Home
Neil Lennon hopes to follow in the footsteps of Sam Allardyce as Bolton pushes for a late season resurgence with the help of some stars whose best is undoubtedly behind them.
Short-term signing Eidur Gudjohnsen, 36, will be part of the Wanderers squad on Saturday for their trip to Reading after playing under-21s on Monday.
The former Barcelona and Chelsea star could soon be joined by Emile Heskey, also 36, who is on a two-week trial at Bolton following a stint in Australia's A-League with Newcastle United Jets.
The whole scenario has shades of now West Ham manager Allardyce's 2004–05 Bolton side that finished sixth and qualified for the UEFA Cup for the first time with veterans Fernando Hierro, Jay-Jay Okocha and Youri Djorkaeff key cogs in his line-up.
Having vastly improved since Lennon's arrival from Celtic, Bolton is now targeting a second half of the season run and a play-off position.
'Sam's a great manager and knew exactly what he was doing,' Lennon told The Sun.
'He recognised these players still had class and quality and they made a huge contribution towards what he did.
'I'm not saying I'm going to replicate everything Sam did, but we have two talented players here in Eidur and Emile.
'They may be coming toward the twilight of their careers but they could have a lot to offer us.'
Lennon expressed his delight after signing Gudjohnsen on Friday.
'I think he will be a big game player and he is relishing getting back out on the field,' Lennon said.
'It may take him a little time to adjust to the Championship and the style of play that is required of him, but that said however, he has come in with a completely open mind – he's motivated, he's done everything that has been asked of him on the physical side of things and he can only get better.
'In terms of his footballing ability, we all know what he is capable of and that is an exciting prospect.
'He is a quality player, and he knows exactly what we expect of him going forward – he is definitely looking forward to the challenge ahead of him.'
The Nothern Irishman has also been impressed by Heskey, his former Leicester team-mate.
'Emile is a free agent, I know him very well from my time at Leicester and he's another player we tried to sign in our time at Celtic,' Lennon said.
Source
Short-term signing Eidur Gudjohnsen, 36, will be part of the Wanderers squad on Saturday for their trip to Reading after playing under-21s on Monday.
The former Barcelona and Chelsea star could soon be joined by Emile Heskey, also 36, who is on a two-week trial at Bolton following a stint in Australia's A-League with Newcastle United Jets.
The whole scenario has shades of now West Ham manager Allardyce's 2004–05 Bolton side that finished sixth and qualified for the UEFA Cup for the first time with veterans Fernando Hierro, Jay-Jay Okocha and Youri Djorkaeff key cogs in his line-up.
Having vastly improved since Lennon's arrival from Celtic, Bolton is now targeting a second half of the season run and a play-off position.
'Sam's a great manager and knew exactly what he was doing,' Lennon told The Sun.
'He recognised these players still had class and quality and they made a huge contribution towards what he did.
'I'm not saying I'm going to replicate everything Sam did, but we have two talented players here in Eidur and Emile.
'They may be coming toward the twilight of their careers but they could have a lot to offer us.'
Lennon expressed his delight after signing Gudjohnsen on Friday.
'I think he will be a big game player and he is relishing getting back out on the field,' Lennon said.
'It may take him a little time to adjust to the Championship and the style of play that is required of him, but that said however, he has come in with a completely open mind – he's motivated, he's done everything that has been asked of him on the physical side of things and he can only get better.
'In terms of his footballing ability, we all know what he is capable of and that is an exciting prospect.
'He is a quality player, and he knows exactly what we expect of him going forward – he is definitely looking forward to the challenge ahead of him.'
The Nothern Irishman has also been impressed by Heskey, his former Leicester team-mate.
'Emile is a free agent, I know him very well from my time at Leicester and he's another player we tried to sign in our time at Celtic,' Lennon said.
Source
