Bolton Wanderers manager Ian Evatt departs as new hire lined up – sources
Bolton Wanderers manager Ian Evatt has left by mutual consent after four-and-a-half years in charge at the club, sources have told Football Insider.
The 43-year-old departs after the 2-1 home defeat against Charlton Athletic on Tuesday (21 January).
That defeat leaves Bolton ninth in League One and three points adrift of a play-off place after they reached the play-off final in the 2023-24 campaign.
The Trotters are already scouring the market to line up a new boss after Evatt’s exit.
Owner Sharon Brittan had publicly backed Evatt in a statement last month but the ex-defender has left the club just a month on.
Bolton could be without a manager for their next game in League One against high-flying Huddersfield on Saturday (25 January).
Evatt oversaw just two wins in his last eight League One games with his side already losing 10 times in the third tier in the 2024-25 campaign so far.
He took the job in June 2020 after Bolton approached the then-Barrow boss and prised him away from the League Two club.
Bolton boss Evatt departs after Charlton loss
The Coventry-born boss won 132 of his 262 games in charge of the Trotters.
He lifted the EFL Trophy with Bolton in the 2022-23 campaign, beating Plymouth Argyle 4-0 in the Wembley final.
Evatt’s contract at the Toughsheet Community Stadium had been set to run until June 2026.
Bolton have already completed January deals for Joel Randall and Alex Murphy this month ahead of the transfer deadline on 3 February.
They are next in action against Huddersfield, Northampton and Reading in League One as the search starts for a new boss.
In other news, Bolton, Shrewsbury and Stevenage in race to sign League One ace.
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