Bolton Wanderers: Every word Evatt said on Mansfield trip

Not from the squad that was available on Sunday. Obviously, Eoin (Toal) we need to monitor and to be careful with. He did tremendously well in the circumstances to give us 60 minutes but we will need to manage his minutes. We have had a set-back with Kyle (Dempsey), he has re-hurt that lateral meniscus. We have had a scan and it looks like there is another tear in there, we are seeking a surgical opinion but it isn’t good news.

Dempsey has had some rotten luck with injuries…

There are two options – if it is more of a shaving and repair we are probably looking at eight weeks but if it is a stitched up or anything more significant, it is probably the end of the season for him. It’s not ideal, it is really bad news. Before players come back in for training there are certain boxes that have to be ticked and in one of those boxes something really innocuous injured him, which was awful news. We are here to support him and we’ll get him the best treatment we can to get him back on the grass.

Sometimes that happens in football. As we said on Sunday it’s like a rollercoaster, and you are either riding high or, like at the moment, it feels like you are on one of the loop-the-loops. It has been challenging for him personally, challenging for us collectively in terms of injuries, but there are things that we can’t control. We have to adapt and overcome. We will soon be in the middle of a window, which will give us a chance to replace him. I suppose if ever there was a right time for something like this to happen it would probably be now.

Can you tell us any more about Aaron Morley’s situation?

Aaron will be coming back. Obviously, we have to wait until January 1 to call him back so he is not available for Mansfield, but he will be available for Saturday. We have made one or two bids for players that, at the moment, have been rejected but we are about to up them. We always have valuations for players and we are at those so if we don’t achieve that, then we will look to something else.

Do you expect incomings and outgoings this month?

I do, I think there will be. As I’ve said, our main aspiration isn’t depth in this window. It is to move the needle of the first XI, we need to try and improve that first XI. Obviously when you sign new players, things change within your own squad and people – who want to have regular game time that we can’t necessarily offer them – may look to exit. You always have to be fluid in any window but January, in particular, because it is a much shorter timeframe and things happen pretty quickly. Things change every hour really. That is what we’ll have to keep an eye on but things are moving.

Mansfield next up and the first of four away games in a row…

A lot of travelling to be done and again different types of games. A difficult game, a team who are front-footed, aggressive, almost man-to-man pressure at times. We have to make sure we have the right solutions to break that down. We saw a glimpse of that in the game here and it is always a difficult place to go. As I’ve said before, we need to start to build some momentum and consistency. We have been on the recovery too often, we have had to respond too often. We have to find a level we are comfortable with, which will get us regular and consistent results.

This is a tough game, there is no doubt about that, but we are capable of doing it. We have been there before and I remember the game well. It was exciting, the weather was like it is out there now! Arthur Gnahoua scores a late winner, that was at the very start of our incredible run for promotion from League Two. It would be nice if this can be the same thing and start an incredible run for us to get where we want to be.

After his brace against Lincoln, does Jay Matete bring something different in midfield?

He is a little bit flexible in that he can play as an eight, but he is a different type of eight to the ones we have got. In the six role, he plays it differently to Josh (Sheehan). Josh is a builder and creator, whereas Jay is more dribbling and driving. He likes to receive under contact and can wriggle, dribble and drive you through the centre of the pitch which, in turn, attracts bodies. Theoretically, then there should be free men. They are different types of sixes but I thought he was excellent the other day, and hopefully he can build on that.

How does it affect the game having already faced Mansfield recently?

I don’t think there will be any surprises. Nigel is an incredibly experienced manager, an incredible football man and knows the game well. They will have a plan and we will, like every game it is whoever wins the moments. We have to make sure that is us.

With the transfer window opening, does that alter your opinion on players leaving in that you might have to ‘manufacture’ space in the squad quota?

We have got, as it stands, one space and Aaron will be coming back, so that theoretically means… but we have got a month to ‘manufacture’. That is the key part and as I said, if you do start to bring players in, the squad evolves and there will be players who want to go and find an opportunity elsewhere. We will look to make that happen so by the end of the month, we have a balanced squad. That is just the nature of football. Obviously, significant injuries also play their part.

If it is the worst case scenario for Demps, which I stress we hope it is not, but if it is, it would be pointless registering him if he can’t play for the rest of the season, so that would free up a lot. There are ways and means we can do it but right now, we are hopeful it is the lesser of the two prognoses and we can get him back in eight weeks, but we will know more this week.

Carlos Mendes Gomes is back now and starting to get minutes. Are you pleased with what you have seen from him so far?

To get back to where he was takes time, and people do it differently. The two examples I can give are Josh Sheehan, it probably took him four to six months to get back to where he was prior to the injury. On the flipside, George Johnston did it pretty quickly and arguably improved. We are hopeful these regular minutes will get Carlos back to where he was quickly but, at the moment, he is not there. I think that is important to say, we have to keep trying to build him up and build confidence in him, his body, his technique to get him back to where he was. If we can, Carlos is a top player.