Coyle expects to beat drop

The Trotters are readying themselves for a potentially pivotal Premier League fixture this weekend, with rock-bottom Wigan due at the Reebok Stadium on Saturday.

That fixture will pitch 18th against 20th, with both sides in desperate need of points to help aid their respective survival bids.

They are by no means the only sides in the mix, though, with Blackburn, Queens Park Rangers, Wolves and West Brom all sweating on their top-flight status.

Coyle feels they may not be the only ones to be dragged into a dogfight, with there still 14 rounds of fixtures to come this season.

"People will think that is how it is, but this league changes so quickly and is unforgiving," he said.

"All of a sudden you can go on one of those runs that happen out of the blue for no reason, so I wouldn't just leave it as three from six."

Belief

Coyle has no doubt that every one of the teams' managers is fully confident they can beat the drop, and he remains adamant that his own side will be safe.

"I think we all believe we can get out of it," added the Scot.

"From my end, I can only look at Bolton Wanderers and look to make sure we do that, but I'm pretty sure Steve Kean (Blackburn) and Roberto Martinez (Wigan) feel the same, as well as Mick McCarthy (Wolves), Mark Hughes (QPR) and Roy Hodgson (West Brom).

"It is so intriguing and that is why we love the league - it is the best league in the world.

"We will all have our own beliefs about how we will go about it with the players we have.

"But from our end, I am totally convinced that we will be out of the bottom three come the end of the season."