Date: 10th June 2016 at 11:28am
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Bolton Wanderers have confirmed the appointment of Phil Parkinson, who will become their manager on a two-year contract, after the club agreed a compensation package with Bradford City.

The Trotters had been without a permanent manager for 12 weeks, since the departure of Neil Lennon by mutual consent back in mid-March, five days after Dean Holdsworth’s Sports Shield consortium purchased the troubled Greater Manchester outfit for £7.5m.

Jimmy Phillips was placed in temporary charge on an interim basis to see out the campaign, but couldn’t prevent relegation from the Championship to League One, as Wanderers finished bottom of the standings.

Photo: Marc Atkins / Offside.

Parkinson guided the Bantams to fifth-place in League One last season, before losing to Millwall in the play-offs – Photo: Marc Atkins / Offside.

Bolton’s relegation means that they will compete in England’s third-tier for the first time since the 1992-93 season, following on from a four-year stay in the Championship.

Parkinson, 48, will be joined at the Macron Stadium by his assistant manager Steve Parkin.

He will be tasked with steering Bolton back up to the second-tier, and having won promotion twice before with Colchester United in 2006 and Bradford in 2013, Holdsworth and chairman Ken Anderson decided he was the preferred choice, ahead of Nigel Adkins and Steve Cotterill.

The Chorley-native departs Bradford after a prolonged, fruitful stay of five years at Valley Parade, where he developed a reputation of turning them into a cup team in recent years.

Bradford reached the League Cup final as a League Two side in 2013, losing to Swansea City, before knocking out Premier League teams Chelsea and Sunderland in an FA Cup run two years later.

Parkinson led the Bantams to fifth in League One last season. They were edged out by Millwall over two-legs in the play-offs.

He will be formally introduced as Bolton’s new manager during a press conference at midday on Friday.

 
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