Isolated Lee Left Looking Over His Shoulder As Speed Gives Up Coaching Duties at Bolton

Sammy Lee's position at Bolton Wanderers was looking increasingly fragile last night as the club's board contemplated the repercussions of his falling-out with Gary Speed. Phil Gartside, the Bolton chairman, was deeply unimpressed that Lee had alienated a consummate professional such as Speed and that concern was shared by the club's owner, Eddie Davies.

Speed relinquished his duties as first-team coach yesterday after a series of arguments culminated in him being left out of the squad, along with the captain Kevin Nolan, for Sunday's 1-0 defeat against Chelsea. Lee is now facing something approaching mutiny among his players, many of whom sympathize with Speed, and Nolan, and have expressed their concerns to an exasperated Gartside. The chairman in turn has spoken to Davies about how much longer they should give a manager who has taken only five points from nine Premier League games.

Everyone associated with Bolton is entitled to fear the worst in their next game, against Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium tomorrow week, but Gartside is looking to the game against Aston Villa on October 28 as the one to determine whether Lee is sacked.

Lee can hardly complain after winning only one league game since replacing Sam Allardyce towards the end of last season. The feeling within the dressing room is that he had begun to see Speed as a "threat". Sources close to the midfielder have gone as far as calling Lee "insecure and paranoid".

Speed had recently agreed, but not signed, a new contract which would have made him assistant manager, but he has been skeptical about Lee ever since the manager's appointment. Although Bolton claimed, somewhat disingenuously, that Speed had been "relieved of his coaching responsibilities", the decision was very much his own, in protest at Lee's management. "I decided it wasn't working out," he said. "It is up to me now to work hard, get back in the team and give 100%, as I always do."

Increasingly flustered in interviews and sensitive to any form of criticism, Lee is upset by several leaks from inside the club, describing them as "malignant rumors emanating from the dressing room". One story is of senior players refusing to do interviews after the defeat to Birmingham City last month because they did not want to offer Lee their backing.

"Who are these people?" Lee demanded to know last night. "It's time for these 'senior sources' to stand up and be counted. I know it's not everybody, but I'd like those one or two to come and knock on my door."

He added: "I hear things about my methods but I've been with these lads for two years and I've been at the FA and with Liverpool. All I'm trying to do is make sure we can compete on all fronts. It's bitterly disappointing these things are leaking out. People are trying to undermine what we are trying to do."