More goings than comings as Bolton cut more costs.
Afternoon all, hope you had a good weekend. Football is back, at least in one form or another, and until the fixtures are released next Monday there won’t be much about Bolton that will hit the back pages. We’ll all be more concerned whether or not England will still be in the Euros by the time Rooney has served his ban.
Still, there is some news about, although still nothing on whether or not Zat ‘Gives Donkeys A Bad Name’ Knight is remaining with us. Talks are still planned for this week, or at least I think they are as there has no new shifting of the deadline.
However, two names have left the club over the weekend. The first, Allan Duckworth, leaves his position as CEO after fourteen years, calling his time at T’Reebok ‘Greatly rewarding’, although whether this is in mental or fiscal terms he has not said.
This may be a case of him falling on his sword rather than wishing to leave. The CEO earns a hefty sum of money, second only to the Chairman when it comes to backroom staff, and his leaving will release some money. As with any company who have to downsize, it is the middle management that feels the pinch first and you wouldn’t be surprised if Duckworth isn’t the last name from the upper echelons of the club to leave.
The second name didn’t really come as any surprise when it was announced this morning that Fred Barber was also leaving. As soon as Jussi left, Barber was surely going to follow seeing as how Jussi had had to fight for him to stay when OC came in and brought his own goalkeeping staff with him. Goalkeepers are funny like that and you can see why Jussi wanted Barber to stay but now, with Jussi gone, there remains little point for Barber to stay as well. In the coaching set up he has worked for the club for a long time and deserves great credit for making Jussi the goalkeeper that he was. At least with the shot stopping. Lets not mention the distribution.
One person who will not be leaving, although the Daily Fail appear to think so, is Martin Petrov. Unless the Bulgarian does a major bit of gazumping and Phil Gartside, who has tweeted that he is staying and has signed a contract, really is as bad at his job as some people think. Rangers, of the Glasgow variety, apparently have a small window where they can sign players on free transfers and Petrov is one player that they are looking at. Shame then that it appears he is staying at Bolton and that some people just cannot get their facts right.
Now, if it had been this time last year…
A player coming in may be Carlos ‘The Rock’ Sanchez, recently released from Valenciennes who finished mid table in Ligue 1 last season. Tall and stocky, he may be seen as the ideal replacement for Nigel Reo-Coker. He has been getting the interest of both Fulham and Reading but neither are willing to offer him the terms that he wants, whereas we are. So, a two year deal in the offing on x amount of money where x=a punt.
I suppose we have to take some risks in the market and he would be one. Little is known of him on these shores but as he seems to be linked with club within and outside England then he must have something to him. The last player who came from France that we knew nothing about was Abdi Faye, and he didn’t do too badly for a while and in the Championship we are going to need players who stick their foot in as you can be damn sure Mark Davies won’t be doing that. We are giving this rumour a 5/10 and we don’t think it will be the last.
One player who has definitely gone and who will not be returning is Tope Obadeyi, the player who couldn’t get a regular gig at Rochdale. Somehow he has ended up on the northwest coast of Portugal at Rio Ave, a team who managed to stay in the Portuguese first division by the skin of their teeth last season. Good luck to Tope in his new adventure, but you do think that come December he will on loan to a Portuguese fourth division club. Providing they have a local Nandos.
Right, still haven’t done the player of the year and, you know what, it won’t be today either. in the words of The Littlest Hobo, maybe tomorrow.