After four and a half years at the helm, manager Ian Evatt is parting ways with Bolton Wanderers after a January start that has seen just 1 win, 3 losses, and a draw in League One and left them in 9th place. Having seen them promoted from League Two and only just missed out on promotion least season in 3rd place, losing in the Play-off finals to Oxford United, fans will undoubtedly be bitter sweet to his departure after such a long stay at the club, albeit excited to undertake a new venture and already, it seems, the next Bolton manager odds have a clear favourite that seems very much in keeping with what The Trotters fanbase wants to see. Let’s take a look at who BetVictor feature as potential replacements, at the time of writing.
Next Bolton Manager Possibilities
There are currently five names in the mix, albeit with a clear frontrunner to take the manager’s seat at the Toughsheet Community Stadium. In joint 4th place at 6/1 odds, where a £10 bet would return £70, are David Wagner and Leam Richardson. Wagner was previously managing Norwich City before being sacked in May 2024, so could be a good fit with his experience in the Championship. Meanwhile, Richardson has also been out of work since April 2024, although his previous gig saw him win just 2 out of 24 games at Rotherham, so he would have a lot to prove.
In 3rd place is Gary O’Neil at 4/1, with the same £10 wagered paying out £50. O’Neil was the manager of Wolves until December 24, until a streak of below-par performances and player brawls saw him released. A former Bolton player himself from 2018-2019, he could fit in nicely with the fans.
Des Buckingham is second favourite, coming in at just 2/1, with £10 paying £30 if correct. Buckingham has managed in New Zealand and India previously, before heading to Oxford United until December last year. Although he was sacked from his last role, his experience managing a Championship team and formation preference of 4-3-3 could work nicely for Bolton Wanderers.
Next Bolton Manager Favourite
Lastly, in pole position for the role, is Steven Schumacher with 2/3 odds, where £10 bet would return £16.67. Schumacher is the heavy favourite considering he has both played for and managed Championship teams, not to mention his higher average win rate than the competition, so he could be a good fit for their future aspirations of promotion.
At present, and despite having a heavy favourite, no official appointments have been made and the news of Evatt’s departure is still fresh. While academy coaches have stepped up on an interim basis to run the first team ahead of their match against Huddersfield, Bolton are just 3 points (and a few goals) off the bottom of the Playoff places, albeit having played an extra game, and will be eager to press on with a new hiring to rebuild momentum. While we wait for further updates and rumours to emerge about who might take over for The Trotters, why not check out our latest football betting odds and don’t forget to keep checking back on our next manager odds page as we bring you all the latest news of prospective sackings and new hirings in the football stratosphere.
