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Is Owen Coyle a Horrible Mistake? Part Three

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Alarm bells are ringing at the Reebok. Three wins out of four had propelled Owen Coyle`s side up the table and opened up an eight point gap over the relegation places. Now after three successive defeats and a game against Chelsea to come, the margin is down to five.

It could be argued that that trio of results was expected, but the manner of the latest reverse, a lazy, spineless, brainless capitulation against an Aston Villa side in poor form, disgusted many who attended the Reebok on Saturday. So it`s time to revisit Mr Coyle`s report card.

On the face of it the stats aren`t good. Won 4 drawn 2 lost 9 (in the league), but there were games against Liverpool, Arsenal and Manchester United, and this Bolton squad have neither the quality or the heart to trouble the better teams these days.

But even taking that into account, the points tally should be better. At their best, Aston Villa are an effective outfit, but have now entered a familiar end of season fade out. They were there for the taking. Fulham had half a side missing, but Coyle`s toothless team couldn`t hit the back of the net

It`s that characteristic which is most damning. Bolton have failed to score in ten of fifteen league games since the change of manager. So much for that attacking mentality.

It`s been claimed that the style of football has become more pleasing. That`s either ignorance or wishful thinking. Under Coyle, Bolton are far more one-dimensional than they ever were under Gary Megson.

Not that there`s anything wrong with the long ball game. Despite what the pundits and those too feeble witted to think for themselves might tell you, there is no ‘right` way to play football. But if route-one is the chosen method, it needs to be done well and at a high tempo. Pumping aimless balls lethargically onto the heads of opposing central defenders just won`t do.

Coyle has committed himself to using wingers, so why has he relegated Lee Chung-Yong to the status of defensive midfielder, a task he does badly? That isn`t to criticise the Korean who has acquitted himself well in his first season in English football. It`s a condemnation of a manager who has chosen to deny him the chance to do the thing he does best.

Likewise with Sam Ricketts or Gretar Steinsson. When did you last see them overlap from the right-back position?

Coyle arrived on a tidal wave of goodwill. That`s prevented any detailed scrutiny of his shortcomings. In time, he may become an effective leader, but it is becoming clear that the man from Paisley has a lot to learn at top flight level.

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