‘Massive Sam will get a foul rap as a little bit of a dinosaur, however that couldn’t be farther from the reality. He was forward of the curve on many issues – I liked taking part in for him’: Ex-Bolton star units document straight on Allardyce

Sam Allardyce is usually criticised for his tactical strategy as a supervisor, although former Bolton Wanderers left-back Robbie Elliott highlights how these detrimental labels could not be farther from the reality.

Elliott joined Bolton in 1997, turning into the membership’s document signing after transferring from Newcastle United in a £2.5m deal. With the prospect of extra common first workforce soccer and Bolton beginning the 1997/98 season at their brand-new Reebok Stadium, optimism surrounded Elliott as he moved away from his boyhood facet.

That proved short-lived, nonetheless. Simply half-hour into his debut – and the first-ever sport on the Reebok – Elliott broke his leg in two locations. He didn’t make one other look for the remainder of the season, with Bolton relegated on objective distinction regardless of having picked up the supposedly magic 40 factors.

“It was a extremely troublesome one to swallow,” Elliott tells FourFourTwo. “And it was compounded by us getting relegated on objective distinction on the finish of the marketing campaign.