Reo-Coker: ´We showed we were men´

Bolton midfielder Nigel Reo-Coker believes his side’s 2-1 victory over Blackburn on Tuesday proved their Premier League credentials.

The 27-year-old praised manager Owen Coyle and his team-mates after Wanderers secured all three points, with Mark Davies opening the scoring for the away side.

Yakubu pulled back a late goal for Steve Kean’s men to set up a nervy finish, yet Reo-Coker believes Bolton showed their Premier League credentials by hanging on for the win.

“It was a very big win for us,” Reo-Coker told the club’s website. “It’s been a difficult couple of weeks.”

“With all the pressure and the media coverage behind this game and it being a six-pointer, it was a big win for us.”

“The manager was very positive in the dressing room, saying ‘Don’t pay attention to however the media is portraying this game, it’s not about Blackburn, it’s about us’.”

“We were greatly motivated, we know the situation we’re in, and like I said, this game would separate the men from the boys, and we showed we were men.”

Reo-Coker downplayed his individual effort, which proved to be the winner, instead praising the ethos of the team for the result.

“It was nice to get a goal, but all credit has to the go to the team because it was a tremendous team performance today and that’s what got us the win,” he said.

“They made it very difficult in the second half. They put a lot of pressure on us and put in a lot of long balls. We made some great blocks and some great tackles and we stayed solid as a team.”

The victory saw Bolton leapfrog Blackburn off the bottom of the table, and the former West Ham man is keen to get another positive result against Newcastle on Boxing Day.

“We’ve been lacking consistency this season,” Reo-Coker said. “We’ve got to take it to the next game now, we can’t sit back on our laurels and relax.”

“We have to have the same atmosphere, same sort of passion and commitment as a team and we can get our just rewards.”