Will Forrester says the Wanderers squad are determined to give Steven Schumacher a winning start on home turf against Crawley.

The head coach has had a full week on the training pitch with his new group following a hectic start to life at Bolton.

Forrester knows Crawley should not be written off but is eager to get back to winning ways and keep the pressure on the sides above them in the play-off race.

“We looked at their stats earlier and they are ‘underachieving’ in the way that they play,” said the defender.

“They try and play the right way. They play out from the back and keep a lot of possession. I think we have got to get after them, get in their faces and see if they can do it on our home pitch.”

When asked if there is extra ‘pressure’ this weekend, he replied: “There is always pressure at this football club, the stature and how big it is, to go out there and perform every week and get results, which sometimes is hard.

“But we know that we need to go out and get those three points. I think the fans should be excited for this weekend's game, obviously with it being the manager's first.

“Hopefully, they will get right behind us, which I know they will, and we can give them something to cheer about.”

January was a busy month for the Whites, who crammed in eight matches across the league and Vertu Trophy.

But Forrester isn’t complaining as the 23-year-old aims to maintain his good form of late and stay in the team.

“We know that the league is really tough and games come at you thick and fast, which I think is a good thing, to keep looking forward to the next game. But we will be all focused on Saturday,” he stated.

“I am enjoying playing out there at the minute. I have had a run of games, which I think is massive for my game because I need to get into a rhythm, and I think I'm in that rhythm at the minute so long may it continue.”

Wanderers are only outside the top six on goal difference ahead of their clash with Crawley, although it is extremely tight from sixth to 10th.

Forrester insists that the aim at Bolton has not changed and is keen to put a run of results together to climb back up the table.

“The league is so tight, there are four teams on the same pointers,” he said. “We know that obviously our goal is still very much to get promoted.

“It has not changed from that since the start of the season. We have not played our best football, so I think the best is still to come.

“Hopefully, towards the end of the season we can get into a groove and climb our way back up that table.”