‘He has had chances’: Bolton Wanderers boss Steven Schumacher fires strong message over new Blackpool man Joel Randall
Joel Randall became Blackpool’s second January arrival on Monday.
Steven Schumacher has defended his decision to give the green light for Joel Randall to make the move to Blackpool this month.
And the head coach has explained why the midfielder’s time with Bolton Wanderers failed to live up to expectations following his £1.2m move from Peterborough United.
But following Evatt’s sacking soon after his move from Peterborough, the 26-year-old struggled to impress under Schumacher. This saw him feature 39 times for Bolton, which reaped just two goals and four assists.
Why Bolton allowed exit for new Blackpool man
And Randall’s disappointment in front of goal was something highlighted by the Whites boss after making the decision to part ways for the remainder of the season.
Schumacher told The Bolton News: ‘We just said that if we want to bring people in then we have to lose a couple from the squad, and Joel was the decision we made.
‘It hasn’t quite worked out for him here, certainly not the way he would have wanted it to, so maybe it is best for him to go out and get some confidence back somewhere else?
‘We had a lot of players in the squad and he is one who hasn’t really featured lately. It has probably been a tough 12 months for him here, I don’t think it has worked out as he’d have wanted, but he has had chances.
‘I think he's had a lot of opportunities, certainly since I've come in. I don't know what happened when Ian (Evatt) was here but when I came in he has had loads of games.
‘He is a lovely footballer, no-one can deny that. But when you're looking for goals and assists and outputs, it wasn't quite there. The others, the likes of Kyle Dempsey, John McAtee, Marcus Forss – they have all scored goals.
‘If I am trying to bring someone else in then I have to look at all of them and lose one. I had to free up some space.’