When Bolton signed Jay-Jay Okocha on a free transfer from PSG in 2002, it represented a marked change for the Premier League.
The club from Lancashire changed what was deemed possible for mid-table clubs in the transfer market. In many ways, it kick-started the Premier League we know today, where Champions League winners often sign for middle-of-the-pack sides.
Bolton’s Okocha-Led Growth
Top players from around the world were already playing in the Premier League, but the glitzy stars were almost exclusively at the league’s top clubs. There were exceptions, of course, but Okocha’s arrival ushered in a new era of lesser-known Premier League clubs landing international stars.
Two promotions to the Premier League were followed by relegation in the 1990s. Bolton reappeared on the Premier League odds pages for the 2001-02 season. A 16th-placed finish was deemed a relative success after their previous endeavours in the highest division in English football.
Heading into 2002-03, the Wanderers were still listed among the favourites for the drop in Premier League relegation odds, just as Southampton, Wolves, Ipswich, and Leicester are in 2024-25. A remarkable summer transfer window followed, with Okocha, Youri Djorkaeff, and Ivan Campo all signing for the Lancashire-based club.
Bolton, who are priced at 2/1 by Paddy Power to earn promotion from League One this season, were not accustomed to world-renowned stars pulling on their kit. It was a unique period in the club’s storied history.
"I had a great time at Bolton and I'm still a big fan of the club. They've got a special place in my heart.
It's a shame where they are now, and with the things that are going on with the club. It's sad."
– Jay-Jay Okocha speaking to FourFourTwo#bwfc pic.twitter.com/7NIzSWAkgu
— Lion of Vienna (@LOVBWFC) April 25, 2019
Bolton’s ambition reaped rewards under the stewardship of Sam Allardyce. The club reeled off four straight top-half finishes, and made further big-name signings including Nicolas Anelka, Mario Jardel, Vincent Candela, Stelios Giannakopoulos, El Hadji Diouf, Gary Speed, Fernando Hierro, and Hidetoshi Nakata.
How Allardyce Signed the Stars
Without the riches of many of their Premier League peers, Bolton had to be smart to recruit all of these stars.
Speaking on TalkSport, Allardyce explained their recruitment tactics:
“The training ground was portacabins and stuff like that and just two pitches. At least we had a great stadium, didn’t we? So we took them to the Reebok and to the hotel and that was okay. After they signed, we took them to the training ground. If we’d showed Jay-Jay Okocha and Youri Djorkaeff that they wouldn’t have bothered signing on! We managed to improve year on year to make it that much better, but it was a sticking point. They used to say ‘well can I see the training ground?’ and we’d say ‘well there’s a lot of working going on at the moment, you won’t see anything really’. We sort of blagged our way through it at that time.”
Okocha was the signing which really changed how Bolton were viewed, not just in the Premier League, but around Europe. Campo and Djorkaeff were Champions League and World Cup winners, respectively, but it was Okocha’s captivating style of play which made Bolton an appealing destination compared to many other Premier League sides.
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Opening Doors for Mid-Table Premier League Teams
In the years that followed, signings of Okocha’s calibre became commonplace for mid-table Premier League sides. Xherdan Shaqiri, Marko Arnautovic, and Bojan playing at Stoke is one commonly used example.
Not sure we’ve ever come across a “Jay Jay Okocha at Bolton Wanderers” highlights reel that hasn’t made our day. pic.twitter.com/rxWbpwpAgU
— MUNDIAL (@MundialMag) June 19, 2020
Dimitri Payet’s stint at West Ham falls into the same category, as does Philippe Coutinho joining Aston Villa. Okocha taking the leap to play at the Reebok Stadium altered what was possible for mid-table Premier League sides in the transfer market.
Conclusion
Of course, part of this change is down to how much money Premier League clubs have compared to many other leagues around Europe. Bolton didn’t land Okocha, Djorkaeff, and others with oligarch-powered wages, though.
It was a story about a club marketing itself and showing ambition. The outcome was the best period in the club’s history, including a pair of UEFA Cup appearances.
