Ian Evatt made a name for himself as a young and exciting manager with Barrow in the National League, whom he led to promotion to League Two in the 2019/20 season.
The side, nicknamed ‘Barrowcelona’ for their exciting and possession-based style of play, was a testament to his success.
At the beginning of the 2020/21 campaign, Evatt left his post at Barrow and took over the manager’s position at Bolton Wanderers following the club’s relegation from League One.
A lot of excitement came with the appointment as fans believed they would finally be treated to some excellent football for the first time in quite a while at the University of Bolton Stadium.
However, results did not go Evatt’s way for the first few months in charge of Bolton with the Wanderers picking up just seven wins in 24 league games.
Now though, after slight tactical tweaks, including the change to a 4-2-3-1, Bolton has shot up the table and is one of the most in-form teams in English football currently, with eleven wins in their previous 13 games in the fourth division.
They are now title contenders, let alone promotion contenders, sitting in fourth place, just four points behind Cambridge United with a game in hand.
This article will be a tactical analysis in the form of a scout report of Bolton Wanderers in the past few months.
It will specifically be an analysis of the tactics and principles of play that Evatt has built into his side’s style of play when they are in possession of the ball to see where Bolton have been so effective in their recent incredible unbeaten run.
Ian Evatt Formation
Bolton Wanderers were a side who tended to use a high volume of different formations this season with Evatt hoping to find the right one.
When the English manager switched to a 4-2-3-1 formation, their luck began to change, and so did their unbeaten run. This system has been the starting formation in every game since then.
At times, Evatt tends to switch to a 4-4-2 formation late in matches to hold onto a lead, but this is not unusual for teams in such a situation.
The most important thing for Bolton has been that the starting eleven has remained relatively the same throughout their recent matches, with very few changes made to the lineup unless Evatt’s hand is forced by incidents such as injuries.
Here is the most used starting eleven for Bolton since the switch to a 4-2-3-1 back in January.
Former Rangers goalkeeper Matt Gilks starts in goal for them and has done exemplary, keeping eight clean sheets in the thirteen-game unbeaten run, protected by a consistent back four comprising of ex-Swansea City man Declan John, Alex Baptiste, Ricardo Santos, and Gethin Jones.
