Ollie Assures Evatt Of Role

Speaking to the Blackpool Gazette, new Pool manager Ian Holloway has stated that Ian Evatt is a big part of his plans for next season.

Holloway’s comments come after his 2007 autobiography spoke about Evatt being signed behind Ollie’s back at QPR.

‘There are no problems between me and Ian – he is a fantastic lad,’ said Holloway.

‘He has done fantastically for Blackpool and I can’t wait to work with him again. But Ian knows the way I am with players.

‘What I said to Ian back in our days at QPR together was that it was a mistake for the chairman to run off and get him because he was on our list and we were going to talk about him.

‘I said to the owner (Gianni Paladini) I’m going on holiday for a week, a little break. Two days later he’s on the phone shouting that he’s got Ian Evatt.

‘I just thought ‘what is going on?’ We had signed him without even giving the player a medical and you can’t run a football club like that.

‘So I said to Ian ‘hang on a minute this is what happened’.

‘In hindsight, if I could go back, I wouldn’t have told Ian that. He didn’t need to know that.

‘It was my frustration with the board and I didn’t need to be that upfront with him.

‘I think it affected the kid. But at the time the defence wasn’t my top priority.

‘I had Clarke Carlisle and Danny Shittu and what I was looking to do was buy a striker to add to the ones I already had. I think that QPR team would have done something if we had done that.

‘So I wanted to get that right and unfortunately Ian was caught in that drama.’

Holloway went on to assure Evatt that he features in his plans for next season:

‘My ideas on how to defend and where I’m going to draw my line now in the Championship are a lot different from what they were,’ added Holloway.

‘I want us to go a few yards deeper and that suits big Ian. He can head it out and he can play there. I want to play football and he can do that.

‘I think he will be excited by what I’m talking about, although he’ll have to earn his right in the team like everyone else.’

Holloway’s comments come just days after he further explained his tactical plans for the Seasiders next season.

Speaking to the official website, Ollie said:

‘I want to play a style of football that the players will enjoy doing, the fans will enjoy watching and, hopefully, will get us some wins at this level.

‘I believe the modern is game is becoming more and more about retention of the ball and not giving it to the opposition. That’s what I want to try and encourage to the players.

‘I believe English football, to a point, is not quite getting certain things right. I think a lot of top managers, even Sir Alex Ferguson, are adopting a different type of European style.

‘If you look at how Spain played, good gracious me, I thought we were light years behind them when they beat us 2-0 the other month. I’ve got some ideas and I just can’t wait – I wish I could get a ball out on the field now and talk to you about it.

‘I am well aware that the Blackpool fans are paying good money to watch their team and I think we owe it to them to entertain them. I am planning to make people enjoy what they see at Bloomfield Road next season.’