Bolton manager feels "importance" of Derby County promotion clash

This weekend, Bolton Wanderers make the trip to Pride Park for a game that is built to be a classic.

Derby sit just one point ahead of Bolton and in second place; more crucially in the automatic promotion places.

Ian Evatt's Bolton side have been putting the pressure on the Rams for a number of weeks now and have emerged as a big challenger for promotion.

Derby have won three on the bounce and find themselves in good form, they will be desperate to build a four point lead over the Trotters.

Bolton manager Ian Evatt spoke to Bolton News ahead of the game and hasn't played down the fixture's importance.

He said: "We know the importance of the game, we know how well we have just played, and that has to be the target now.

"Everything we do is underpinned by hard work.

"The nice stuff is the icing on the cake, the cherry on top. But nothing works without that desire, the aggressive and intense press all over the pitch."

They come off the back of an impressive 5-0 win over Oxford United on Tuesday night. The Trotters put in a performance that would have made any Derby fan slightly more nervous for Saturday's match. Evatt added: "It was great to see us play with such fluidity and confidence when we had the ball, it has been an incredibly tough run, which would be challenging for any team, any squad in the land, let alone with the injuries we have sustained along the way.

"I am proud of the players to still be in the mix. There is a lot of football still to be played but we are giving ourselves an opportunity. Now let’s finish this block of fixtures with another strong performance at Derby.”

Derby County vs Bolton Wanderers kicks off at 3pm on Saturday 16 March.