Neil Lennon has called on his Bolton side to produce the performance of heroes as Wanderers face a tough trip to play Hull City tomorrow after another grim week.
A winding-up petition was served on the club yesterday, and the spectre of administration and a 12-point deduction looms ever larger.
On the pitch, however, Lennon remains focussed on breaking a streak that has seen his side go an unlucky 13 games without a win.
“We need some heroes,” Lennon said, ahead of the game against the fourth-placed Tigers.
“The fans are looking to the players now to give them something to smile about, to be proud of, and it’s a great opportunity for the players to galvanise the club and unite the club.
“I need the players to buy into it – there’s a real opportunity here for them to do something really positive for the club, and they can only do that by performing on the pitch.
“The financial side is something out of my control.
“What I can control is the football, and results haven’t been good, whereas performances have on the whole been okay.
“We aren’t going to use the situation at present as an excuse.”
The trip to the KC Stadium heralds a run of six games in 22 days, with matches against fellow strugglers Charlton, Rotherham and Huddersfield to come.
Far from bemoaning the fixture congestion, however, the Bolton boss sees it as an opportunity to turn their season around.
“It’s a really tough game on Saturday away from home – Hull are smarting after a really poor performance against Leeds.
“Obviously Hull away is as tough a fixture as you can get, but we need to go there with a positive mind-set.
“Then we’ve got Charlton away, which is a huge game, and Fulham at home, which is winnable.
“If you come out of the period, and you’ve picked up three or four wins, going into Christmas and New Year, things can look a lot better.
“But we’ve got to prove that we don’t deserve to be where we are at the moment, at the bottom of the league.”
Image courtesy of BWFC via YouTube, with thanks.
