2010 review: The incredible rise of Owen Coyle's Super White Army

Bolton Wanderers have been one of the two major movers up the Premier League ladder this season, along with Sunderland. It really has been the year of Owen Coyle at Bolton as the inspirational Scottish manager has turned the fortunes of the club around in a year. In January 2010, Coyle took over a Bolton team which was in tatters lacking inspiration and fan support and struggling to stay up in the Premier League. Bringing in Owen Coyle has been the best thing that has happened to the club in recent years as Bolton managed to avoid relegation comfortably last season and have turned into a force to be reckoned with in the league this season.

2010 for Bolton: The year of Owen Coyle

Coyle’s immensely popular success at the Reebok has been due to his bid to change the club’s style of play. From being a long-ball team under Sam Allardyce renowned for their pragmatic and rugged approach to the game, Bolton have added a new dimension of free-flowing play under Coyle. Known for his support of the philosophy that the fans must be entertained at all costs, Bolton’s man of the year has brought in organization to the midfield through his disciplinarian training methods and attractive passing football to appease the Reebok faithful and has thus won their unanimous support after the fans were growing tired of the negative style of play after Allardyce’s departure. Not that Allardyce’s style has been completely uprooted from the club, but Bolton are no longer dependant solely on Kevin Davies to knock down long balls using his aerial strength. They are no longer one-dimensional and now know which horse to field for which course. Another of Coyle’s master class has been his astute signings. He has proved his mettle in working on a shoe-string budget by landing excellent bargains like American midfielder Stuart Holden who has been an instant hit amongst the fans through his outstanding performances, and deft winger Martin Petrov who has been lethal with his fancy footwork. Along with Holden, Bolton’s toast of the season so far has been Swedish striker Johan Elmander who has begun to justify his price tag by settling well in the team under the able stewardship of his manager by becoming the club’s top scorer heading into the New Year.

At the half way point of the season, Bolton Wanderers have significantly punched above their weight with their thrashings of Tottenham Hotspur and Newcastle United and resolute draws against league leaders Manchester United and Blackpool being their standout results so far. It’s been mission accomplished for Owen Coyle in 2010. But the outspoken Trotters manager is not someone who rests on his laurels but is constantly looking to raise the bar on achievements. “People might want to say nice things here and there, fine, but I know how quickly that can change. We must try to improve on the year we’ve had and make the next year a better one again.” With this hunger for progress and a never-say-die attitude driving the club from the top, Bolton have a strong chance to land a Europa League spot and maybe even challenge for the top four if they fight hard enough as the business end of the season approaches.