The 2010–11 season was Bolton Wanderers's twelfth season in the Premier League, and their tenth consecutive season in the top-flight of English football.
It covers the period from 1 July 2010 to 30 June 2011. As Bolton Wanderers did not win the 2010–11 Premier League title, it is the 72nd time that they have competed at the top level without winning the title, the most of any club.
The home strip for the 2010–11 season was revealed on 23 April 2010. The Reebok strip represents a move back to a predominantly all white top. The away strip was revealed on 16 June and is blue with an orange and white trim.
Pre-season
On 27 May, Bolton announced that they would be undertaking a three-game, pre-season tour of North America, taking in matches at Charlotte Eagles, Charleston Battery and Toronto F.C. Further games were announced on 29 May, against Rochdale on 24 July and Morecambe on 28 July, with a reserve team fixture against Fleetwood Town on 30 July. The game at Morecambe was designed to be the opening fixture at their new ground, The Globe Arena, but due to site delays the fixture was cancelled on 14 July and replaced by one at Oldham Athletic. The pre-season schedule announcements were concluded on 1 June when the club announced a small tour of Scotland to play Falkirk on 31 July before a game against Bolton manager Owen Coyle's former charges St Johnstone on 2 August. They also announced that the club's only pre-season game would be against La Liga club Osasuna on 6 August.
A 23-man squad, including new signing Martin Petrov but minus those that had participated in the 2010 FIFA World Cup travelled to the United States on 13 July. The first tour match took place on 14 July against Charlotte Eagles at the Transamerica Field, with Bolton running out 3–0 winners, the goals coming from Gary Cahill, Johan Elmander and Petrov. This was followed three days later with another victory, this time against Charleston Battery at Blackbaud Stadium, the goals this time coming from Kevin Davies and Tamir Cohen in a 2–0 win. The team then travelled across the border to take on Major League Soccer side Toronto where they were joined by Stuart Holden who had played for the USA in the World Cup. The match took place on 21 July at Toronto's BMO Field with the winner pronounced winner of the Carlsberg Cup. After a 1–1 draw, Matty Taylor scoring Bolton's goal, the winner of the trophy was decided by penalties. Holden, Robbie Blake, Sean Davis and Cahill scored for Bolton with Jussi Jääskeläinen saving two of the home side's efforts, thus ensuring Bolton would lift the trophy and finish the tour unbeaten.
On the team's return home they took on local rivals Rochdale at Spotland on the afternoon of 24 July. A Robbie Blake penalty opened the scoring, but Bolton could not finish their League One opponents off and the home side's Chris O'Grady equalised with six minutes remaining. Four days later, a strong side travelled to Oldham Athletic but were well beaten, Tom Eaves scoring all the goals in Oldham's 3–0 win. Eaves would move from Oldham to Bolton a little over two weeks later for an undisclosed fee.
The very end of July saw Bolton travel to Scotland for games against Falkirk and St. Johnstone. The Falkirk game saw the return of Lee Chung-Yong after his extended break following the World Cup. The return of the South Korean could not stop the game ending in a goalless stalemate. Two days later, St Johnstone welcomed Bolton to McDiarmid Park and the English side finished their pre-season away fixtures with a 2–0 victory, Martin Petrov and Johan Elmander scoring their second goals of the summer.
Bolton finished their pre-season schedule with a home match against Osasuna at the Reebok Stadium on 6 August. The result was, again, a 2–0 victory to the home side. Johan Elmander finished as the pre season's leading scorer when he netted early in the game, and Lee Chung-Yong scored his first of the summer shortly afterwards.
Premier League The fixtures for the 2010–11 season were announced on 17 June, and revealed that Bolton would begin their league campaign by welcoming Fulham to the Reebok Stadium in Mark Hughes' first competitive fixture as Fulham's manager. The match finished goalless with Bolton giving a debut to Martin Petrov. A week later, Bolton travelled to London to take on West Ham United. Goalless at half time, with Carlton Cole having a penalty saved by Jussi Jääskeläinen, Bolton took the lead early in the second half through a Matthew Upson own goal, which was followed by a Johan Elmander header. Although Mark Noble pulled a goal back from the penalty spot after Gary Cahill had been adjudged to have pushed Scott Parker, Elmander scored his second of the game with six minutes remaining. The game saw a debut for Robbie Blake.
Bolton's next match was at home to Birmingham City and was moved to the Sunday to allow for live television coverage. The game started badly for the home team, with Roger Johnson scoring for Birmingham in the first five minutes. Shortly before the end of the first half, the situation got worse when Jussi Jääskeläinen was sent off for slapping Johnson in the face. As a result, Hungarian goalkeeper Ádám Bogdán was brought on for Martin Petrov, to replace Jääskeläinen in goal, marking Bogdán's league debut. Birmingham doubled their advantage early in the second half through Craig Gardner. However, the ten men battled back, first through captain Kevin Davies, scoring his 100th league goal from the penalty spot after he himself was fouled in the area by Johnson, and then Robbie Blake, firing in a free-kick for his first goal for the club. The result saw Bolton finish the weekend in fifth place in the Premier League.
The following round of fixtures took place a fortnight later, due to an international break. On 3 September, Gary Cahill, who had been called up to previous squads without playing, became the first Bolton player to play for England since Michael Ricketts in 2002, in the national team's 4–0 win over Bulgaria.
Bolton returned to league football on 11 September, with an away fixture at Arsenal. Drawing 1–1 at half-time, through Johan Elmander's third league goal of the season, which saw him equal his league tally from the previous season, Bolton were 2–1 down when Cahill was sent off for a tackle on Marouane Chamakh. Playing against ten men, Arsenal dominated the rest of the game and ran out 4–1 winners. As a result, the club fell into the bottom half of the table for the first time that season. The club appealed the three-match ban that Cahill would have to serve for the sending off, but this was rejected. A week later, a second successive away game saw Bolton finish level with Aston Villa, in the last game before Gérard Houllier took over as manager of the Midlands club. Ashley Young put the home side ahead early on from a free-kick, but Bolton had drawn level by the end of the half, Kevin Davies netting his second league goal of the season, to put an end to the scoring.
Bolton's next home was again moved to the Sunday to allow for live television coverage, with the visitors being near neighbours, Manchester United. An early Zat Knight goal, flicking in a corner, gave Bolton the lead, but United equalised halfway through the first half, after Nani had run unchecked through Bolton's half before shooting from just outside the area past the returning Jussi Jääskeläinen. Bolton have only beaten Manchester United once at home in thirty years, but it looked like they would make it twice after Martin Petrov shot home with his unfavoured right foot in the sixty-seventh minute, scoring his first goal for the club in the process. The home side almost made it 3–1 soon after, but Johan Elmander failed to make a one on one with United keeper Edwin van der Sar count, and Bolton were made to rue this chance when Michael Owen, on as a substitute three minutes earlier, flicked on a Nani free-kick into Jääskeläinen's right-hand corner to make the final result 2–2. A fourth game without a win ensured that Bolton remained in the bottom half of the Premier League.
October began with an away game at newly promoted West Bromwich Albion. Kevin Davies set up Johan Elmander in the sixty fourth minute, but James Morrison equalised fourteen minutes later to earn the home side a draw. Elmander's goal, his fourth of the season, meant he had already scored more league goals this season than he had in the whole of the previous season. The day after, Kevin Davies was called up into the England squad for the first time and included in the squad to play Montenegro on 12 October. Later in the week, Gary Cahill was called into the squad as a late replacement for Phil Jagielka, meaning that, for the first time since Eddie Hopkinson and Doug Holden in 1959, Bolton had two representatives in the England squad. Although Cahill didn't make it onto the pitch, Davies made his international debut as a second-half substitute in the game.
Bolton returned to league action on 16 October with a home fixture against Stoke City. A Lee Chung-Yong goal midway through the first half sent Bolton in at halftime ahead, but Rory Delap equalised early in the second half. The game had moved into the fourth minute of injury time when substitute Ivan Klasnić scored what turned out to be the winning goal. Almost immediately, Klasnić was sent off after receiving two yellow cards in the two minutes after his goal.
A week later, Bolton played their first game of the season against near neighbours Wigan Athletic. Bolton would eventually play their closest rivals geographically four times, after drawing their FA Cup Fourth round tie. Hugo Rodallega opened the scoring at the DW Stadium but this was swiftly equalised by Johan Elmander as Bolton consolidated their position in the top half of the Premier League. However, the following Sunday, a late Maxi Rodríguez goal would see Liverpool beat Bolton and continue their good form at the Reebok Stadium, where they had not lost since 2006. The result saw Bolton finish October in tenth place.
November opened with a home fixture against Tottenham Hotspur, who had not won a league game at the Reebok Stadium. This run continued as two goals from Kevin Davies and a goal apiece for Grétar Steinsson and Martin Petrov saw Bolton run out 4–2 winners. This began a run of five unbeaten games throughout the month of November. On 10 November, a late Jermaine Beckford goal saw Everton salvage a draw at Goodison Park after Ivan Klasnić had put Bolton ahead. The following Saturday, Bolton raced into a 3–0 lead at Wolverhampton Wanderers through a Richard Stearman own goal, a Johan Elmander solo effort and a Stuart Holden strike, before Wolves pulled back two goals. A week later, Bolton earned their largest win of the season when Newcastle United came to the Reebok Stadium. This was the first game that former captain Kevin Nolan had played at Bolton since his move to Newcastle in January 2009. Two converted penalties by Kevin Davies, two more goals for Johan Elmander and one for Lee Chung-yong gave Bolton a 5–1 win. Bolton finished the month by welcoming Blackpool to the Reebok Stadium for the first time. It was also the first time the clubs had met for seventeen years. Trailing by two goals halfway through the second half, Bolton pulled the goals back, first through a Martin Petrov free kick and then a team effort completed by Mark Davies. Bolton finished the month in fifth place and challenging for European football.