Gareth Evans talks about Bolton’s most expensive ever signings PLUS a game on the subject
You would struggle to find an article about Bolton Wanderers these days which doesn`t mention the state of the clubs finances.
One of the reasons for the club being so heavily in debt is due to some of the rather heavy sums we have paid for players from years gone by. With this in mind, here are some of the highest transfer valuations Bolton Wanderers have paid for players since the turn of the millennium, along with my thoughts on each.
El Hadji Diouf – £4m
During the 04/05 season Bolton Wanderers brought in the Senegalese international on loan and a season later paid a reported £4million to keep him permanently. My memories of Diouf are largely positive, except of course for a number of spitting incidents during his time with us. On the whole he was worth the transfer fee and brought excitement to the game whenever he got the ball.
Marvin Sordell – £4m
A player which I don`t even really recall playing for us. Marvin Sordell made 25 appearances in a Bolton shirt, and hit the back of the net on 4 occasions. I`d consider him a flop and a complete waste of money. Not one of Owen Coyle`s best signing.
David N`Gog – £4m
Another player which fans weren`t terribly confident about when he signed for us. N`Gog was a flop with Liverpool before we signed him and I think they were delighted when we said we would pay a reported £4million for him. When N`Gog left the club during the final year of his contract in 2014 the fee was undisclosed. My thought were that we probably didn`t get a penny for him!
Fabrice Muamba – £5m
It`s such a shame that Muamba`s career had to come to an end earlier than expected. Every Bolton fan will remember where they were when they heard the news or saw Muamba collapse on the pitch against Spurs in the FA Cup. Sometimes there are more important things in life than football and this was one of them moments when every football fan realised that. PRAY 4 MUAMBA.
Gary Cahill – £5m
Arguably one of the best centre backs I`ve seen put on a Bolton shirt. Gary Cahill proved to be a bargain at £5million when he joined from Aston Villa. For me, he will go down as a quality player which we should have made some really decent cash on. There is also the debate that perhaps if we didn`t sell him in January he could have got us the points needed to keep us in the Premier League.
Nicolas Anelka – £8m
When Big Sam brought Anelka to the Reebok I was delighted. It was reported that we were also after Andy Johnson (who moved to Fulham that year). It`s fair to say Anelka was the right choice for us. He was a bargain at £8million and scored 21 goals in 53 games. We also made a profit on him when he joined Chelsea for £15million in 2008.
Johan Elmander – £10m
Bolton Wanderers record signing is Johan Elmander for a reported £10million in 07/08. My thoughts on Elmander are that he was a complete waste of money until during the final year of his contract he turned into a bit of goal machine bagging 10 goals in 37 games. Who could forget the beauty he scored against Wolves?
Although we have made a number of signing which we have spent well over the odds for, we have also had some absolute bargains! Such as when we brought the likes of Ivan Campo, Youri Djorkaeff and Kevin Davies all to the club for free.
The Car Buying Service created a quiz all about Premier League Transfer Valuations from the last 23 seasons, including a question about the fee we paid for Jay Jay Okocha in 02/03. Give it a try below and test how your football knowledge compares to your friends.