Why Bolton Wanderers chief Tobias Phoenix struggled to win supporters over

There was undeniable satisfaction among the Whites supporters yesterday as it was announced that the former Macclesfield Town director of football had left a role at the UniBol which, at best, could be described as ill-defined.

For a man who described his remit upon arriving in February as “all things football” it was never entirely clear where his job remit began and that of the manager began.

That was not a question which former Bolton boss Keith Hill was prepared to answer. When asked in one press conference what tasks the new head of football operations would be given, the Boltonian snapped: “You’ll have to ask him, I’m not his mum!”

Though Hill bit his lip from there on in, potentially saved further interrogation by the fact football went into lockdown with 10 games remaining, it was clear the appointment had rubbed him up the wrong way.

When Wanderers went into hibernation, with players and almost all staff packed off on furlough unable to communicate due to the terms of their contract, Phoenix was one of the few who remained operative.

But for that opening interview, in which he outlined plans to drop the Under-23s team and downgrade to a category three academy, there was little attempt to communicate with supporters via the press or his own internal channels. And that, as any good PR person will tell you, allows for an information vacuum to appear.

There was a degree of local anger at the way Hill was cut adrift in June. Bolton’s form for the previous few months before lockdown had made the decision to change managers a relatively easy one for the club’s owners but Hill nevertheless felt disappointed that he had never been given a fair platform on which to work – and, for many, the finger of blame pointed squarely towards the man who had recently walked through the door.

Whether that was fair, or not, is a matter of debate. Phoenix never managed to shake off the Machiavellian tag and his refusal to elaborate on his background in the game, his thoughts on current events, or to explain the restructuring process in public only contributed to the mystery.

What we do know is that Phoenix was instrumental in bringing in Ian Evatt from Barrow, and that his conduct in the negotiations was praised by the National League champions.

Once Evatt was on board, it quickly became clear that Phoenix had been working on a number of potential signings. Big hitters like Eoin Doyle and Antoni Sarcevic were landed early on – and though they were signings made entirely with the manager’s blessing, the speed of their arrival suggests a lot more homework was done in the months prior.

But that is where the division of labour became blurred. Phoenix had initially been recommended to Wanderers’ owners by Peter Kenyon, the former Chelsea and Manchester United chief executive, who at one stage looked as if he would play an active role at Bolton.

Kenyon even appeared in the directors’ box alongside Sharon Brittan and Co for a League One game in January but from summer onward his input has been very much in the background.

Supporters began to question what footballing credentials Phoenix had to hold such a prestigious role. And barring some brief mentions as a football intermediary and a few press releases at Macclesfield Town, information was frighteningly thin on the ground.

Inside the camp, however, the relationship between the head of football operations, new head coach Evatt and the players was not bad at all.

Phoenix even appeared alongside Evatt in a Zoom press conference to unveil him – answering some questions about his relationship with Kenyon and why Bolton needed to modernise their approach to recruitment.

The final point was a crucial one. Bolton had never had a director of football, or at least anybody billed as such. For a League Two club soon to be saddled with a salary cap, the position looked an extravagance. And when the flood of 20-plus new signings made an inauspicious start to the season, people were once again looking for someone to blame.

Evatt shouldered a lot of the criticism as the Whites dropped temporarily to 22nd position, the worst in the club’s entire history. At that stage, normal precedence would be for a director to step out and offer support, perhaps even explain some of the recruitment decisions which were taken over the summer or the impact new spending rules were having on the club.

Phoenix accompanied the head coach to press conferences as a spectator, was a vocal presence in the stands, and even on the touchline at Under-18s games and training sessions, further blurring that separation between the man upstairs and the man in the dugout.

Evatt, like his players, rode out the storm and may well be stronger for the experience.

Over the past few weeks, it has been entirely noticeable in empty stadia up and down the land that Phoenix was no longer present. He was last seen shaking hands and embracing players on the touchline by the Sky TV cameras after the Salford game but was not in the directors’ box for home matches against Southend or Port Vale.

Wanderers – as we have come to expect from the current regime – maintained a dignified silence as rumours swept around the stadium about a potential fall-out with Phoenix.

The statement released yesterday had an amicable tone and comments from Evatt, made on Thursday before the announcement, hinted at the club strengthening their scouting and recruitment department in the near future.

But Wanderers are unlikely to go back down the director of football route again, at least while they operate in League Two.

Football Ventures have wholeheartedly backed Evatt, who had been saddled with the nonsensical ‘head coach’ role but must surely now be regarded as the club’s manager. And rightly so.

It is now for him to build the support structure he needs, both on the recruitment side and on the training ground, because the infrastructure at present looks woefully thin.

Like their young manager, Wanderers’ owners are on a learning journey. Their first managerial appointment was one of necessity, but Hill’s skillset never quite married up with what they wanted.

Likewise, Phoenix’s appointment hinted at a more modern approach. But fancy talk of Moneyball is likely to follow him out of the door. Wanderers will continue to utilise sports data, and use words like ‘algorithm’ but they are not reinventing the wheel.

It is perhaps best in these extraordinary times to concentrate on the more achievable goals – getting a grand old football club back on a solid footing and re-establishing it as the heartbeat of the town.