When Youri Djorkaeff arrived in the Premier League in 2002, he had won just about everything there was to win in football, from the World Cup and European Championship with France, to the UEFA Cup with Inter Milan.
Even at the age of 33, logic would have dictated that the midfielder would have joined an established Premier League side, so when he rocked up at relegation-threatened Bolton Wanderers, more than a few eyebrows were raised.
But almost a quarter of a century on, the France legend views that move as one of the most rewarding periods of his career.
Djorkaeff on his Bolton ‘challenge’
“It was more than just a challenge – it was about trying to achieve a miracle,” Djorkaeff tells FourFourTwo about his move to one of the north-west’s less fashionable clubs.
“Bolton were down near the bottom of the Premier League, and I didn’t know much about the club. But Sam Allardyce came all the way to Germany for lunch and told me he needed me to help save the team. When someone says that, you take it as a mission – the passion in his words convinced me. I was happy to be part of that project.”
The 1998 World Cup winner was the first of several big names to be wooed by Allardyce, and he admits that the move was something of a gamble.
“Yes, a little,” he continues. “I told Big Sam that in 2001, I’d won the Confederations Cup with France. In 2000, the Euros. In 1998, both the World Cup and the UEFA Cup. In 1996, the Cup Winners’ Cup. This time I wasn’t chasing another medal, I wanted to take on the challenge of helping a club that was in real trouble.”
Djorkaeff also admits that he snubbed the likes of Liverpool and Manchester United to join the Trotters.
“Yes, but for me it was important to play, as I wanted to be at the 2002 World Cup. England had never been a priority in my career. It didn’t appeal to me. After living in Italy and Germany though, I opened my mind and was more willing to go there. I arrived at Bolton with 12 games left in the season. Big Sam told me that no matter what, I’d play every match, even if I wasn’t at my best.
“That’s not something Gerard Houllier or Sir Alex Ferguson could have promised. I felt it was better to go to Bolton for 12 games because I wouldn’t lose my credibility, then I could decide whether to stay or leave. In the end, I chose to extend my stay because I felt really good there.”
Did he regret turning down Liverpool and Manchester United? “Not at all. I needed that Bolton experience in my life.”
After calling the Parc des Princes and the San Siro home, it’s also fair to say that Djorkaeff underwent something of a culture shift, admitting that plenty of things surprised him when he arrived at Bolton.
“A lot of things. Sam Allardyce surprised me, the atmosphere in English stadiums and even the training facilities, if you can call them that. They weren’t what they are today – there were basically two goals and a patch of grass. It all had a bit of an amateur feel, but authentic. I never complained. When I arrived at Bolton, I came with one mission: to save the club. I was eager to meet my new team-mates and be one of the group.
“There was no red carpet waiting for me, I was there to fight just like everyone else. The most important thing was to lift the mentality. I told the lads, ‘I’m a World Cup winner, but I’m not here to stroll around, I’m here to give everything for Bolton.’ That message got through.”
