Golden oldies: The best (and worst) of Blackburn Rovers boss Big Sam's old boys

18 August 2009 15:49
Sam Allardyce's love of signing golden oldies looks set to continue with Real Madrid veteran Michel Salgado on the verge of joining Blackburn. The Rovers boss has a record of squeezing an extra few seasons out of players who are regarded to be well past their best Right-back Salgado has played at Real for the past 10 years, winning the Spanish title four times and the Champions League twice but will Salgado bring the necessary hustle and bustle that the Premier League requires or will he fade without a whimper? Has Big Sam found another (dated) gem or will the former international shine? Sportsmail takes a look at the mixed bag that are Sam's old boys. As the song goes 'he came from Real Madrid, he didn't cost a quid' - Hierro arrived at the Reebok with a great reputation after having spent almost 14 years at the Bernabeu. The Spanish defender had made 439 appearances for Los Merengues, won the Champions League three times and had amassed 89 international caps before arriving in Lancashire to shore up Allardyce's defence. You would forgive Trotters fans for being a little apprehensive at the arrival of the 36-year-old who had just spent a season with Qatar's Al Rayyan but he was a revelation in his one season at Bolton. And, despite Allardyce's attempts to get him to stay, he retired from football after just one year in the Premier League. Jay-Jay Okocha Everyone's favourite old-timer who arrived at Bolton on a free from PSV and delighted not just the Trotters fans but entertained on every ground he appeared at. Allardyce will tell you he was so good they named him twice, and he was right. A sensational 4 and a half years at the club in which he helped them to European football in the UEFA Cup for the first time in their history. There are players that have been around the block a bit and then there's Youri Djorkaeff. Even before arriving in the north-west, Djorkaeff had 445 senior appearances to his name for seven clubs and had won both the World Cup and European Championship with France. There was never any doubting either the classy forward's pedigree or ability, it's just that he was 33 when he arrived and looked to be seeing out a season or two on the gravy train that is the Premier League. That wasn't the case as the Frenchman spent two and a half successful seasons under Allardyce, making 77 appearances and scoring 21 goals. Gary Speed Not as exotic a player as some of Allardyce's other signings but the Welsh midfielder was a loyal servant and became Trotters legend nonetheless. He arrived at the Reebok after a £750,000 move from Newcastle after big money moves from Leeds and Everton and it looked likely that Speed would only last another season or two. Speed managed 3 and a half season at Bolton - overseeing their first ever European campaign. Another Champions League winner signed by Big Sam. Campo played the full 90 minutes of Real Madrid's European Cup victory in 2000 but after falling out with the management, found himself on a plane to the Premier League. Six years with the Trotters, two UEFA Cup runs plus that incredible 40 yard goal that he hammered past England and Spurs keeper Paul Robinson elevated the man with all the hair to hero status. Jardel arrived at Bolton after scoring buckets of goals in Brazil and Portugal - at Porto he had the remarkable record of 137 goals in 131 appearances but it really didn't work out for him at Bolton. In just 11 appearances in five difficult months at the Reebok, the Brazilian striker managed just three goals, including a brace against Walsall in the second round of the League Cup.

Source: Daily_Mail