Bolton chairman Phil Gartside has been holding forth on all manner of subjects lately, including foreign ownership, transfer policy and the structure of the Premier League. So it is no surprise that he has chosen to embroil his club in the never ending Carlos Tevez affair.
‘There is an argument to say we can claim three points from West Ham,` he told the Bolton News. ‘We went down there and lost 3-1, Tevez scored two, and it cost us £700,000 because that was one place in the league.
‘If Sheffield United are successful and get a claim, then the players are successful, why shouldn`t we?`
Yes Phil, there is an argument. It`s just not a very good one. Bolton finished two points behind Everton, but they also lost to West Ham, a fortnight before. If the Wanderers were successful in garnering another three points, then Everton would surely be too, leaving the league positions unchanged.
Gartside also appears to be implying that Bolton would have won the game at West Ham if Tevez had been unavailable for selection. That doesn`t hold water either given the team`s performances at the time. From January 2007 until the end of the season, the Whites had only four league wins, all against clubs in the bottom six, and they were conceding an average of two goals a game. Seventeen games. Seventeen points. Relegation form.
The next six games are vital and will shape Bolton`s season. The chairman would do better to concentrate his mind on them. The matter of Carlos Tevez is between West Ham, Sheffield United, The Premier League and a lot of lawyers. It should be left that way.
Share this article
Related Articles
