Matt Taylor hopes Bristol Rovers can build on their Sky Bet League One victory at 10-man Bolton.
Taylor’s troops were in cruise control, leading 2-0 at half-time through John Marquis and Antony Evans and with Wanderers reduced to 10 men after skipper Ricardo Santos’ red card.
Gas had to survive a nervy finale as Eoin Toal’s late deflected goal gave the hosts’ hopes of pulling off an unlikely draw.
“If we have any ambition to challenge those bigger clubs at the top end of the table we need results like this,” said Taylor after his first league win since replacing Joey Barton as boss.
“It cannot be a one-off result; we have got to find a way to back it up.
“Bolton’s form at home has been outstanding, but the one thing we did was to start the game well and get on the front foot.
“We wanted to let the home crowd and the opposition know we were here to attack.
“The biggest plus for me is how the lads are working. Out of possession, they hustled and harried and worked their socks off.
“We are running more than at any stage this season and that has got to be our start and end point.
“The sending off helped us because he (Santos) was a big player for Bolton to leave the pitch.
“To go in at 2-0 we felt relatively comfortable. Our keeper wasn’t tested much in the second half.
“But there was a deflection set-piece goal. We had to withstand a bit of pressure, but we did that.”
Manager Ian Evatt described Bolton’s second defeat in six days as “self-inflicted”.
Evatt defended his decision to substitute leading goalscorer Dion Charles as reaction to his captain’s 33rd-minute dismissal for bringing down Aaron Collins.
“With some players, there was hangover from Monday,” he said referencing the 2-0 loss at leaders Portsmouth.
“Rico is brilliant player and people make mistakes, but that changed everything. We had a clear, tactical idea of what we wanted to do which meant sacrificing Dion. It was tough for him, but he understands why.
“You saw the fruits of that in the second half. When we got the plan right, we dominated with 10 men.
“We showed great character, great courage and energy; a lot of which was missing in the first half. But just as we made the change, we conceded an awful second goal and that left us with a mountain to climb.
“That was really the end of the bad stuff and had we scored 10 minutes earlier I believe we would have got something out of the game.”
Bolton’s first home defeat to Rovers since 1985 dropped them to fifth, but Evatt countered: “If we win our game in hand we are still second.
“We are going to have highs and lows, and this week has been a low. So, we need to manage the emotion and keep everyone calm and focused.”
Al-Ahli 1-2 Al-Hilal: Mitrovic double keeps Saudi champions perfect
Aleksandar Mitrovic proved to be the difference once again for Al-Hilal as the reigning Saudi Pro League champions beat Al-Ahli 2-1 on Saturday.
Al-Ahil went in front with 12 minutes played when Gabri Veiga was sent through on goal by Franck Kessie, with the Spaniard rounding Yassine Bounou to open the scoring at King Abdullah Sports City.
The hosts went close to doubling their advantage soon after, with Riyad Mahrez and Ivan Toney going close, before Sergej Milinkovic-Savic saw his effort cleared off the line at the other end.
But parity was restored early in the second half through Al-Hilal's master marksman, as Mitrovic nodded home a trademark header from Renan Lodi's delivery.
Al-Ahil were then awarded a penalty when Rayan Hamed fouled Malcom inside the box, only for Mitrovic to see his effort saved by Abdulrahman Al Sanbi.
However, the Serbian was given the chance to redeem himself after the VAR deemed encroachment had taken place, and he made no mistake at the second time of asking to net his 14th goal of the season in all competitions.
Data Debrief: Mitrovic the main man
Mitrovic has been in fine form since his move to Saudi Arabia, with his latest double taking his tally to 54 goals in as many appearances for Al-Hilal.
This time out, he contributed 1.16 expected goals (xG) tally to the visitors' 2.24 total, while also recording the most touches in the opposition box (six).
Malcom also impressed for Al-Hilal, creating more chances (three) than anyone on the pitch, with his 14 passes into the final third a total only bettered by Ruben Neves (18) and Salem Al Dawsari (15) among his team-mates.
Al-Nassr 3-0 Al-Orubah: Mane double helps hosts close in on leaders
Sadio Mane scored a goal in either half, helping Al-Nassr cruise to a 3-0 win over Al-Orubah and close in on the top two in the Saudi Pro League.
Cristiano Ronaldo had given the hosts the lead from the spot, setting them on their way to a dominant victory.
After a slow start, Jean Seri was penalised for a handball, and Ronaldo made no mistake from the spot. After a stuttering run-up, he coolly slotted his strike into the bottom-left corner.
Mane got his first on the stroke of half-time, latching onto Ronaldo's pull-back before firing his low shot into the far side of the net.
He could have had a hat-trick, having also hit the woodwork and squandered a first-time shot by slicing it wide, but he did get his second in the 71st minute, guiding Nawaf Bu Washi's cross past Gaetan Coucke.
Cristian Tello came closest to a consolation for the visitors, smashing a long-range effort off the crossbar.
Data Debrief: Mane's time to shine
Mane, so far this season, has been providing the spark as a playmaker after registering five assists in Al-Nassr's first five games in the Saudi Pro League.
Today, however, he regained his scoring touch, getting his first two goals of the campaign.
He had the most shots (five), and shots on target (three), as he accumulated 0.97 expected goals (xG), while his seven touches in the box was the most of any player on the field.
Napoli 3-1 Como: Lukaku and McTominay on target to extend hosts' Serie A lead
Romelu Lukaku continued his fine start to life at Napoli as the Belgian notched a goal and two assists in his side's 3-1 win over Como on Friday.
The hosts found themselves ahead with just 26 seconds on the clock when Scott McTominay was picked out by Lukaku, with the Scotland international firing home his first goal for Gli Azzurri off the post.
But Como would draw themselves level two minutes before the break when Gabriel Strefezza's strike from distance rifled into the bottom corner.
However, Antonio Conte's side needed just eight minutes after the interval to restore their advantage when Sergi Roberto brought down Mathias Olivera in the box, with Lukaku stepping up from 12 yards to net his fourth Serie A goal of the season.
Napoli continued to push for a third goal to secure the victory, with Khvicha Kvaratskhelia going closest but saw his effort saved by Emil Audero.
But the points were sealed in the 86th minute when Lukaku turned provider once again, holding off his marker before slipping through substitute David Neres who slotted home with a fine finish to extend Napoli's lead at the top of the standings to four points.
Data Debrief: Lukaku continues Conte love story
Lukaku has been a player reborn under Conte's stewardship. The Belgian is the player who has been involved in the most goals in his first five appearances for Napoli in Serie A since the Italian top-flight returned to 20 teams (since 2004/05) with three goals and four assists.
He has also managed to better his assist tally for the whole of last season, managing just three in 32 appearances for Roma last term.
McTominay's goal after 26 seconds is the third-fastest scored by Napoli since the start of a Serie A match in the three points for a win era, after Hirving Lozano's goal against Hellas Verona in 2021 (nine seconds) and Ezequiel Lavezzi's goal against Genoa in 2008 (25 seconds).
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