Peterborough United manager on a 'wise' managerial appointment by Blackpool and the impact of Tom Lees
Peterborough United boss Darren Ferguson believes relegation rivals Blackpool have made a wise managerial appointment in Ian Evatt.
Evatt was confirmed as ‘The Seasiders’ new manager earlier this week in time for a battle against the team directly above them at the bottom of League One at the Weston Homes Stadium on Saturday (3pm kick off).
Ferguson has clashed with Evatt on a handful of occasions and is yet to beat him. Like Ferguson’s Posh, Evatt’s Bolton Wanderers team also lost in back-to-back League One play-off campaigns in 2022-23 and 2023-24.
"Ian has strong connections with Blackpool,” Ferguson said. “He was a successful player there so he knows the club well. It was a wise decision to appoint him.
"Ian did a very good job at Bolton. He couldn't quite get them over the line, but he’s now inherited a Blackpool side that, on paper, have some very good players. There was a lot of money put into the team in the summer.
"A new manager makes it a slightly different preparation for us. We would be second-guessing what they are likely to do so even more attention than normal has been placed on to how we approach the game.
"You very rarely get a win if you don’t get your own performance right. We did last week, but that won’t happen very often. We also have good players and we need to show it more regularly.
"Winning will breed confidence and that will bring more wins, and when that happens you will see players playing with more freedom.”
Ferguson admits Posh will miss experienced central defender Tom Lees on Saturday. Lees will serve a one-match suspension after picking up a red card in last weekend’s narrow win at Burton.
The 34 year-old has an unusual ‘undisclosed’ contract at Posh which is believed to relate to the knee injury that halted his season at Huddersfield in the 2024-25 campaign.
"Tom has had a massive impact on us,” Ferguson admitted. “Especially in the way he trains. He is at it every single day. He trains and prepares for matches properly and you can see why he has had such a great career. I have told our younger to follow the right people and Tom is one of those. The likes of James Dornelly, George Nevett and Harley Mills can only learn from watching Tom work.
"Tom has also been good for me as a manager. He’s an experienced voice and an effective bridge between me and the players. He will fulfil that role on Saturday.”
Ireland Under 21 international David Okagbue is expected to replace Lees against Blackpool.