a lot of time in the top division.
“Now we need to get our act together and get back up there.
“I’d love to see that buzz and spirit created at the club that I felt as a player in the nineties and the first decade of the century.
“It was a privilege to be a part of that and we want the good times back.”
Source
Speaking to The Bolton News from Iceland, the Whites legend admits grave concern with how fortunes have dipped at his beloved club.
Phil Gartside is currently looking for his fourth manager in seven years with Wanderers sitting bottom of the Championship and still struggling to come to terms with financial life outside the Premier League.
A shortlist of candidates is currently being formed, with names such as Steve Clarke, Chris Hughton, Malky Mackay, Jimmy Phillips , Phil Brown, Tony Mowbray and Neil Lennon linked closely with the vacant job.
Bergsson is keen to stress that a key role of the new boss must be a willingness to build bridges with fan base that has become disaffected in recent years. We need as well to see some show of spirit and players earning their pay.
“This is a crucial time for Bolton Wanderers,” he said.
“Appointing a manager is always the biggest decision that a board makes at a football club. In this case we really need to get it right.
“Managerial appointments since Sam Allardyce have not worked out.
“The next person appointed needs to have the ability to reach out and connect with both players and supporters alike. It does not seem to be a happy place at the moment but I am confident the club can learn from previous mistakes, rebuild and be positive about the future. Results certainly need to improve and I am sure they will. Now and in future it is all about using our resources effectively with the right manager at the helm.
"I read that the chairman has spoken to the newspaper and that is also a step in the right direction."
Bergsson, who made 317 appearances for Bolton between 1995 and 2003, believes the club need to balance a short-term objective of getting out of trouble in the Championship with the longer-term aim of forming a team, which supporters willidentify with and a sense of unity restored. “If it is not there already , then we need to use this time to form a philosophy on exactly what we are, where we are going and what we expect from the manager and the players,” he said.
“I would point towards Swansea City and how they approach things, having come through the lower divisions.
“Although they have gone through a few managers in recent years they have maintained an attractive style of play and turned a profit too.
“I don’t agree with those people who said we punched above our weight when we played in the Premier League – of all the clubs, Bolton have spent a lot of time in the top division.
“Now we need to get our act together and get back up there.
“I’d love to see that buzz and spirit created at the club that I felt as a player in the nineties and the first decade of the century.
“It was a privilege to be a part of that and we want the good times back.”
Source