Bolton Wanderers have reportedly sacked manager Ian Evatt following yet another defeat in League One on Tuesday night, losing 2-1 to Charlton Athletic.
Marking their 10th defeat of the campaign so far, having only won just more than that tally and drawn five with a negative goal difference, it’s said an emergency board meeting was called after the result, with Evatt being ultimately let go.
The 43-year-old has been with the Greater Manchester side since 2020 after being snapped up following his impressive performance at Barrow AFC, where he got the non-league outfit promoted into the EFL after nearly half a century.
An official announcement by the club explains the decision was come to by “mutual consent” but regardless, the result is still the same and Evatt’s four-and-a-half-year tenure at Bolton has now come to an end.
Bolton Wanderers Football Club today announces that First Team Manager Ian Evatt has left the Club by mutual consent.
We would like to express our gratitude to Ian for his professionalism, commitment and creating a legacy during his time at the Club.#bwfc
Thanking for his “professionalism, commitment and creating a legacy during his time at the Club”, Bolton Wanderers Chairman, Sharon Brittan, goes on to add in the full statement: “Ian arrived at a challenging time for Bolton Wanderers Football Club and his dedication to rebuilding both on and off the pitch has been commendable.
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“He instilled a renewed sense of professionalism and purpose, and we are grateful for his significant contributions during his four and a half years at the helm.
“He has been a pleasure to work with and I personally thank him for his hard work and passion for this Club. He has created a tremendous legacy and will always be remembered for the successes he has brought. We wish him nothing but success in the future.”
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The decision for him to be sacked doesn’t exactly come as a surprise as the downturn in results over the last couple of seasons has been notable, and although Evatt made a bright start at Bolton, it’s been rather topsy-turvy for a while.
The former defender famously won them promotion to the third division when they were at risk of dropping into the National League amid their financial struggles and went on to win the EFL Trophy in 2023 – their first piece of silverware for more than 30 years.
It’s achievements like this that have given him a lot of goodwill around the Toughsheet Stadium but, in the end, the results just haven’t quite been enough. Despite many supporters having called for a change in leadership for some time, there was still plenty of gratitude for his efforts overall.
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Thank you for everything, Ian Evatt.
Before this season, you built something special. The connection to the club had been the strongest it's been for a long, long time, so a big thank you.
No doubting, he tried. He did everything possible –but it just wasn't enough to take… pic.twitter.com/pb5dc5je9d
Evatt has also had more than his share of controversial moments in the dugout, as well as on the pitch.
It was only back in October 2024 that he was officially charged by the FA for misconduct after he squared up to a Shrewsbury player, leaning his forehead against captain Morgan Feeney in an aggressive manner, receiving a £3,400 fine and a three-game touchline ban.
As for the man himself, Evatt signed off by saying: “I’ve absolutely loved my time here at Bolton Wanderers Football Club. Working with Sharon and Nick [Luckock] has been a pleasure, and I’ve been superbly backed along the way by my team of staff and the players.
“There comes a point in football when a change needs to happen and the last thing I want is to damage what we have all built together. I believe the Club is still well-placed to achieve its goals this season, and I want to give the Board and players the best chance of doing that.
“I’m very grateful for everybody’s support and to be the manager of this wonderful football club has been the greatest honour of my career. To our fans, thank you for the support you have shown me and my staff. Together we have created some very special memories and I will always be a fan of this amazing football club.”
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Bolton will be announcing an interim replacement in due course.
Joined us at one of our lowest moments.
A huge part of the journey in making us dream again.
‘Nothing is eternal’: Is Pep Guardiola hinting at the end of Manchester City’s supremacy?
Danny Jones
Pep Guardiola looks to have suggested that more than a decade of Manchester City’s supremacy and Premier League dominance at the very least might be coming to an end.
Speaking in his post-match press interviews after City were knocked out of the Champions League by serial European Cup winners Real Madrid, Guardiola cut a somewhat more deflated figure than usual following the 3-1 defeat.
A Kylian Mbappe hattrick which was closed out within an hour of play was enough to stretch the aggregate score to 6-3 over the two legs and Madrid doubling their lead across the tie proved yet again why, not unlike City domestically over the last decade, they’re the kings of the continental competition.
In contrast, however, Pep seemed to accept the loss much more easily than perhaps we’ve seen in the past and rather than appearing familiarly frustrated or defiant in the press conference; instead, he seemed rather reflective, responding to one reporter: “Nothing is eternal”.
🗣️ "Nothing is eternal" – Pep Guardiola.
🔵 Subscribe to our Manchester City page on BBC Sounds for the latest interviews. #MCFC#bbcfootball
Insisting that they have to decide whether a significant rebuild is needed to keep competing at the very top level consistently as they have done since the 54-year-old arrived back in 2016, he argued that it is only with that they’ll be able to determine what comes next.
As for the result itself, he made no bones about Carlo Ancelotti’s side having “deserved it”, stating simply that “the best team won” and that fans and players alike have to “accept the reality: they were better.”
Having been a familiar foe for Pep long before he arrived in Manchester, both at Barcelona and Bayern Munich – not to mention City having faced Los Blancos a dozen times before Tuesday night since 2012 – there have been less surprising outcomes for supporters to come to terms with.
“With time, the club and everyone is going to accept what it is but for now we have 30/40 games for the Premier League next season to try and be here [in the Champions League] and to improve. Nothing is eternal”, said the Catalan coaching genius.
On the other hand, he also went on to add that it was merely a reflection on the night itself and not what his team have achieved in recent years.
He went on to remark that “when we were playing outstanding it hurt more” to be knocked out of the UCL when he felt they deserved to stay in it, but still insisted: “We have been unbelievable and we have to try step by step to get better from today.” Tonight just wasn’t the night.
Who knows? Perhaps it was just some more melodrama from a manager with an undeniable flare for pageantry and playing into/in the face of narratives when he doesn’t come out on top – which hasn’t happened all that often until their dip in form this season.
Plus, there’s certainly still plenty for him and the fans to be positive about; not only has the arrival of their ‘Egyptian Prince’ and the media’s Mo Salah successor, Omar Marmoush, got plenty of people excited – especially after that first-half hattrick against Newcastle – but so too have the other January signings.
In fact, for all of his downplaying in this particular presser (which you can hear in full HERE), it felt like there were only upsides after their victory over Newcastle, even going so far as to dub new signing Nico Gonzalez a ‘mini-Rodri‘.
You can watch the highlights from the game down below:
Pep is right, nothing is eternal – but sometimes you just come up against talents like Mbappe and there’s very little anyone can do about it.
Sale Sharks sign highly-rated Harlequins hooker, Nathan Jibulu
Danny Jones
Sale Sharks are investing in youth with their latest bit of transfer business after signing one of the Harlequins’ hottest prospects, Nathan Jibulu.
The highly-rated hooker, who has already nine appearances this season, including more than half a dozen in the Gallagher Premiership, has been exciting plenty of scouts throughout rugby union and is already firmly in national team plans.
Having already been part of the England Under-20 and A squads, not to mention impressing at club level in a relatively short space of time, it’s a big coup for Sale.
From the Quins academy to the right side of Shark-infested waters.
Jibulu joined the Twickenham-based outfit back in 2022 just a year after they won their second English championship (a full decade since their first) after previously attending Seaford College and representing nearby Wimbledon Warriors.
However, now the six-foot and seriously strong forward will be swapping the life near the capital for the North and Greater Manchester, specifically.
Set to join Sale Sharks for the 2025/26 season – scheduled to kick off in September – he’s looking like a really strong addition to their front row and a future squads to come.
Speaking to the club in an official statement, he said: “When I was younger, whenever someone asked me, ‘what team would you want to play for?’ I’d always say Sale…
“I’ve scrummed a lot with Asher [Opoku-Fordjour] and I got to know him pretty well. I always tell him how special and different he is, and I can’t wait to play with him.
“The way the club has developed him and nurtured him to become an established Premiership and England player speaks volumes about the coaching and the support that he’s getting at Sale.
“The entire front row is in the England squad, with the Curry boys too, so that tells you that someone at the club is doing something right. I looked at that and I said, ‘why would you not want to be there?’”
Still just 22 years old and having made just as many appearances for his soon-to-be former club, Sale weren’t the only ones chasing his signature.
Jibulu went on to add: “I love those games where you go toe-to-toe physically, so all of that attracted me straight away, and then speaking to people who are there already, they said all the stuff that I really like so it was a no brainer when the opportunity came about.”
As for his impending coach, Director of Rugby Alex Sanderson said: “Nathan is really driven, he understands what he wants from his life and his career, and he knows how he’s going to get it.
“He’s a young lad but he’s incredibly mature and he’s got the game and the physical attributes to match. I’ve got no doubt he’ll play for England in the future and we’re really excited to bring him to the club.”
Currently sat seventh in the table after another at times promising but somewhat frustrating start to the year, the summer can’t come soon enough for Sale.
Danny Jones -
22nd January 2025 
