Bolton Wanderers failed on player Sam Allardyce called ‘fantastic’ – they should have made millions more | OneFootball

Bolton Wanderers failed Swiss midfielder Blerim Dzemaili after the surprising exit of manager Sam Allardyce.

In the 2010s, Bolton Wanderers endured financial disarray and came on the verge of liquidation as a result of spending beyond their means in the previous decade, but one good piece of business involved a player being failed by the club before being sold on for profit.

Throughout the 2000s, Bolton punched well above their weight as they challenged for a top-six finish and European qualification on a regular basis under the management of Sam Allardyce.

The Trotters welcomed genuine world stars to the then Reebok Stadium as they sought to topple the elite in England, before Allardyce’s surprising and sudden departure in April 2007.

That announcement came just a couple of months after it was announced that Swiss midfielder Blerim Dzemaili would be joining the club on a free transfer – and it was a sequence of events that majorly hammered Dzemaili’s eventual time in England.

Bolton Wanderers failed with the signing of Blerim Dzemaili

In February 2007, it was announced that Zurich midfielder Blerim Dzemaili was to depart the Swiss club and move to Bolton Wanderers on a free transfer, having signed a pre-contract agreement.

It was an exciting move for Bolton, who had specialised in bringing in stars of the game for one last chance of success in England, as they signed someone who was the opposite of that and seemingly had the potential to be a genuinely excellent midfielder at European level.

Dzemaili, just 20 at the time, had been brought in after being a key man for Zurich in the previous 18 months, even captaining them already, and Allardyce hailed the addition, describing the midfielder as ‘fantastic’, with supporters naturally excited.

However, due to a fallout between Allardyce and the club’s hierarchy, in which Allardyce wanted some extra money in the summer to take Bolton into the top four, the future England manager decided to leave the club with two games of the 2006/07 remaining.

Bolton still managed to snatch seventh and UEFA Cup qualification that season, but the damage of Allardyce’s exit was yet to be realised, albeit it became very clear very soon at the start of the following campaign.

For Dzemaili, it was a disaster. The man who had specifically brought him to Lancashire had departed before his final season at Zurich had even concluded, and that must have been an extremely frustrating environment to then walk into.

Dzemaili did have the benefit of Sammy Lee, Allardyce’s assistant, taking charge, but an ACL injury sustained in pre-season meant that he missed the first-half of the campaign, with Lee sacked by mid-October.

Dzemaili regained full fitness in mid-December of that year, with Gary Megson in charge, and Megson gave him a debut in a 1-0 loss to Sheffield United in the FA Cup third round.

However, that was to be his only appearance of the season and for Bolton as a whole, with Megson not even including Dzemaili on the substitutes bench in the Premier League nor UEFA Cup for the rest of the campaign.

Had it been Allardyce that was in charge when he joined, then he may well have found himself in the first-team picture from the off, even with his injury.

If not for his injury, then Lee may well have picked him from the start and been able to integrate him into the picture before the appointment of Megson.

For a couple of reasons, his Bolton career simply failed and the club has to take a lot of responsibility for that, with so much change from when he had initially agreed to join.

Bolton cashed in but should have got more for Blerim Dzemaili

In the 2008/09 campaign, the Switzerland international midfielder joined Torino on a season-long loan deal in Serie A, and he went on to make 30 appearances for the club.

His stint in Piedmont was so impressive that they then agreed a two million euro fee with Wanderers for his services, and Dzemaili left the Reebok after two years in which he had played one game.

Bolton’s business acumen in the transfer market around that period in terms of sales was always scrutinised and criticised, and the Dzemaili dealings have to fall into that category.

A highly-rated player, Bolton actively diminished his value in his first season but then, when he had proven himself in another major European league, allowed him to leave for a fee that is surely and was surely way below fair market value given his age and burgeoning reputation.

Dzemaili went on to have a very good career and even played regularly for Napoli, but his time in England was a frustrating one, and one in which Bolton must feel regret.