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"The Big Interview: Sam Allardyce"
''TimesOnline.co.uk'', 2 January 2005 (Retrieved 25 July 2009) He spent most of the rest of the 1988–89 season at
Allardyce was offered the Manchester City job, but the offer was withdrawn after
On 17 December 2008, Allardyce was appointed as manager of
"How an agent came to hold so much power at Blackburn Rovers"
''
"Steve Kean finds value of friends in high places at Blackburn Rovers"
''
Allardyce was appointed as manager of then-recently relegated 
A busy transfer window for the summer of 2012 saw Allardyce bring in eleven players, including his former Bolton goalkeeper Jussi Jääskeläinen, midfielder 
In summer 2014, Allardyce signed midfielder Cheikhou Kouyaté, left-back
BBC Sport, 24 October 2014 or "the statistics
On 9 October 2015, Allardyce was named the new
On 23 December 2016, Allardyce signed a two-and-a-half-year contract to become manager of
''
Samuel Allardyce (; born 19 October 1954), colloquially referred to as Big Sam, is an English
''football
Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...
manager and former professional player.
Allardyce made 578 league and cup appearances in a 21-year career spent mostly in the Football League
The English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League, the league is the oldest such competition in the world. It was the top-level football league in Engla ...
, as well as brief spells in the North American Soccer League The North American Soccer League may refer to:
*North American Soccer League (1968–1984), a former Division I league
*North American Soccer League (2011–2017)
The North American Soccer League (NASL) was a professional men's soccer league b ...
and League of Ireland
The League of Ireland ( ga, Sraith na hÉireann), together with the Football Association of Ireland, is one of the two main governing bodies responsible for organising association football in the Republic of Ireland. The term was originally us ...
. He was signed by Bolton Wanderers
Bolton Wanderers Football Club () is a professional football club based in Horwich, Bolton, Greater Manchester, England, which competes in . The club played at Burnden Park for 102 years from 1895 after moving from their original home at Pike's ...
from Dudley Town in 1969 and spent nine years at Bolton, helping the club to win the Second Division
In sport, the Second Division, also called Division 2 or Division II is usually the second highest division of a league, and will often have promotion and relegation with divisions above and below. Following the rise of Premier League style compet ...
title in 1977–78. He spent the 1980s as a journeyman player, spending time with Sunderland
Sunderland () is a port city in Tyne and Wear, England. It is the City of Sunderland's administrative centre and in the Historic counties of England, historic county of County of Durham, Durham. The city is from Newcastle-upon-Tyne and is on t ...
, Millwall
Millwall is a district on the western and southern side of the Isle of Dogs, in east London, England, in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It lies to the immediate south of Canary Wharf and Limehouse, north of Greenwich and Deptford, east ...
, Tampa Bay Rowdies
The Tampa Bay Rowdies are an American professional Association football, soccer team based in St. Petersburg, Florida. The club was founded in 2008 and first took the pitch in 2010. Since 2017, the Rowdies have been members of the USL Champions ...
, Coventry City
Coventry City Football Club is a professional association football club based in Coventry, West Midlands (county), West Midlands, England. The team currently compete in the EFL Championship, Championship, the second tier of the English footbal ...
, Huddersfield Town
Huddersfield Town Association Football Club is a professional football club based in Huddersfield, West Yorkshire, England, which compete in the . The team have played home games at the Kirklees Stadium since moving from Leeds Road in 1994. The ...
, Bolton Wanderers (for a second spell), Preston North End
Preston North End Football Club, commonly referred to as Preston, North End or PNE, is a professional football club in Preston, Lancashire, England, who currently play in the EFL Championship, the second tier of the English football league syste ...
, and West Bromwich Albion
West Bromwich Albion Football Club () is an English professional football club based in West Bromwich, West Midlands, England. They compete in the EFL Championship, the second tier of English football. The club was formed in 1878 and has pla ...
(also working as assistant manager). During this time he helped Preston to win promotion out of the Fourth Division in 1986–87.
Moving into management, he took charge of Irish club Limerick
Limerick ( ; ga, Luimneach ) is a western city in Ireland situated within County Limerick. It is in the province of Munster and is located in the Mid-West which comprises part of the Southern Region. With a population of 94,192 at the 2016 ...
in 1991, leading the club to the League of Ireland First Division
The League of Ireland First Division ( ga, Céad Roinn Sraith na hÉireann), also known as the SSE Airtricity League First Division, is the second level division in both the League of Ireland and the Republic of Ireland football league system. Th ...
(second tier) title in 1991–92. He returned to England as youth coach at Preston North End, also serving briefly as caretaker-manager. He took up his first permanent management role in England at Blackpool
Blackpool is a seaside resort in Lancashire, England. Located on the North West England, northwest coast of England, it is the main settlement within the Borough of Blackpool, borough also called Blackpool. The town is by the Irish Sea, betw ...
in July 1994, but was sacked after two years having narrowly failed to achieve promotion. He spent January 1997 to October 1999 in charge at Notts County
Notts County Football Club is a professional association football club based in Nottingham, England. The team participate in the National League (division), National League, the fifth tier of the English football league system. Founded on the 2 ...
, taking them to the Third Division title in 1997–98. He then returned to Bolton Wanderers as manager, leading the club to promotion out of the First Division via the play-offs in 2001, as well as a League Cup
In several sports, most prominently association football, a league cup or secondary cup generally signifies a cup competition for which entry is restricted only to teams in a particular league. The first national association football tournament t ...
final and UEFA Cup
A cup is an open-top used to hold hot or cold liquids for pouring or drinking; while mainly used for drinking, it also can be used to store Solid, solids for pouring (e.g., sugar, flour, grains, salt). Cups may be made of glass, metal, porcela ...
qualification. Following a spell at Newcastle United
Newcastle United Football Club is an English professional football club, based in Newcastle upon Tyne, that plays in the Premier League – the top flight of English football. The club was founded in 1892 by the merger of Newcastle East End ...
from May 2007 to January 2008, Allardyce managed Blackburn Rovers
Blackburn Rovers Football Club is a professional football club, based in Blackburn, Lancashire, England, which competes in the , the second tier of the English football league system. They have played home matches at Ewood Park since 1890. T ...
for a two-year spell from December 2008. He was appointed West Ham United
West Ham United Football Club is an English professional football club that plays its home matches in Stratford, East London. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football. The club plays at the London Stadium, hav ...
manager in June 2011, leading the club to promotion out of the Championship
In sport, a championship is a competition in which the aim is to decide which individual or team is the champion.
Championship systems
Various forms of competition can be referred to by the term championship.
Title match system
In this system ...
via the play-offs in 2012, before leaving West Ham in May 2015 after criticism from fans over his playing style. He was appointed Sunderland
Sunderland () is a port city in Tyne and Wear, England. It is the City of Sunderland's administrative centre and in the Historic counties of England, historic county of County of Durham, Durham. The city is from Newcastle-upon-Tyne and is on t ...
manager in October 2015 and saved the club from relegation. He was appointed as manager of the English national team for a brief spell in July 2016, before taking charge at Crystal Palace
Crystal Palace may refer to:
Places Canada
* Crystal Palace Complex (Dieppe), a former amusement park now a shopping complex in Dieppe, New Brunswick
* Crystal Palace Barracks, London, Ontario
* Crystal Palace (Montreal), an exhibition building ...
five months later. After helping Palace to avoid relegation that season, he announced his resignation in May 2017. He would then have short spells as manager at Everton from 2017 to 2018, and West Bromwich Albion from 2020 to 2021.
Allardyce has been labelled a long ball
In association football, a long ball is an attempt to move the ball a long distance down the field via one long aerial kick from either a goalkeeper or a defender directly to an attacking player, with the ball generally bypassing the midfield. R ...
manager by some analysts, though he has disputed this perception as "totally and utterly wrong". He takes a modern, technology and statistics centred approach to tactics and coaching, and has been praised for his organisational and man-management skills.
Allardyce has been criticised for alleged corruption and has twice been the subject of undercover media investigations. In September 2006, he and his son, Craig, were implicated in a BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC
Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...Panorama
A panorama (formed from Greek πᾶν "all" + ὅραμα "view") is any wide-angle view or representation of a physical space, whether in painting, drawing, photography, film, seismic images, or 3D modeling. The word was originally coined in ...
'' documentary for taking bribes, allegations which they denied. In September 2016, undercover ''Daily Telegraph
Daily or The Daily may refer to:
Journalism
* Daily newspaper, newspaper issued on five to seven day of most weeks
* ''The Daily'' (podcast), a podcast by ''The New York Times''
* ''The Daily'' (News Corporation), a defunct US-based iPad new ...
'' reporters posing as businessmen recorded him offering to help them to get around FA third party ownership rules and provisionally agreeing a £400,000 contract. Following the ''Daily Telegraph'' investigation, Allardyce resigned as England manager in a mutual agreement with the Football Association
The Football Association (also known as The FA) is the Sports governing body, governing body of association football in England and the Crown Dependencies of Jersey, Bailiwick of Guernsey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man. Formed in 1863, it is the ...
on 27 September.
Early life
Samuel Allardyce was born in October 1954 on the Old Park Farm Estate,Dudley
Dudley is a large market town and administrative centre in the county of West Midlands, England, southeast of Wolverhampton and northwest of Birmingham. Historically an exclave of Worcestershire, the town is the administrative centre of the ...
, the son of Robert Allardyce (27 April 1916 – 23 August 1989) and Mary Agnes Maxwell Allardyce née Duff (7 June 1918 – 3 July 1991). His father was a police sergeant
Sergeant (abbreviated to Sgt. and capitalized when used as a named person's title) is a rank in many uniformed organizations, principally military and policing forces. The alternative spelling, ''serjeant'', is used in The Rifles and other uni ...
. Both parents originated from Scotland: his father from Nairn
Nairn (; gd, Inbhir Narann) is a town and royal burgh in the Highland council area of Scotland. It is an ancient fishing port and market town around east of Inverness, at the point where the River Nairn enters the Moray Firth. It is the tradit ...
and his mother from Dumfries
Dumfries ( ; sco, Dumfries; from gd, Dùn Phris ) is a market town and former royal burgh within the Dumfries and Galloway council area of Scotland. It is located near the mouth of the River Nith into the Solway Firth about by road from the ...
. He has an older sister, Mary, born in Scotland in 1939, and an older brother, Robert junior, born in 1951. Allardyce was educated at Sycamore Green Primary School and later at Mons Hill School
This article details a number of defunct schools that were once located in the Metropolitan Borough of Dudley. For details of currently operating schools in the area, please see: ''List of schools in Dudley''.
The Blue Coat School
Cradley High ...
, having been unsuccessful in his Eleven-plus
The eleven-plus (11+) is a standardized examination administered to some students in England and Northern Ireland in their last year of primary education, which governs admission to grammar schools and other secondary schools which use academic ...
exam. He discovered in later life that he has dyslexia
Dyslexia, also known until the 1960s as word blindness, is a disorder characterized by reading below the expected level for one's age. Different people are affected to different degrees. Problems may include difficulties in spelling words, r ...
. As a child, he supported Wolverhampton Wanderers
Wolverhampton Wanderers Football Club (), commonly known as Wolves, is a professional football club based in Wolverhampton, England, which compete in the . The club has played at Molineux Stadium since moving from Dudley Road in 1889. The club's ...
and dreamed that one day he would play at and manage the club.
Club career
Bolton Wanderers
Allardyce spent his youth with semi-professional side Dudley Town, making his debut at the age of 14 he quickly learned how to play centre-half in the highly physicalWest Midlands (Regional) League
The West Midlands (Regional) League is an English association football competition for semi-professional and amateur teams based in the West Midlands county, Shropshire, Worcestershire, southern Staffordshire and northern Herefordshire. It has tw ...
. He trained with local Football League
The English Football League (EFL) is a league of professional football clubs from England and Wales. Founded in 1888 as the Football League, the league is the oldest such competition in the world. It was the top-level football league in Engla ...
clubs West Bromwich Albion
West Bromwich Albion Football Club () is an English professional football club based in West Bromwich, West Midlands, England. They compete in the EFL Championship, the second tier of English football. The club was formed in 1878 and has pla ...
and Wolverhampton Wanderers, and had an unsuccessful trial with Aston Villa
Aston Villa Football Club is a professional football club based in Aston, Birmingham, England. The club competes in the , the top tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1874, they have played at their home ground, Villa Park ...
. He was spotted by Bolton Wanderers
Bolton Wanderers Football Club () is a professional football club based in Horwich, Bolton, Greater Manchester, England, which competes in . The club played at Burnden Park for 102 years from 1895 after moving from their original home at Pike's ...
just before leaving school at the age of 15, and signed an apprenticeship with the club. To supplement his income before officially starting his apprenticeship he worked in a factory producing record decks. The Bolton under-18s were very successful, winning the Lancashire Youth Cup and reaching the quarter-finals of the FA Youth Cup
The Football Association Youth Challenge Cup is an English football competition run by The Football Association for under-18 sides. Only those players between the age of 15 and 18 on 31 August of the current season are eligible to take part. It ...
, and Allardyce quickly rose through the B-team into the A-team. He signed his first professional contract on his 17th birthday, receiving a £125 signing on fee and wages of £14 a week.
Manager Jimmy Armfield
James Christopher Armfield, (21 September 1935 – 22 January 2018) was an English professional football player and manager who latterly worked as a football pundit for BBC Radio Five Live. He played the whole of his Football League career at B ...
gave Allardyce his debut for the "Trotters" on 6 November 1973, in a 2–1 League Cup
In several sports, most prominently association football, a league cup or secondary cup generally signifies a cup competition for which entry is restricted only to teams in a particular league. The first national association football tournament t ...
defeat to Millwall
Millwall is a district on the western and southern side of the Isle of Dogs, in east London, England, in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It lies to the immediate south of Canary Wharf and Limehouse, north of Greenwich and Deptford, east ...
at Burnden Park
Burnden Park was the home of English football club Bolton Wanderers who played home games there between 1895 and 1997. As well as hosting the 1901 FA Cup Final replay, it was the scene in 1946 of one of the greatest disasters in English footba ...
. He made his Second Division
In sport, the Second Division, also called Division 2 or Division II is usually the second highest division of a league, and will often have promotion and relegation with divisions above and below. Following the rise of Premier League style compet ...
debut eleven days later, in a 2–1 defeat to Notts County
Notts County Football Club is a professional association football club based in Nottingham, England. The team participate in the National League (division), National League, the fifth tier of the English football league system. Founded on the 2 ...
. However he failed to establish himself in the first team under Armfield, and only got a run of games under new manager Ian Greaves
Ian Denzil Greaves (26 May 1932 – 2 January 2009) was an English football player and manager. He was born in Crompton, Lancashire. He won a League Championship medal and an FA Cup runners-up medal while playing full-back for Manchester U ...
, who played Allardyce in the last ten games of the 1974–75 season after he sold Don McAllister
Don McAllister (born 26 May 1953) is an English former professional footballer who played as a central defender for Bolton Wanderers, Tottenham Hotspur, Charlton Athletic, Tampa Bay Rowdies and Rochdale.
Football career
McAllister joined loc ...
to Tottenham Hotspur
Tottenham Hotspur Football Club, commonly referred to as Tottenham () or Spurs, is a professional association football, football club based in Tottenham, London, England. It competes in the Premier League, the top flight of English footba ...
. He impressed during this short run, winning himself the club's Young Player of the Year award.
Bolton lost to Newcastle United
Newcastle United Football Club is an English professional football club, based in Newcastle upon Tyne, that plays in the Premier League – the top flight of English football. The club was founded in 1892 by the merger of Newcastle East End ...
after two replays in the FA Cup
The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual knockout football competition in men's domestic English football. First played during the 1871–72 season, it is the oldest national football competi ...
Fifth Round in the 1975–76 season, and went on to miss out on promotion out of the league by a single point. They were similarly disappointed in the 1976–77 campaign, reaching the semi-finals of the League Cup, and again finished just one point outside the promotion places. Allardyce played alongside Paul Jones at centre-half, and a scouting report for England manager Don Revie
Donald George Revie OBE (10 July 1927 – 26 May 1989) was an England international footballer and manager, best known for his successful spell with Leeds United from 1961 until 1974, which immediately preceded his appointment as England manage ...
in 1977 described Allardyce and Jones as "one of the best central defensive pairings in the Football League." Despite this, however, he was never called up to the England team. Promotion was finally achieved in the 1977–78 season, as Bolton returned to the First Division as champions of the Second Division. Bolton consolidated their top-flight status with a 17th-place finish in 1978–79. However the 1979–80 season proved difficult, and manager Greaves was sacked as the club went seven months without a league victory, whilst his replacement Stan Anderson was unable to steer the club away from relegation and a last-place finish. Allardyce decided to leave Bolton at the end of the season as he felt that he was underpaid at Bolton and did not get on with Anderson.
Sunderland and Millwall
Allardyce was offered a contract byNorwich City
Norwich City Football Club (also known as The Canaries or The Yellows) is an English professional football club based in Norwich, Norfolk. The club competes in the EFL Championship following their relegation from the Premier League in the 20 ...
manager John Bond, but the offer was bettered by Colin Addison
Colin Addison (born 18 May 1940) is an English former professional footballer and manager.
Born in Taunton, Somerset, Addison started his playing career with York City before moving to Nottingham Forest, Arsenal and Sheffield United. His man ...
at Derby County
Derby County Football Club () is a professional association football club based in Derby, Derbyshire, England. In 2022, it was announced that DCFC was acquired by Clowes Developments (UK) Ltd, a Derbyshire-based property group.
Founded in 1884 ...
, and he verbally agreed a three-year contract with Derby. However, before signing the contract he received a late offer from Ken Knighton
Kenneth Knighton (born 20 February 1944) is an English former footballer, coach and manager. He is most well known for his spell as manager at Sunderland during which time the club was promoted to the First Division, and he also managed Footb ...
to play for Sunderland
Sunderland () is a port city in Tyne and Wear, England. It is the City of Sunderland's administrative centre and in the Historic counties of England, historic county of County of Durham, Durham. The city is from Newcastle-upon-Tyne and is on t ...
on a £300 a week contract with a £20,000 signing on fee – which more than quadrupled his wage at Bolton. Allardyce signed for Sunderland on 1 July 1980 for £150,000. Knighton appointed him as club captain. However Allardyce soon wearied of the long-distance travel from Sunderland
Sunderland () is a port city in Tyne and Wear, England. It is the City of Sunderland's administrative centre and in the Historic counties of England, historic county of County of Durham, Durham. The city is from Newcastle-upon-Tyne and is on t ...
to his home in Bolton
Bolton (, locally ) is a large town in Greater Manchester in North West England, formerly a part of Lancashire. A former mill town, Bolton has been a production centre for textiles since Flemish people, Flemish weavers settled in the area i ...
, and put in a transfer request when chairman Tom Cowie
Sir Thomas Cowie (9 September 1922 – 18 January 2012) was an English businessman who was the honorary Life President of the Arriva Group, formerly known as Cowie Group plc.
Career
Cowie Group
Cowie's father, Thomas Stephenson Knowles Cowie ...
refused to help finance the purchase of a home in Sunderland. Cowie sacked Knighton late in the 1980–81 season, leaving caretaker manager Mick Docherty
Michael Docherty (born 29 October 1950) is an English former association football, footballer and coach (sport), coach. He is the elder son of Tommy Docherty.
Playing career
As a player, Docherty started his career in the youth team of Chelsea ...
in charge to steer the club out of the First Division relegation zone. New manager Alan Durban
William Alan Durban (born 7 July 1941) is a Welsh former international footballer and manager, whose career was at its peak between the 1970s and 1990s. He played in the Football League for Cardiff City, Derby County and was player-manager of ...
left Allardyce out of the team at the start of the 1981–82 campaign, leaving Allardyce's departure from Roker Park
Roker Park was a football ground in Roker, Sunderland, England, which was the home of Sunderland A.F.C. from 1898 to 1997, before the club moved to the Stadium of Light. Its final capacity was around 22,500, with only a small part being seated; ...
inevitable.
He was offered the chance to return to Bolton Wanderers, but manager George Mulhall
George Mulhall (8 May 1936 – 27 April 2018) was a Scottish football player and manager. Born in Falkirk, Mulhall played as an outside left for Aberdeen and Sunderland. He was capped three times for Scotland. He became the manager of Bradfor ...
was only able to offer 50% of Allardyce's wages at Sunderland. Instead he made a surprise £95,000 move to Third Division side Millwall
Millwall is a district on the western and southern side of the Isle of Dogs, in east London, England, in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It lies to the immediate south of Canary Wharf and Limehouse, north of Greenwich and Deptford, east ...
, who were able to match Sunderland's wages and also pay out a £30,000 signing on fee and a £10,000 loyalty bonus. Millwall player-manager Peter Anderson had seen Allardyce as the successor to long-serving central defender Barry Kitchener
Barry Raymond Kitchener (11 December 1947 – 30 March 2012) was an English professional footballer who played as a centre-back for Millwall between 1966 and 1982.
Born in Dagenham, Essex, Kitchener signed for Millwall in August 1965 and made ...
, and as Anderson was also a property developer he allowed Allardyce to live rent free in a six-bedroom mansion. The "Lions" ended the 1981–82 season in mid-table, and Anderson was sacked in November 1982. Chairman Alan Thorne offered Allardyce the vacant management position, but Allardyce rejected the offer as he felt that at aged 28 he was far too young to enter management. Instead it was George Graham
George Graham (born 30 November 1944), nicknamed "Stroller", is a Scottish former Association football, football player and manager (association football), manager.
In his successful playing career, he made 455 appearances in England's Football ...
who took up his first management position, and Graham immediately froze Allardyce out of the first team on both matchdays and training after Allardyce insisted that he would not report teammates who broke Graham's rules. He came close to joining Charlton Athletic
Charlton Athletic Football Club is an English professional football club based in Charlton, south-east London, which compete in . Their home ground is The Valley, where the club have played since 1919. They have also played at The Mount in C ...
on a free transfer in March 1983, but Charlton boss Lennie Lawrence
Robin Michael Lawrence (born 12 December 1947) is an English former football manager, player and football consultant who is non-executive director at EFL League Two side Hartlepool United.
Lawrence was a semi-professional at Croydon, Carshalt ...
did not complete the move before the end of the transfer deadline. Graham agreed to pay Allardyce £15,000 to cancel his contract, acting under the assumption that Allardyce would struggle to find a club willing to offer him £300 a week.
Later career
Allardyce wrote to every club in the top two divisions to inform them he was available on a free transfer, and privately lamented choosing his past clubs for financial rather than footballing reasons. Over the summer he played 11 games in theNorth American Soccer League The North American Soccer League may refer to:
*North American Soccer League (1968–1984), a former Division I league
*North American Soccer League (2011–2017)
The North American Soccer League (NASL) was a professional men's soccer league b ...
for the Tampa Bay Rowdies
The Tampa Bay Rowdies are an American professional Association football, soccer team based in St. Petersburg, Florida. The club was founded in 2008 and first took the pitch in 2010. Since 2017, the Rowdies have been members of the USL Champions ...
, a club that shared facilities with the NFL's Tampa Bay Buccaneers
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are a professional American football team based in Tampa, Florida. The Buccaneers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) NFC South, South divisio ...
. Allardyce subsequently applied in his managerial career many modern practices of American football
American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team with ...
with regards to training, player management and tactics. He found playing difficult however, due to the heat and the all-out attacking nature of his teammates, which led to him being frequently exposed at the back, though he found that the club's masseurs managed to cure a long-standing hamstring
In human anatomy, a hamstring () is any one of the three posterior thigh muscles in between the hip and the knee (from medial to lateral: semimembranosus, semitendinosus and biceps femoris). The hamstrings are susceptible to injury.
In quadrupeds, ...
scar tissue problem.
Upon returning to the UK he joined Bobby Gould
Robert Hewitt Gould (born 12 June 1946) is an English former footballer and manager.
Early life
Gould was born in Wyken, Coventry, Warwickshire on 12 June 1946. He is the son of Henry Gould and Helen McKellar Gould (née Morton). He spent h ...
's First Division Coventry City
Coventry City Football Club is a professional association football club based in Coventry, West Midlands (county), West Midlands, England. The team currently compete in the EFL Championship, Championship, the second tier of the English footbal ...
on a one-year £300 a week contract. He was made captain, and though Coventry enjoyed a good first half to the 1983–84 season they faltered badly in the second half of the season and finished just one place and two points above the relegation zone after beating Norwich City on the final day of the season. Midway through the campaign Gould had promised him a new two-year contract, but following the poor end to the season he instead opted to release Allardyce.
In July 1984, he was signed by Mick Buxton
Michael James Buxton (born 29 May 1943) is a former footballer and football manager in England. He has managed Huddersfield Town, Scunthorpe United and Sunderland.
Playing career
During his playing career, Buxton played in the Football League ...
at Second Division Huddersfield Town
Huddersfield Town Association Football Club is a professional football club based in Huddersfield, West Yorkshire, England, which compete in the . The team have played home games at the Kirklees Stadium since moving from Leeds Road in 1994. The ...
. The move reunited him with Paul Jones, his former centre-half partner at Bolton. Huddersfield finished in 13th place in the 1984–85 season, and at the end of the campaign accepted an offer of £15,000 from Bolton Wanderers, who offered Allardyce a three-year contract. Bolton were then managed by Charlie Wright
Charles George Wright (born 11 December 1938) is a former professional footballer and manager. Born in Scotland. He gained the name "wonder boy" after a great trial game for Morton against Queens Park (B Division 1955/56). He continued with his ...
, who was the goalkeeper at Allardyce's first spell with the club. However Wright was sacked in December 1985, and his successor, Phil Neal
Philip George Neal (born 20 February 1951) is an English retired footballer who played for Northampton Town, Liverpool and Bolton Wanderers as a full back. He is one of the most successful English players of all time, having won seven First D ...
, did not get along with Allardyce. Neal played himself at centre-half and relegated Allardyce to the bench, despite Neal being a full-back. Bolton reached the 1986 Associate Members' Cup Final at Wembley Stadium
Wembley Stadium (branded as Wembley Stadium connected by EE for sponsorship reasons) is a football stadium in Wembley, London. It opened in 2007 on the site of the Wembley Stadium (1923), original Wembley Stadium, which was demolished from 200 ...
, which ended in a 3–0 defeat to Bristol City
Bristol City Football Club is a professional football club based in Bristol, England, which compete in the , the second tier of English football. They have played their home games at Ashton Gate since moving from St John's Lane in 1904. The ...
, with Allardyce as an unused substitute.
Allardyce was offered the chance to join Tranmere Rovers
Tranmere Rovers Football Club is a professional association football club based in Birkenhead, Merseyside, England. The team compete in , the fourth tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1884 as Belmont Football Club, they ado ...
, but instead joined Preston North End
Preston North End Football Club, commonly referred to as Preston, North End or PNE, is a professional football club in Preston, Lancashire, England, who currently play in the EFL Championship, the second tier of the English football league syste ...
after being persuaded by manager John McGrath, who promised to make Allardyce the backbone of his team. Preston won promotion out of the Fourth Division in second-place in 1986–87 (Allardyce was also named on the PFA Team of the Year
The Professional Footballers' Association Team of the Year (often called the PFA Team of the Year, or simply the Team of the Year) is an annual award given to a set of 55 footballers across the top four tiers of men's English football; the Premie ...
), and consolidated their Third Division status with a 16th-place finish in 1987–88. By this time Allardyce began considering his retirement as a player, and applied to management positions at York City
York City Football Club is a professional association football club based in the city of York, North Yorkshire, England. As of the 2022–23 season, the team compete in the National League, at the fifth tier of the English football league sys ...
and Notts County
Notts County Football Club is a professional association football club based in Nottingham, England. The team participate in the National League (division), National League, the fifth tier of the English football league system. Founded on the 2 ...
, and had an unsuccessful interview with Doncaster Rovers
Doncaster Rovers Football Club is a professional association football club based in Doncaster, South Yorkshire, England. The team compete in League Two, the fourth tier of the English football league system. The club play their home games at ...
.
Style of play
Bolton fans gave him the nickname "Super Sam Bionic Man" due to his tough tackling approach and the way he quickly got up after heavy collisions whilst the opposition player would be left flat on the ground. Veteran managerDave Bassett
David Thomas Bassett (born 4 September 1944 in Stanmore) is an English football manager and a former player. During his career he has managed Wimbledon, Watford, Sheffield United, Crystal Palace, Nottingham Forest, Barnsley, Leicester City and ...
, a friend of Allardyce, once humorously remarked that "He was what I called a ball-playing defender... If he wasn't playing with the ball he was playing with your balls." He was uncomfortable in possession, and played simple balls to his nearest teammates when he found himself with the ball, whilst teammates would be reluctant to pass to him. He did however possess good awareness and heading skills, and his anticipation made up for his lack of pace.
Managerial career
Early career
Allardyce was hired as a player-coach byBrian Talbot
Brian Ernest Talbot (born 21 July 1953) is an English former football player and manager. He was capped six times for the England national team.
Talbot played in midfield for Ipswich Town, Arsenal, Watford, Stoke City, West Bromwich Albion, ...
at West Bromwich Albion
West Bromwich Albion Football Club () is an English professional football club based in West Bromwich, West Midlands, England. They compete in the EFL Championship, the second tier of English football. The club was formed in 1878 and has pla ...
in February 1989.Walsh, David"The Big Interview: Sam Allardyce"
''TimesOnline.co.uk'', 2 January 2005 (Retrieved 25 July 2009) He spent most of the rest of the 1988–89 season at
The Hawthorns
The Hawthorns is an all-seater association football, football stadium in West Bromwich, West Midlands (county), West Midlands, England, with a capacity of 26,688. It has been the home of EFL Championship, Championship club West Bromwich Albion F ...
managing and playing for the reserve team, before being promoted to first team coach in the summer, in a move that saw former first team coach Stuart Pearson demoted to reserve team coaching. Allardyce and Talbot were sacked in January 1991 following a defeat to Isthmian League
The Isthmian League () is a regional men's football league covering Greater London, East and South East England, featuring mostly semi-professional clubs.
Founded in 1905 by amateur clubs in the London area, the league now consists of 82 tea ...
side Woking
Woking ( ) is a town and borough status in the United Kingdom, borough in northwest Surrey, England, around from central London. It appears in Domesday Book as ''Wochinges'' and its name probably derives from that of a Anglo-Saxon settlement o ...
in the FA Cup
The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual knockout football competition in men's domestic English football. First played during the 1871–72 season, it is the oldest national football competi ...
. He later worked as a part-time coach at Bury
Bury may refer to:
*The burial of human remains
*-bury, a suffix in English placenames
Places England
* Bury, Cambridgeshire, a village
* Bury, Greater Manchester, a town, historically in Lancashire
** Bury (UK Parliament constituency) (1832–19 ...
, but manager Mike Walsh could not afford to keep him on the staff for the 1989–90 season.
Allardyce then took up the role of player-manager of Limerick
Limerick ( ; ga, Luimneach ) is a western city in Ireland situated within County Limerick. It is in the province of Munster and is located in the Mid-West which comprises part of the Southern Region. With a population of 94,192 at the 2016 ...
, and guided the team to promotion into the League of Ireland Premier Division
The League of Ireland Premier Division ( ga, Príomhroinn Sraith na hÉireann), also known as the SSE Airtricity League Premier Division for sponsorship reasons, is the top level division in both the League of Ireland and the Republic of Ireland f ...
after winning the 1991–92 League of Ireland First Division. They achieved promotion despite tremendous financial pressures, with Allardyce coaching and playing for the first team whilst the club board signed players as Allardyce had no knowledge of the Irish football scene.
After his season in Ireland, Allardyce returned to England for the start of the 1992–93 season to coach at Preston North End
Preston North End Football Club, commonly referred to as Preston, North End or PNE, is a professional football club in Preston, Lancashire, England, who currently play in the EFL Championship, the second tier of the English football league syste ...
under Les Chapman
Leslie Chapman (born 27 September 1948), commonly known as Les and sometimes as Chappy, is an English former football player and manager. As a player, he made 747 appearances in the Football League in a career that spanned 22 seasons, playing ...
. Ten games into the season, however, Chapman was sacked and Allardyce was appointed caretaker manager
In association footballing terms, a caretaker manager or interim manager is somebody who takes temporary charge of the management of a football team, usually when the regular Manager (association football), manager is dismissed or leaves for a ...
. Despite a promising spell in charge, Allardyce did not get the job on a permanent basis, and in December 1992 Preston appointed John Beck as manager. Allardyce worked as youth team coach for 18 months, but later said the extreme long ball
In association football, a long ball is an attempt to move the ball a long distance down the field via one long aerial kick from either a goalkeeper or a defender directly to an attacking player, with the ball generally bypassing the midfield. R ...
tactics Beck enforced upon the club were "indefensible".
Blackpool
On 19 July 1994Blackpool
Blackpool is a seaside resort in Lancashire, England. Located on the North West England, northwest coast of England, it is the main settlement within the Borough of Blackpool, borough also called Blackpool. The town is by the Irish Sea, betw ...
, West Lancashire derby
The West Lancashire derby (sometimes also known as the '' M55 derby'') is a local rivalry in English football between Lancashire clubs Blackpool and Preston North End. The derby has taken place across all four tiers of English football, but not t ...
rivals to Preston North End, appointed Allardyce as their new manager following the departure of Billy Ayre
William Ayre (7 May 1952 – 16 April 2002) was an English footballer who played for three clubs in a sixteen-year professional career, making over three hundred League appearances in the process. After retiring from the playing side of the gam ...
, agreeing a salary of £18,000 a year. He signed defender Darren Bradshaw, midfielder Micky Mellon
Michael Joseph Mellon (born 18 March 1972) is a Scottish professional football coach and former player who is the manager of Tranmere Rovers. As a player, he was a midfielder for clubs including Bristol City, West Bromwich Albion, Blackpool, Tr ...
and spent a club record £245,000 on Andy Morrison
Andrew Charles Morrison (born 30 July 1970) is a Scottish football manager and former footballer who is currently head coach of the Sri Lanka national team.
As a player he was a central defender who played in the Premier League with Blackburn R ...
, who Allardyce described as a "horrible in-your-face" centre-back and a "complete nutter". He also changed the club's backroom staff, hiring Bobby Saxton
Robert Saxton (born 6 September 1943) is an English former professional footballer, manager and coach.
Career
Born in Doncaster, South Yorkshire, Saxton managed Blackburn Rovers for five seasons after a playing career as a utility defender wit ...
as his assistant, promoting player Phil Brown to a coaching role, and appointing Mark Taylor as physio, who would follow Allardyce to Blackburn and Newcastle. Blackpool finished the 1994–95 season in 12th place after falling out of the promotion race with just one win in their final 11 games.
He spent £200,000 on striker Andy Preece
Andrew Preece (born 27 March 1967) is an English football manager and former professional footballer who is currently the manager of Chorley.Jason Lydiate
Jason Lee Lydiate (born 29 October 1971) is an English former professional footballer. He is currently a coach with Rochdale.
Career
Born in Manchester, Lydiate who played as a right-back, began his career as a trainee with Alex Ferguson's M ...
and goalkeeper Steve Banks for the 1995–96 campaign. Blackpool finished third, missing out on automatic promotion on the last day of the season, and were beaten in the play-off semi-finals by Bradford City
Bradford City Association Football Club is an English professional football club in Bradford, West Yorkshire. The team competes in League Two, the fourth tier of the English football league system and are currently managed by Mark Hughes.
Th ...
. They had won 2–0 away at Valley Parade
Valley Parade, known as the University of Bradford Stadium for sponsorship reasons, is an all-seater football stadium in Bradford, West Yorkshire, England. Built in 1886, it was the home of Manningham Rugby Football Club until 1903, when they c ...
, only to lose 3–0 in the return leg at Bloomfield Road
Bloomfield Road is a single-tier football stadium in Blackpool, Lancashire, England, which has been the home of Blackpool F.C. since 1901. It is the third stadium in the club's existence, the previous two being Raikes Hall Gardens and the ...
. Chairman Owen Oyston
Owen John Oyston (born 3 January 1934) is an English former businessman best known as the former majority owner of Blackpool Football Club. Oyston was convicted of rape and indecent assault of a 16-year-old girl in 1996. He served three years and ...
, while he was in a prison cell, sacked Allardyce shortly after the play-off defeat. Allardyce then had a brief spell on the coaching staff under Peter Reid
Peter Reid (born 20 June 1956) is an English football manager, pundit and former player.
A defensive midfielder in his playing days, Reid enjoyed a long and successful career. He built his reputation as one of England's brightest midfield tale ...
at Sunderland
Sunderland () is a port city in Tyne and Wear, England. It is the City of Sunderland's administrative centre and in the Historic counties of England, historic county of County of Durham, Durham. The city is from Newcastle-upon-Tyne and is on t ...
, working as director of the academy
An academy ( Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of secondary or tertiary higher learning (and generally also research or honorary membership). The name traces back to Plato's school of philosophy ...
.
Notts County
In January 1997, Allardyce made his return to football as manager of struggling Division Two clubNotts County
Notts County Football Club is a professional association football club based in Nottingham, England. The team participate in the National League (division), National League, the fifth tier of the English football league system. Founded on the 2 ...
. He arrived too late to save them from relegation in 1996–97, and in his autobiography described how the players "would not respond" to his coaching methods as they went 18 games without a win and pressure mounted on Allardyce. However he held on to his job, and led the club to promotion as champions of Division Three at the end of the 1997–98 season, built upon a three-man defence and a mid-season run of ten consecutive wins. County broke several club and national records, winning the title by a 19-point margin and becoming the first post-war side to win promotion in March.
Despite the success, chairman Derek Pavis refused to spend money on transfers, and as a result fell out with Allardyce. Allardyce was eventually allowed to spend £50,000 on striker Kevin Rapley
Kevin Rapley (born 21 September 1977) is an English association football, footballer. After playing for several Football League and non-league clubs, Rapley is now playing for Witton Albion F.C., Witton Albion.
Career
The striker began his care ...
, who helped the club to steer clear of relegation at the end of the 1998–99 campaign. In the summer he signed midfielder Craig Ramage
Craig Ramage (born 30 March 1970) is a former footballer who played in midfield for six clubs.
Playing career
Born in Derby, Ramage started his career in his hometown as a trainee with Derby County. He played 42 games scoring four goals at Derb ...
and utility player Clayton Blackmore
Clayton Graham Blackmore (born 23 September 1964) is a Welsh former international footballer. He was a combative player known for his attacking free kicks and a utility player who excelled in defence, but could play equally well in midfield.
Bl ...
. Allardyce remained in charge at Meadow Lane
Meadow Lane Stadium is a football stadium in Nottingham, England. It is the home ground of Notts County, who have played there since it opened in 1910. The stadium was also home to Notts County Ladies F.C. from 2014 until 2017.
It currently h ...
until 14 October 1999, when he resigned his post at Notts County to return to Bolton Wanderers.
Bolton Wanderers
Promotion out of Division One
Allardyce was appointed manager of Bolton Wanderers followingColin Todd
Colin Todd (born 12 December 1948) is an English football manager and former player. He was most recently the manager of Esbjerg fB. As a player, he made more than 600 appearances in the Football League, playing for Sunderland, Derby County, ...
's departure, who had resigned in protest at the sale of Per Frandsen
Per Frandsen (born 6 February 1970) is a Danish football manager and former professional football player. He is currently the manager of Hvidovre IF.
He won the 1994–95 Danish Cup with F.C. Copenhagen, and played 265 league games as a midfi ...
as the club attempted to raise funds for the new Reebok Stadium
The University of Bolton Stadium is the home ground of Bolton Wanderers F.C. in Horwich, Greater Manchester, England.
Opening in 1997, it was named the Reebok Stadium, after club sponsors Reebok. In 2014, Bolton Wanderers signed a naming righ ...
. He inherited a talented squad, which included Eiður Guðjohnsen
Eiður Smári Guðjohnsen (transliterated as Eidur Smari Gudjohnsen; born 15 September 1978) is an Icelandic professional football coach and former player who played as a forward. Eiður saw his greatest success in England and Spain with Chelsea ...
, Jussi Jääskeläinen
Jussi Albert Jääskeläinen (; born 19 April 1975) is a Finnish football coach and retired footballer who played as a goalkeeper.
During his career, Jääskeläinen most notably represented Bolton Wanderers from 1997 until 2012, making 530 app ...
, Mark Fish
Mark Anthony Fish (born 14 March 1974) is a retired South African footballer who played as a defender.
Club career
Born in Cape Town, Fish started his career in his native South Africa under the guidance of renowned coach Steve Coetsee, play ...
, Claus Jensen
Claus William Jensen (born 29 April 1977) is a Danish professional football manager, and former player who is the manager of Danish 1st Division club Nykøbing FC. During his active playing career, he played as an attacking midfielder. Jensen ...
, Dean Holdsworth
Dean Christopher Holdsworth (born 8 November 1968) is an English former professional football player and manager. As a striker he scored 193 goals in 610 league games over a 22-year career. Despite playing for 16 clubs in 19 spells the majority ...
, Bo Hansen
Bo Jannik Nyby Hansen (born June 16, 1972) is a Danish former football player in the striker position. He scored 52 goals in 143 games for Danish club Brøndby IF and 16 goals in 119 games for English club Bolton Wanderers. Hansen played one ...
, Michael Johansen
Michael Bro Johansen (born July 22, 1972) is a Danish former professional football player who played as a midfielder in the Danish Superliga for FC Copenhagen and for English club Bolton Wanderers. He played two games for the Danish national te ...
, and Ricardo Gardner
Ricardo Wayne Gardner (born 25 September 1978), commonly known as Bibi, is a Jamaican former professional footballer. He works as assistant coach at Portmore United. A left winger, he could also play in the centre of midfield or at left wingbac ...
. However he was forced to sell Andy Todd, son of Colin Todd, after he broke assistant manager Phil Brown's jaw in a team bonding session. Despite being in the bottom half of the table when he took over, Bolton reached the 1999–2000 Division One play-offs, losing to Ipswich Town
Ipswich Town Football Club is a professional association football club based in Ipswich, Suffolk, England. They play in League One, the third tier of the English football league system.
The club was founded in 1878 but did not turn profession ...
, and had an eventful run to the League Cup
In several sports, most prominently association football, a league cup or secondary cup generally signifies a cup competition for which entry is restricted only to teams in a particular league. The first national association football tournament t ...
and FA Cup
The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual knockout football competition in men's domestic English football. First played during the 1871–72 season, it is the oldest national football competi ...
semi-finals, only missing out on the 2000 FA Cup Final
The 2000 FA Cup Final was the 119th final of the FA Cup, and the 72nd (excluding replays) and last to be played at the old Wembley Stadium. It took place on 20 May 2000 and was contested between Chelsea and Aston Villa, the latter making its fir ...
after a penalty shoot-out defeat to Aston Villa
Aston Villa Football Club is a professional football club based in Aston, Birmingham, England. The club competes in the , the top tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1874, they have played at their home ground, Villa Park ...
. He blamed referee Barry Knight for the play-off defeat, who he accused of being biased against Bolton. Allardyce was rewarded for turning the club around with a ten-year contract, though the terms of the contract only entitled him to a one year's compensation pay if he was sacked.
In summer 2000, Guðjohnsen and Jensen were sold for £4 million each. Allardyce focused on spending money to improve the club's facilities and backroom staff, believing that money spent in these areas would allow Bolton to compete with clubs who had bigger budgets and paid bigger wages than Bolton could afford. On the playing front he spent £400,000 on striker Michael Ricketts
Michael Barrington Ricketts (born 4 December 1978) is an English former footballer. He played as a striker and was capped once by England, in a friendly against the Netherlands in 2002.
Ricketts had a 14-year career which saw him play for W ...
and £1.5 million to bring back Frendsen from Blackburn, and also signed utility player Ian Marshall and Bradford City
Bradford City Association Football Club is an English professional football club in Bradford, West Yorkshire. The team competes in League Two, the fourth tier of the English football league system and are currently managed by Mark Hughes.
Th ...
loanee Isaiah Rankin
Isaiah Marcus Rankin (born 22 May 1978) is an English former professional footballer who played as a forward from 1996 to 2014.
He started his professional career with Arsenal where he came through the club's youth setup. He appeared once for ...
. Teenager Kevin Nolan
Kevin Anthony Jance Nolan (born 24 June 1982) is an English former professional footballer and current first team coach for Premier League club West Ham United. He has represented England at under-21 level.
After growing up in Toxteth, Live ...
was also promoted from the youth team, whilst 35-year-old defender Colin Hendry
Edward Colin James Hendry (born 7 December 1965) is a Scottish football coach and former professional footballer.
Hendry, who played as a defender notably played in the Premier League for Blackburn Rovers where he was part of the title winning ...
arrived on loan. Bolton reached the play-off final at the Millennium Stadium
The Millennium Stadium ( cy, Stadiwm y Mileniwm), known since 2016 as the Principality Stadium ( cy, Stadiwm Principality) for sponsorship reasons, is the national stadium of Wales. Located in Cardiff, it is the home of the Wales national rug ...
in 2000–01, where they beat Preston North End
Preston North End Football Club, commonly referred to as Preston, North End or PNE, is a professional football club in Preston, Lancashire, England, who currently play in the EFL Championship, the second tier of the English football league syste ...
3–0 to achieve promotion to the Premier League
The Premier League (legal name: The Football Association Premier League Limited) is the highest level of the men's English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Foo ...
after a three-year absence.
Premier League survival
Building for the 2001–02 Premier League campaign, Allardyce signedFrance
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
international defender Bruno Ngotty
Bruno Ngotty (born 10 June 1971) is a French former professional footballer. He played as a centre-back from 1988 until 2008, however he came out of retirement briefly in 2011.
As well as his native country he has played in the top flight divi ...
from Marseille
Marseille ( , , ; also spelled in English as Marseilles; oc, Marselha ) is the prefecture of the French department of Bouches-du-Rhône and capital of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. Situated in the camargue region of southern Franc ...
in a loan deal which was eventual made into a permanent one after Ngotty established himself as a key first team player. He also brought in Henrik Pedersen
Henrik Pedersen (born 10 June 1975) is a retired Danish footballer who played as a striker for Silkeborg IF, Bolton Wanderers and Hull City. He played three games for the Danish national team.
Career
Silkeborg
Born in Kjellerup, Denmark, P ...
from Silkeborg IF
Silkeborg Idrætsforening, (; commonly known as Silkeborg IF or SIF in short) is a professional football club based in Silkeborg, Denmark. The club was founded in 1917, reached the highest level of Danish football in 1987, and afterwards became ...
for £650,000, though otherwise remained loyal to the players that had won promotion the previous campaign. They recorded a 5–0 win at Leicester City
Leicester ( ) is a city, unitary authority and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest settlement in the East Midlands.
The city lies on the River Soar and close to the eastern end of the National ...
on the opening day, then beat Middlesbrough
Middlesbrough ( ) is a town on the southern bank of the River Tees in North Yorkshire, England. It is near the North York Moors national park. It is the namesake and main town of its local borough council area.
Until the early 1800s, the a ...
and Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a popul ...
to secure nine points from their first three games. After six games without a win, Bolton then recorded a shock 2–1 victory over Manchester United
Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of City of Salford, Salford to ...
on 20 October. However their form dropped, and so in the January transfer window Allardyce brought in Danish midfielder Stig Tøfting
Stig Tøfting (born 14 August 1969), commonly known as Tøffe, is a former Danish professional footballer and assistant coach, who most recently was the assistant of Erik Rasmussen at AGF.
Tøfting was a hard-hitting combative defensive midfi ...
, German striker Fredi Bobic
Fredi Bobic ( sl, Fredi Bobič, born 30 October 1971) is a German football executive and former player who played as a striker. He is the sporting director of Bundesliga club Hertha BSC.
Club career
Bobic was born in Maribor, SFR Yugoslavia, ...
(on loan), and World Cup
A world cup is a global sporting competition in which the participant entities – usually international teams or individuals representing their countries – compete for the title of world champion. The event most associated with the concept i ...
-winning attacker Youri Djorkaeff
Youri Raffi Djorkaeff (born 9 March 1968) is a French former professional footballer who played as an attacking midfielder or forward.
Throughout his club career, he played for teams in France, Italy, Germany, England, and the United States.
At ...
. Djorkaeff scored both goals in a 2–1 win over Charlton Athletic
Charlton Athletic Football Club is an English professional football club based in Charlton, south-east London, which compete in . Their home ground is The Valley, where the club have played since 1919. They have also played at The Mount in C ...
on 23 March and Bobic scored a hat-trick in a 4–1 win over Ipswich Town on 6 April; the victory over Ipswich proved to be essential as Bolton ended the season in 16th place on 40 points, ahead of Ipswich who were relegated with 36 points.
Allardyce managed to sign another big name on a free transfer for the 2002–03 season, bringing in 28-year-old Nigeria
Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf o ...
captain Jay-Jay Okocha, who four years previously had been purchased by Paris Saint-Germain
Paris Saint-Germain Football Club (), commonly referred to as Paris Saint-Germain, Paris, Paris SG or simply PSG is a professional football club based in Paris, France. They compete in Ligue 1, the top division of French football. As Fr ...
for £14 million. He also brought in Spanish central defender Iván Campo
Iván Campo Ramos (born 21 February 1974) is a Spanish former professional footballer. Originally a centre-back, he featured in a defensive midfield role in the later years of his career.
He played for Real Madrid and four other teams in his c ...
on loan from Real Madrid
Real Madrid Club de Fútbol (, meaning ''Royal Madrid Football Club''), commonly referred to as Real Madrid, is a Spanish professional football club based in Madrid.
Founded in 1902 as Madrid Football Club, the club has traditionally wor ...
. He sold 2001–02 top-scorer Michael Ricketts
Michael Barrington Ricketts (born 4 December 1978) is an English former footballer. He played as a striker and was capped once by England, in a friendly against the Netherlands in 2002.
Ricketts had a 14-year career which saw him play for W ...
to Middlesbrough for £3.5 million, bringing in Pierre-Yves André
Pierre-Yves André (born 14 May 1974 in Lannion, Côtes-d'Armor) is a French former professional footballer who played as a forward. He spent most of his career playing for Bastia, and retired after the club suffered relegation to the French thi ...
on loan as his replacement. Bolton struggled all season, but managed to avoid relegation with a final day win over Middlesbrough.
Looking to avoid another relegation battle, Allardyce made a number of signings in preparation for the 2003–04 season, the most significant of which were Brazilian defender Emerson Thome
Emerson Augusto Thome (born 30 March 1972), also known as Paredão, is a Brazilian retired footballer who played as a central defender.
Career
He first came to England towards the end of the 1997–98 season when moving to Sheffield Wednesday fr ...
, Greece
Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders with ...
international Stelios Giannakopoulos
Stylianos "Stelios" Giannakopoulos ( el, Στυλιανός "Στέλιος" Γιαννακόπουλος; born 12 July 1974), popularly known as Stelios, is a Greek football manager and former player. During his playing career, Giannakopoulos p ...
, and target-man striker Kevin Davies
Kevin Cyril Davies (born 26 March 1977) is an English former professional footballer who played as a striker for Chesterfield, Southampton, Blackburn Rovers, Millwall, Bolton Wanderers and Preston North End. He managed Southport in the 201 ...
. Allardyce's side finished eighth in the league and reached the League Cup final, in what was his first major domestic final appearance as a player or manager. Bolton lost 2–1 to Middlesbrough
Middlesbrough ( ) is a town on the southern bank of the River Tees in North Yorkshire, England. It is near the North York Moors national park. It is the namesake and main town of its local borough council area.
Until the early 1800s, the a ...
in the final, though Allardyce blamed referee Mike Riley for not giving a late penalty for an alleged handball by Ugo Ehiogu
Ugochuku Ehiogu (; 3 November 1972 – 21 April 2017) was an English professional footballer who played as a centre back from 1989 to 2009. He was the coach of the Tottenham Hotspur U23 team until his death in April 2017.
He played in the Prem ...
.
Venture in Europe
Now an established Premier League club, Bolton signed veteran internationalsGary Speed
Gary Andrew Speed (8 September 1969 – 27 November 2011) was a Welsh professional footballer and manager. As manager of Wales, Speed is often credited as being the catalyst for the change in fortunes of the national team and as setting t ...
and Fernando Hierro
Fernando Ruiz Hierro (; born 23 March 1968) is a Spanish football manager and former player who played as a centre-back, sweeper or defensive midfielder. He is the current sporting director of Liga MX club C.D. Guadalajara.
He won five La Liga ...
, aged 35 and 36 respectively. Speed and Hierro went into midfield, while Tunisia
)
, image_map = Tunisia location (orthographic projection).svg
, map_caption = Location of Tunisia in northern Africa
, image_map2 =
, capital = Tunis
, largest_city = capital
, ...
international Radhi Jaïdi
Radhi Ben Abdelmajid Jaïdi ( ar, راضي بن عبد المجيد الجعايدي; born 30 August 1975) is a Tunisian former footballer who played as a centre back. He was previously head coach of the under-23 team at Southampton, head coach ...
was played at centre-back after arriving on a free transfer from Espérance; he was played alongside another new arrival, Israel
Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...
defender Tal Ben Haim
Tal Ben Haim (or Tal Ben Haim I, he, טל בן-חיים; born 31 March 1982) is an Israeli footballer who last played for Beitar Jerusalem. He can play at either centre back or right back. He has played for Maccabi Tel Aviv, Bolton Wanderers ...
, who was recommended by Allardyce's son Craig. He also brought in Senegal
Senegal,; Wolof: ''Senegaal''; Pulaar: 𞤅𞤫𞤲𞤫𞤺𞤢𞥄𞤤𞤭 (Senegaali); Arabic: السنغال ''As-Sinighal'') officially the Republic of Senegal,; Wolof: ''Réewum Senegaal''; Pulaar : 𞤈𞤫𞤲𞤣𞤢𞥄𞤲𞤣𞤭 ...
striker El Hadji Diouf
El Hadji Ousseynou Diouf (; born 15 January 1981) is a Senegalese former professional footballer. Throughout his career, Diouf played as a winger or a forward.
Having started his professional football career in France with Sochaux, Rennes an ...
on a season-long loan from Liverpool, whom he would eventually sign permanently for £3 million. After a good start to the season, Allardyce was offered the Newcastle United job, but turned it down and instead signed a new five-year contract with Bolton as he felt the Bolton squad to be more talented. Bolton went on to finish in sixth place in 2004–05 to win qualification to the UEFA Cup
A cup is an open-top used to hold hot or cold liquids for pouring or drinking; while mainly used for drinking, it also can be used to store Solid, solids for pouring (e.g., sugar, flour, grains, salt). Cups may be made of glass, metal, porcela ...
for the first time in the club's history.
Bolton reached the Round of 32 in the UEFA Cup in 2005–06, beating Lokomotiv Plovdiv
PFC Lokomotiv Plovdiv ( bg, ПФК Локомотив Пловдив), commonly known as Loko Plovdiv, is a Bulgarian professional football club based in Plovdiv. Lokomotiv's home ground is the Lokomotiv Stadium which is situated in Lauta Park ...
(Bulgaria
Bulgaria (; bg, България, Bǎlgariya), officially the Republic of Bulgaria,, ) is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern flank of the Balkans, and is bordered by Romania to the north, Serbia and North Macedon ...
) in the First Round and successfully negotiating through the Group stage after beating Zenit Saint Petersburg
Football Club Zenit (russian: link=no, Футбольный клуб «Зенит» ), also known as Zenit Saint Petersburg or simply Zenit, is a Russian professional football club based in Saint Petersburg. Founded in 1925 (or in 1914, acco ...
(Russia), and drawing with Sevilla
Seville (; es, Sevilla, ) is the capital and largest city of the Spain, Spanish autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Andalusia and the province of Seville. It is situated on the lower reaches of the Guadalquivir, River Gua ...
(Spain), Beşiktaş
Beşiktaş () is a district and municipality of Istanbul, Turkey, located on the European shore of the Bosphorus strait. It is bordered on the north by Sarıyer and Şişli, on the west by Kağıthane and Şişli, on the south by Beyoğlu, and ...
(Turkey
Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a list of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolia, Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with ...
) and Vitória Guimarães
Vitoria or Vitória may refer to :
People
* Francisco de Vitoria (c. 1483–1546), a Spanish Renaissance theologian
* Alberto Vitoria (1956–2010), Spanish footballer
* Rui Vitória (born 1970), Portuguese retired footballer
* Steven Vitória (b ...
(Portugal), before losing to Marseille (France) in the knock-out stages. Allardyce's success with Bolton resulted in the FA
The Football Association (also known as The FA) is the governing body of association football in England and the Crown Dependencies of Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man. Formed in 1863, it is the oldest football association in the world and ...
putting him on a short-list of four people to succeed Sven-Göran Eriksson
Sven-Göran Eriksson (; born 5 February 1948) is a Swedish football manager and former player.
After an unassuming playing career as a right-back, Eriksson went on to experience major success in club management between 1977 and 2001, winning 18 ...
as England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
manager
Management (or managing) is the administration of an organization, whether it is a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government body. It is the art and science of managing resources of the business.
Management includes the activities o ...
after the 2006 FIFA World Cup
The 2006 FIFA World Cup, also branded as Germany 2006, was the 18th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial international football world championship tournament. It was held from 9 June to 9 July 2006 in Germany, which had won the right to host the ...
, alongside Alan Curbishley
Llewellyn Charles "Alan" Curbishley (born 8 November 1957) is an English former football player and manager. He played as a midfielder for West Ham United, Birmingham City, Aston Villa, Charlton Athletic and Brighton & Hove Albion and has worke ...
, Steve McClaren
Stephen McClaren (born 3 May 1961) is an English former professional footballer and coach who currently serves as an assistant coach for Premier League club Manchester United, in his second spell at the club.
McClaren began his coaching care ...
and Martin O'Neill
Martin Hugh Michael O'Neill, (born 1 March 1952) is a Northern Irish professional football manager and former player who played as a midfielder.
Starting his career in Northern Ireland, O'Neill moved to England where he spent most of his playi ...
. He was interviewed for the position and was told by FA Chief Executive Brian Barwick
Brian Robert Barwick (born 21 June 1954) has enjoyed a long and distinguished career in major sports broadcasting and administration. He was awarded an OBE in the 2021 Queen's Birthday Honours List for services to sport and broadcasting.
Br ...
that the final choice would be between him and McClaren, however the FA eventually decided to give the job to McClaren. Allardyce was also again offered the Newcastle job and was this time to keen to take it, but Newcastle chairman Freddie Shepard broke off contract negotiations after electing to appoint caretaker-manager Glenn Roeder
Glenn Victor Roeder (13 December 1955 – 28 February 2021) was an English professional football player and manager.
As a player, Roeder played as a defender for Arsenal, Leyton Orient, Queens Park Rangers, Notts County, Newcastle United, Watfo ...
on a full-time basis. Allardyce's team seemed unaffected by speculation on his future or by their European exploits, and ended the season in eighth position.
Keen to strengthen Bolton for a European push in the 2006–07 season, Allardyce signed France international striker Nicolas Anelka
Nicolas Sébastien Anelka (; born 14 March 1979) is a French professional Manager (association football), football manager and retired Football player, player who played as a Forward (association football), forward. As a player, he regularly fe ...
from Fenerbahçe for a club record £8 million. He also signed Ivory Coast
Ivory Coast, also known as Côte d'Ivoire, officially the Republic of Côte d'Ivoire, is a country on the southern coast of West Africa. Its capital is Yamoussoukro, in the centre of the country, while its largest city and economic centre is ...
defender Abdoulaye Méïté
Abdoulaye Méïté (born 6 October 1980) is an Ivory Coast, Ivorian former professional Association football, footballer. He represented Ivory Coast national football team, Ivory Coast internationally and was awarded a total of 48 cap (football) ...
from Marseille, and in an unusual sequence of events made a £400,000 profit on Dietmar Hamann
Dietmar Johann Wolfgang "Didi" Hamann (; born 27 August 1973) is a German professional football coach, former player and media personality.
Throughout his career, he has played for Bayern Munich, Newcastle United, Liverpool and Manchester City ...
, who changed his mind about joining Bolton and signed with Manchester City
Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The tw ...
a day after signing a pre-contract agreement with Bolton; Manchester City agreed to pay Bolton £400,000 in compensation. Bolton had another good season: their 16 points from their first eight games was the last time for 14 years that two teams from outside the so-called 'big six' averaged at least two points per match in their first eight games (the other team being Portsmouth). However, Allardyce's relationship with chairman Phil Gartside became increasingly strained as Gartside refused to sanction greater transfer spending to finance a push for UEFA Champions League
The UEFA Champions League (abbreviated as UCL, or sometimes, UEFA CL) is an annual club football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) and contested by top-division European clubs, deciding the competit ...
qualification. On 29 April 2007, Allardyce resigned with the club in fifth place with two games of the season left to play, and the following day his assistant Sammy Lee was announced as his replacement.
Newcastle United
Allardyce was offered the Manchester City job, but the offer was withdrawn after Thaksin Shinawatra
Thaksin Shinawatra ( th, ทักษิณ ชินวัตร; ; ; Chinese: 丘達新; cnr, Taksin Šinavatra; born 26 July 1949), is a Thai businessman, politician and visiting professor. He served in the Thai Police from 1973 to 1987, a ...
's purchase offer of the club was accepted. On 15 May 2007, Newcastle United announced that Allardyce had signed a three-year contract to succeed Glenn Roeder as manager. Coincidentally Newcastle then also had a change of owners, as Mike Ashley completed his takeover of the club. The sales of Scott Parker
Scott Matthew Parker (born 13 October 1980) is an English professional football manager and former player who played as a midfielder. He is currently the head coach of Club Brugge in Belgium.
Parker began his career at Charlton Athletic, and ...
and Kieron Dyer
Kieron Courtney Dyer (born 29 December 1978) is an English former professional footballer who played as a midfielder. He was recently the U23s manager at Ipswich Town.
Born in Ipswich, Dyer played youth football for his home club Ipswich Town ...
raised £13 million, allowing Allardyce to sign Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...
international striker Mark Viduka
Mark Antony Viduka ( ; born 9 October 1975) is an Australian retired football player who played as a centre forward. He captained the Australia national team to the Round of 16 at the 2006 FIFA World Cup which remains their best ever performance ...
(free transfer), utility man Alan Smith (£6 million), midfielder Geremi Njitap
Geremi Sorele Njitap Fotso (born 20 December 1978), known simply as Geremi, is a Cameroonian former footballer. He was a versatile player able to play at right back, right midfield or defensive midfielder, known for his power, pace, combative ...
, controversial midfielder Joey Barton
Joseph Anthony Barton (born 2 September 1982) is an English professional football manager and former player who played as a midfielder. He made 269 appearances in the Premier League, including 130 for Manchester City. He is currently the man ...
(£5.5 million), left-back José Enrique José Enrique is a Spanish given name. It may refer to:
*José Enrique (footballer) (born 1986), Spanish footballer
* José Enrique Angulo (born 1995), Ecuadorian footballer
*José Enrique Arrarás (born 1937), Puerto Rican politician
* José Enriq ...
(£6.3 million), right-back Habib Beye
Habib Frédéric Beye (born 19 October 1977) is a former professional footballer who played as a right-back. He is the manager of Championnat National club Red Star. Born in France, he represented the Senegal national team.
He is also a pundit ...
(£2 million), and defender Abdoulaye Faye
Abdoulaye Diagne-Faye (born 26 February 1978), known as Abdoulaye Faye, is a Senegalese former footballer who played as a defender.
Faye began his career playing for ASEC Ndiambour and Jeanne d'Arc in his native Senegal before moving to Frenc ...
. Newcastle enjoyed a good start to the season, beating Allardyce's former club Bolton 3–1 on the opening day in a run of five wins and two draws from the opening nine league games. However they then had a series of disappointing results in the run-up to Christmas, and after gaining only one point from a possible six from bottom-of-the-table Wigan and Derby Allardyce parted company with Newcastle United on 9 January 2008. He had gone into the meeting with chairman Chris Mort
Christopher Mort is an English lawyer and former chairman of Newcastle United Football Club.
Biography
Mort is a lawyer for Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, where he is head of their sports and gaming practice.
Mort worked for Mike Ashley on h ...
expecting to be told Newcastle had signed a new player only to learn he was being replaced by Kevin Keegan
Joseph Kevin Keegan (born 14 February 1951) is an English former footballer and manager. A forward, he played for several professional clubs from 1968 to 1984. Having begun his career at Scunthorpe United, he moved to Liverpool in 1971 and ...
in his second stint as Newcastle manager.
Blackburn Rovers
On 17 December 2008, Allardyce was appointed as manager of Blackburn Rovers
Blackburn Rovers Football Club is a professional football club, based in Blackburn, Lancashire, England, which competes in the , the second tier of the English football league system. They have played home matches at Ewood Park since 1890. T ...
on a three-year contract, succeeding Paul Ince
Paul Emerson Carlyle Ince (; born 21 October 1967) is an English professional football manager and former player who is the current manager of EFL Championship side Reading. A former midfielder, Ince played professionally from 1982 to 2007, star ...
who left the club in 19th place with just three wins from 17 games. Allardyce's first game in charge was a 3–0 victory over Stoke City
Stoke City Football Club is a professional football club based in Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, England, which competes in the . Founded as Stoke Ramblers in 1863, it changed its name to Stoke in 1878 and then to Stoke City in 1925 after Stoke ...
at Ewood Park
Ewood Park () is a football stadium in Blackburn, Lancashire, England, and the home of Blackburn Rovers F.C., founding members of the Football League and Premier League, who have played there since 1890. It is an all seater multi-sports facili ...
three days later. This was the first game of a nine-game unbeaten run. He strengthened the team by spending £2 million on Sunderland winger El Hadji Diouf
El Hadji Ousseynou Diouf (; born 15 January 1981) is a Senegalese former professional footballer. Throughout his career, Diouf played as a winger or a forward.
Having started his professional football career in France with Sochaux, Rennes an ...
and brought in defender Gaël Givet
Gaël Givet-Viaros (born 9 October 1981), known as Gaël Givet, is a French former professional footballer who played as a left-footed centre back and as a left-back. Givet was a UEFA Champions League runner-up with Monaco in 2004 and was part of ...
on loan from Marseille. Allardyce finished his first season in charge with a 0–0 draw with West Bromwich Albion
West Bromwich Albion Football Club () is an English professional football club based in West Bromwich, West Midlands, England. They compete in the EFL Championship, the second tier of English football. The club was formed in 1878 and has pla ...
and a final league position of 15th.
Blackburn were forced to sell talismanic Paraguay
Paraguay (; ), officially the Republic of Paraguay ( es, República del Paraguay, links=no; gn, Tavakuairetã Paraguái, links=si), is a landlocked country in South America. It is bordered by Argentina to the south and southwest, Brazil to th ...
striker Roque Santa Cruz
Roque Luis Santa Cruz Cantero (; born 16 August 1981) is a Paraguayan professional footballer who plays as a striker for Paraguayan club Club Libertad. He is the record goal scorer and has earned over 100 caps for the Paraguay national team, ...
to Manchester City and defender Stephen Warnock to Aston Villa for a combined £21.5 million to balance the books. Allardyce was permitted to bring in defensive midfielder Steven Nzonzi from Amiens
Amiens (English: or ; ; pcd, Anmien, or ) is a city and commune in northern France, located north of Paris and south-west of Lille. It is the capital of the Somme department in the region of Hauts-de-France. In 2021, the population of ...
for £500,000, Croatia
, image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg
, image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg
, anthem = "Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland")
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, capit ...
international forward Nikola Kalinić
Nikola Kalinić (; born 5 January 1988) is a Croatian professional footballer who plays as a striker for Croatian club Hajduk Split.
Kalinić began his career with Hajduk Split in his native Croatia before moving to English club Blackburn Rove ...
from Hajduk Split
Hrvatski nogometni klub Hajduk Split, commonly referred to as Hajduk Split () or simply Hajduk, is a Croatian professional football club based in Split, that competes in the Croatian First League, the top tier in Croatian football. Since 1979, t ...
for £6 million, and Pascal Chimbonda
Pascal Chimbonda (born 21 February 1979) is a French former professional footballer who played as a right-back.
Chimbonda began his professional career in 1998 with Le Havre, where he featured over 100 times combined for the club's first team ...
from Tottenham Hotspur for £2.5 million. In the 2009–10 season, Blackburn reached the League Cup semi-final against Aston Villa, but lost over two legs. Blackburn remained mid-table for the duration of the season, and finished tenth with a final day victory away at Aston Villa.
The club was put up for sale in summer 2010, and Allardyce was offered the job of managing Shabab Al-Ahli Dubai, but could not secure permission to leave Blackburn without paying compensation to the club and so remained in charge at Ewood Park
Ewood Park () is a football stadium in Blackburn, Lancashire, England, and the home of Blackburn Rovers F.C., founding members of the Football League and Premier League, who have played there since 1890. It is an all seater multi-sports facili ...
. Allardyce was later sacked by new owners the Venky's on 13 December 2010, with Rovers placed 13th in the league. He was replaced by one of his coaches, Steve Kean
Stephen Kean (born 30 September 1967) is a Scottish football coach and former player, who is currently the academy director at Hibernian. Kean played as a winger for clubs in the lower divisions of Scottish, English and Portuguese leagues i ...
, whose agent Jerome Anderson was a highly influential figure with the Venky family.Conn, David"How an agent came to hold so much power at Blackburn Rovers"
''
The Guardian
''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
'', 21 December 2010. Retrieved 2 August 2016.Hytner, David"Steve Kean finds value of friends in high places at Blackburn Rovers"
''
The Guardian
''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
'', 16 December 2010. Retrieved 2 August 2016.
West Ham United
Allardyce was appointed as manager of then-recently relegated West Ham United
West Ham United Football Club is an English professional football club that plays its home matches in Stratford, East London. The club competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football. The club plays at the London Stadium, hav ...
on 1 June 2011, signing a two-year contract. He vowed to play "attractive football" in getting West Ham back to the Premier League
The Premier League (legal name: The Football Association Premier League Limited) is the highest level of the men's English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Foo ...
, according to the "traditions of the club," and rejected the claims that he played dull, long-ball football at previous clubs. He signed Abdoulaye Faye
Abdoulaye Diagne-Faye (born 26 February 1978), known as Abdoulaye Faye, is a Senegalese former footballer who played as a defender.
Faye began his career playing for ASEC Ndiambour and Jeanne d'Arc in his native Senegal before moving to Frenc ...
, Kevin Nolan
Kevin Anthony Jance Nolan (born 24 June 1982) is an English former professional footballer and current first team coach for Premier League club West Ham United. He has represented England at under-21 level.
After growing up in Toxteth, Live ...
, Joey O'Brien
Joseph Martin O'Brien (born 17 February 1986) is a retired Irish professional footballer who played as a full-back and defensive midfielder for Bolton Wanderers, Sheffield Wednesday, West Ham United and Shamrock Rovers. He was capped 5 times ...
and Matt Taylor. Faye, Nolan and O'Brien had all played under Allardyce at his former club Bolton Wanderers while Taylor was a Bolton player who had joined after Allardyce left the club. He made striker John Carew
John Alieu Carew (born 5 September 1979) is a Norwegian former professional footballer who played as a forward. He was capped 91 times, scoring 24 goals for the Norway national team.
As of 2023, he has been hired until the end of 2024 at Norw ...
West Ham's fifth signing of the season, on a free transfer, followed by defender George McCartney
George McCartney (born 29 April 1981) is a Northern Irish former footballer who is currently a coach at Linfield. He began his career at Sunderland in 1998 before having two spells each with West Ham United and Leeds United. He won the 2004–0 ...
from Sunderland on a season-long loan, strikers Sam Baldock
Samuel Edward Thomas Baldock (born 15 March 1989) is an English professional footballer who plays as a striker for Oxford United.
He grew up in the village of Steeple Claydon, Buckinghamshire, while attending the Royal Latin School in Bucking ...
from Milton Keynes Dons
Milton Keynes Dons Football Club (), usually abbreviated to MK Dons, is a professional association football club based in Milton Keynes, Buckinghamshire, England. The team competes in , the third tier of the English football league system. The ...
and midfielder Papa Bouba Diop
Papa Bouba Diop (28 January 197829 November 2020) was a Senegalese professional footballer. His preferred position was defensive midfield but he could also play as a centre back, where he previously played at Lens. Diop was considered a strong ...
on a free transfer. He concluded his summer transfer window signings on deadline day by bringing in midfielders David Bentley
David Michael Bentley (born 27 August 1984) is an English former professional footballer who played primarily as a winger, but also played as a central midfielder or as a second striker.
Bentley started his career with Arsenal in the Premie ...
from Tottenham Hotspur and Henri Lansbury
Henri George Lansbury (born 12 October 1990) is an English professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Championship side Luton Town. He previously played for Arsenal, where he ascended from the club's academy. Lansbury also had spells ...
from Arsenal, both on season-long loans, as well as utility man Guy Demel
Guy Roland Demel (born 13 June 1981) is an Ivorian former professional footballer who played as a defender.
He could play in several positions including right back and centre back. Demel started his career in France with Nîmes Olympique befor ...
from Hamburg
(male), (female) en, Hamburger(s),
Hamburgian(s)
, timezone1 = Central (CET)
, utc_offset1 = +1
, timezone1_DST = Central (CEST)
, utc_offset1_DST = +2
, postal ...
for an undisclosed fee. Nicky Maynard
Nicholas David Maynard (born 11 December 1986) is an English professional footballer who plays as a striker for Macclesfield.
He began his career at Crewe Alexandra, following over a decade in the club's Academy, and scored on his senior debu ...
, Ricardo Vaz Tê
Ricardo Jorge Vaz Tê (born 1 October 1986) is a Portuguese professional footballer who plays as a forward.
Vaz Tê has previously played for English clubs Bolton Wanderers, Hull City, Barnsley and West Ham United, Greek club Panionios, Scottis ...
and Ravel Morrison followed in the 2011 winter transfer window. Over the course of the 2011–12 season a total of 25 players left the club while 19 were signed. In March 2012, despite standing in third place in the Championship
In sport, a championship is a competition in which the aim is to decide which individual or team is the champion.
Championship systems
Various forms of competition can be referred to by the term championship.
Title match system
In this system ...
, Allardyce's style of football was again questioned. Fans
Fan commonly refers to:
* Fan (machine), a machine for producing airflow, often used for cooling
** Hand fan, an implement held and waved by hand to move air for cooling
* Fan (person), short for fanatic; an enthusiast or supporter, especially wit ...
called for more passing of the ball and football played on the pitch and not in the air. On 19 May 2012, West Ham were promoted back to the Premier League after only one season in the Championship after beating Blackpool 2–1 in the play-off Final. Allardyce described this promotion as his best ever achievement.
A busy transfer window for the summer of 2012 saw Allardyce bring in eleven players, including his former Bolton goalkeeper Jussi Jääskeläinen, midfielder Mohamed Diamé
Mohamed Diamé (born 14 June 1987), also known as Momo Diamé, is a professional footballer who plays as a midfielder.
Though born in France, Diamé represented Senegal at international level and made 31 appearances before retiring from nationa ...
, Mali
Mali (; ), officially the Republic of Mali,, , ff, 𞤈𞤫𞤲𞥆𞤣𞤢𞥄𞤲𞤣𞤭 𞤃𞤢𞥄𞤤𞤭, Renndaandi Maali, italics=no, ar, جمهورية مالي, Jumhūriyyāt Mālī is a landlocked country in West Africa. Mali ...
international striker Modibo Maïga
Modibo Maïga (born 3 September 1987) is a Malian professional footballer who plays as a striker for Al-Jeel and the Mali national team. He has also played for Stade Malien, Raja Casablanca, Le Mans, Sochaux, West Ham United, Queens Park Ran ...
, Wales
Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...
international centre-back James Collins, defensive midfielder Alou Diarra
Alou Diarra (born 15 July 1981) is a French former professional footballer. He was a France international from 2004 until 2012. As of the 2022–23 season, he is the manager of Troyes' under-19 side in the Championnat National U19.
He primari ...
, winger Matt Jarvis
Matthew Thomas Jarvis (born 22 May 1986) is an English former professional footballer who played as a winger.
After an unsuccessful spell as a youth-team player for Millwall, Jarvis began his professional career with Gillingham, making his ...
, England striker Andy Carroll
Andrew Thomas Carroll (born 6 January 1989) is an English professional footballer who plays as a striker for Championship side Reading. He has played in the Premier League and English Football League for Newcastle United, Preston North End, Liv ...
(on loan from Liverpool) and Israel international midfielder Yossi Benayoun
Yossi Shai Benayoun ( he, יוסי שי בניון; born 5 May 1980) is an Israeli former professional footballer who played as a midfielder. He spent most of his career in England and captained the Israel national team. Born in Dimona, he is ...
. West Ham finished the 2012–13 season in tenth place, and Allardyce renewed his contract at West Ham by signing a new two-year deal.
Allardyce's main signing of summer 2013 was Andy Carroll, for a £15 million fee from Liverpool, whilst he also spent an undisclosed fee on winger Stewart Downing
Stewart Downing (born 22 July 1984) is an English former professional footballer. He played most of his career as a winger, where he operated predominantly on the left-hand side, though he could play on the right and go inside on to his stronge ...
, again from Liverpool, to provide crosses for Carroll to convert into goals. He also signed goalkeeper Adrián on a free transfer from Real Betis
Real Betis Balompié, known as Real Betis () or just Betis, is a Spanish professional football club based in Seville in the autonomous community of Andalusia. Founded in 1907, it plays in La Liga. It holds home games at the Estadio Benito Vill ...
. However Allardyce's plans were disrupted when Carroll picked up a long-term injury, which left Allardyce regretting the transfer, especially as he had chosen Carroll instead of signing Swansea City's Wilfried Bony
Wilfried Guemiand Bony (born 10 December 1988) is an Ivorian professional footballer who plays as a striker.
Having begun his career at Issia Wazi, Bony moved to Sparta Prague in 2007, helping them to the Czech First League title in 2009–10 ...
, who went on to score 16 league goals in the 2013–14 campaign. Allardyce was awarded the Premier League Manager of the Month
The Premier League Manager of the Month is an association football award that recognises the best adjudged Premier League manager each month of the season. The winner is chosen by a combination of an online public vote, which contributes to ...
for February 2014 following a run of four wins and one draw in their five Premier League games. In April 2014, during an away game against West Bromwich Albion, a section of West Ham fans expressed their distaste at the style of football played under Allardyce by displaying a banner which read "Fat Sam Out, killing WHU". The following month some supporters hung a banner bearing the legend "Fat Sam Out" outside the mansion owned by club chairman, David Sullivan, in Theydon Bois, Essex. Despite protests, on 20 May 2014, the club announced that Allardyce would be staying as manager and would be supported by new attacking coach Teddy Sheringham
Edward Paul "Teddy" Sheringham, MBE (born 2 April 1966) is an English football manager and former player. He played as a forward, mostly as a second striker, in a 24-year professional career.
Sheringham began his career at Millwall, where he ...
for the 2014–15 season to "ensure the team provides more entertainment" and to "improve the club's goal tally".
In summer 2014, Allardyce signed midfielder Cheikhou Kouyaté, left-back Aaron Cresswell
Aaron William Cresswell (born 15 December 1989) is an English professional footballer who plays as a left-back for Premier League club West Ham United.
Cresswell made his first-team debut for Tranmere Rovers in 2008 and made 70 league appearan ...
, attacker Enner Valencia
Enner Remberto Valencia Lastra (born 4 November 1989) is an Ecuadorian professional footballer who plays as a forward for Süper Lig club Fenerbahçe and captains the Ecuador national team.
He previously played for Emelec in Ecuador, where ...
, right-back (on loan from Arsenal) Carl Jenkinson
Carl Daniel Jenkinson (born 8 February 1992) is an English professional association football, footballer who plays as a right-back for Newcastle Jets FC, Newcastle Jets in the Australian A-League Men, A-League.
Jenkinson began his career with C ...
, striker Diafra Sakho
Diafra Sakho (born 24 December 1989) is a Senegalese professional footballer who plays as a striker for club Nancy.
Sakho began his career in the lower divisions of French football, with Metz and on loan at Boulogne, before joining West Ham ...
, defensive midfielder Alex Song
Alexandre Dimitri Song Billong (born 9 September 1987), better known as Alex Song, is a Cameroonian professional footballer who plays for Djiboutian side Arta/Solar7 as a central or defensive midfielder. He can also play as a central defender.
...
(on loan from Barcelona
Barcelona ( , , ) is a city on the coast of northeastern Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within ci ...
), midfielder Morgan Amalfitano
Morgan Henri René Amalfitano (born 20 March 1985) is a retired French professional footballer who played as a midfielder. He has played for Cannes, Sedan, Lorient, Marseille, West Bromwich Albion and West Ham United. Amalfitano has earned one ...
, and forward Mauro Zárate
Mauro Matías Zárate (; born 13 March 1987) is an Argentine professional footballer who plays as a forward Argentine Primera División club Club Atlético Platense
Zárate started his career with Club Atlético Vélez Sarsfield, Vélez Sarsfie ...
. In October 2014, pundits like BBC's Robbie Savage
Robert William Savage (born 18 October 1974) is a Welsh former professional Association football, footballer who played as a midfielder, now a association football, football pundit and director of football at club Macclesfield F.C., Macclesfie ...
were commenting about the team's "more attractive and attacking playing style""Robbie Savage on West Ham, Sunderland and Louis van Gaal"BBC Sport, 24 October 2014 or "the statistics
hat
A hat is a head covering which is worn for various reasons, including protection against weather conditions, ceremonial reasons such as university graduation, religious reasons, safety, or as a fashion accessory. Hats which incorporate mecha ...
show the progress that West Ham have made in the last few months." Allardyce was awarded the Premier League Manager of the Month for October 2014 after three wins for West Ham out of four games played that month. Allardyce left West Ham on 24 May 2015, the final day of the season, after his contract was not renewed. Allardyce stated that "I didn't want to stay. I suppose you could say it was mutual if they didn't want me to stay either". His West Ham side had finished 12th in the 2014–15 season, one place higher than in the 2013–14 season.
Sunderland
On 9 October 2015, Allardyce was named the new Sunderland
Sunderland () is a port city in Tyne and Wear, England. It is the City of Sunderland's administrative centre and in the Historic counties of England, historic county of County of Durham, Durham. The city is from Newcastle-upon-Tyne and is on t ...
manager, replacing Dick Advocaat
Dirk Nicolaas Advocaat (; born 27 September 1947) is a Dutch former football player and coach who is currently the head coach of Eerste Divisie side ADO Den Haag.
Advocaat was successful as a football player and as a coach, including three sti ...
. When Allardyce was appointed, Sunderland sat 19th in the Premier League table with three points from their first eight games of the season. Signing a two-year contract, he became the first manager to have managed both Newcastle United and Sunderland. On 25 October, in his second game as manager, he guided Sunderland to a 3–0 win against rivals and his former club Newcastle United. However, after a run of 5 defeats in a row in December, Sunderland headed into the second half of the season in the relegation zone with only 12 points from 19 games.
In the January transfer window he signed centre-backs Lamine Koné
Lamine-Gueye Koné (born 1 February 1989), known as Lamine Koné, is a professional footballer who most recently played as a centre-back for FC Lausanne-Sport. Born in France, he represents the Ivory Coast national team.
Club career Early care ...
and Jan Kirchhoff
Jan Tilman Kirchhoff (born 1 October 1990) is a German former professional footballer who played as a centre-back or defensive midfielder.
Club career
Mainz 05
Born in Frankfurt, West Germany, Kirchhoff began his football career at SpVgg Ki ...
and attacking midfielder Wahbi Khazri
Wahbi Khazri ( ar, وهبي خزري; born 8 February 1991) is a professional footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder or as a forward for club Montpellier.
Trained at Bastia from 2004, Khazri made his professional debut there in 2009 ...
. On 6 February 2016, Sunderland scored two late goals to draw 2–2 with Liverpool at Anfield, having trailed 2–0 with ten minutes remaining. Later that week winger Adam Johnson was sacked by the club after pleading guilty to one count of sexual activity with a child and one charge of grooming. Sunderland remained in the relegation zone for much of the remainder of the 2015–16 season, before they boosted their survival chances by beating Norwich City
Norwich City Football Club (also known as The Canaries or The Yellows) is an English professional football club based in Norwich, Norfolk. The club competes in the EFL Championship following their relegation from the Premier League in the 20 ...
3–0 at Carrow Road
Carrow Road is an association football stadium located in Norwich, Norfolk, England, and is the home of EFL Championship side Norwich City. The stadium is located toward the east of the city, near Norwich railway station and the River Wensum.
N ...
on 16 April, closing the gap on 17th-place Norwich to just one point. Allardyce successfully led Sunderland to safety from relegation after beating Everton 3–0 on 11 May, a result which also ensured the relegation of rivals (and one of his former clubs) Newcastle United. Allardyce earned praise for his management of Sunderland from some pundit
A pundit is a person who offers mass media opinion or commentary on a particular subject area (most typically politics, the social sciences, technology or sport).
Origins
The term originates from the Sanskrit term ('' '' ), meaning "knowledg ...
s, particularly for his organized approach and emphasis on a strong defence
Defense or defence may refer to:
Tactical, martial, and political acts or groups
* Defense (military), forces primarily intended for warfare
* Civil defense, the organizing of civilians to deal with emergencies or enemy attacks
* Defense industr ...
.
England
On 22 July 2016, Allardyce signed a two-year contract to become manager of the England national team. He won his first and only game in charge on 4 September, as anAdam Lallana
Adam David Lallana ( ; born 10 May 1988) is an English professional footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder for club Brighton & Hove Albion.
Lallana began his youth career with AFC Bournemouth before transferring to Southampton in 200 ...
goal deep into injury-time was enough to beat Slovakia
Slovakia (; sk, Slovensko ), officially the Slovak Republic ( sk, Slovenská republika, links=no ), is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the s ...
on the opening day of qualification
Qualification is either the process of qualifying for an achievement, or a credential attesting to that achievement, and may refer to:
* Professional qualification, attributes developed by obtaining academic degrees or through professional exper ...
for the 2018 FIFA World Cup
The 2018 FIFA World Cup was the 21st FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial world championship for men's national Association football, football teams organized by FIFA. It took place in Russia from 14 June to 15 July 2018, after the country was awa ...
. Following allegations of malpractice, Allardyce left the role by mutual consent on 27 September, having managed the team for just 67 days and one match.
Crystal Palace
On 23 December 2016, Allardyce signed a two-and-a-half-year contract to become manager of Crystal Palace
Crystal Palace may refer to:
Places Canada
* Crystal Palace Complex (Dieppe), a former amusement park now a shopping complex in Dieppe, New Brunswick
* Crystal Palace Barracks, London, Ontario
* Crystal Palace (Montreal), an exhibition building ...
, a day after the sacking of Alan Pardew
Alan Scott Pardew (born 18 July 1961) is an English football manager and former professional footballer, who is the current manager of Greek Super League club Aris.
Pardew's highest achievements in the sport include reaching the FA Cup Final th ...
. He strengthened in the January transfer window by spending around £30 million on Jeffrey Schlupp
Jeffrey Schlupp (; born 23 December 1992) is a professional footballer who plays as a forward or winger or occasional left back for club Crystal Palace and the Ghana national team.
Schlupp started his career as a striker.
Early life
Jef ...
, Patrick van Aanholt
Patrick John Miguel van Aanholt (; born 29 August 1990) is a Dutch professional footballer who plays as a left-back for Eredivisie club PSV, on loan from club Galatasaray, and the Netherlands national team.
He began his professional career ...
, and Luka Milivojević
Luka Milivojević ( sr-Cyrl, Лука Миливојевић, ; born 7 April 1991) is a Serbian professional footballer who last played as a midfielder for club Crystal Palace, where he was the captain. He was a member of the Serbia national te ...
. The "Eagles" confirmed their safety from relegation in the penultimate game of the 2016–17 season with a 4–0 victory over Hull City
Hull City Association Football Club is a professional Association football, football club based in Kingston upon Hull, Hull, East Riding of Yorkshire, England, that compete in the . They have played home games at the MKM Stadium since moving ...
at Selhurst Park
Selhurst Park is a football stadium in Selhurst in the London Borough of Croydon which is the home ground of Premier League side Crystal Palace. The stadium was designed by Archibald Leitch and opened in 1924. It has hosted international footba ...
. Allardyce unexpectedly announced his departure from Crystal Palace on 23 May 2017, saying he had no intention of seeking another job, in what was interpreted as a retirement announcement. However, on 19 July 2017, Allardyce clarified that he would be open to an international management position, but not another club job.
Everton
Despite previously announcing his retirement from club management, on 30 November 2017, Allardyce was appointed manager of Everton on an 18-month contract. Everton were lying in thirteenth place in thePremier League
The Premier League (legal name: The Football Association Premier League Limited) is the highest level of the men's English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Foo ...
table upon his arrival, following a poor start to the 2017–18 Everton F.C. season, 2017–18 season under previous manager Ronald Koeman. His first game in charge came two days later, when his side defeated Huddersfield Town
Huddersfield Town Association Football Club is a professional football club based in Huddersfield, West Yorkshire, England, which compete in the . The team have played home games at the Kirklees Stadium since moving from Leeds Road in 1994. The ...
in a 2–0 victory. He guided the "Toffees" to a seven-game unbeaten run at the start of his tenure, a spell which included five clean sheets. Having steadied the defence, he stated that his next task was to bring in a consistent goalscorer. Everton ended the season in eighth-position, but fans were dissatisfied with the style of play. Whilst under Allardyce's management, Everton were ranked 20th for total shots, 19th for total shots on target, 16th for passing accuracy and 17th for shots faced in the Premier League. Allardyce left the club on 16 May 2018.
In July 2019, Allardyce said that he had turned down the opportunity to return to Newcastle United to succeed Rafael Benítez as manager.
West Bromwich Albion
On 16 December 2020, Allardyce was appointed manager of West Bromwich Albion on an 18-month contract after Slaven Bilić was sacked with the club 19th in the Premier League table. His time as manager began with West Brom losing 3–0 at home to Aston Villa F.C.–West Bromwich Albion F.C. rivalry, local rivalsAston Villa
Aston Villa Football Club is a professional football club based in Aston, Birmingham, England. The club competes in the , the top tier of the English football league system. Founded in 1874, they have played at their home ground, Villa Park ...
on 20 December with defender Jake Livermore being sent-off in the first half for a bad foul on Jack Grealish. BBC correspondent Simon Stone reported after the match that "Allardyce has his work cut out... the size of this task [avoiding relegation] cannot be overstated". It took until his sixth game in charge for West Brom to record a victory, when they won 3–2 away at Black Country derby rivals Wolverhampton Wanderers. In the same month, he testified that it would kill him if he was relegated with West Brom and that he was aware of the health risks of returning to the managerial position.
In January 2021, Allardyce said three transfers for West Bromwich Albion F.C. had fallen through as, following Brexit, the players would not have been able to obtain a work permit. In the same month, it was reported that Allardyce could not get the hoped for reinforcements. He had wanted to sign another two players before the transfer window closed. Despite picking up some notable results, such as a memorable 5–2 away victory against Chelsea F.C., Chelsea, he was unable to keep West Brom in the Premier League, as they were relegated to the Championship on 9 May following a 3–1 away defeat against Arsenal F.C., Arsenal. This marked Allardyce's first relegation from the Premier League in his career. On 19 May, following a 3–1 defeat to West Ham United, Allardyce confirmed he would step down as manager at the end of the 2020–21 West Bromwich Albion F.C. season, 2020–21 season, despite the club stating their desire for him to continue as manager next season.
Charity matches
Allardyce was the Manager for the England teams at Soccer Aid in 2012, 2014, 2016, 2018, 2019, and 2020. On 14 November 2021, Allardyce took part in a charity match to help raise money for the Mother ofBolton Wanderers
Bolton Wanderers Football Club () is a professional football club based in Horwich, Bolton, Greater Manchester, England, which competes in . The club played at Burnden Park for 102 years from 1895 after moving from their original home at Pike's ...
player Gethin Jones (footballer, born 1995), Gethin Jones, who had been diagnosed with Motor neuron disease. The current Bolton first team played against a team consisting of legendary Bolton players, with Allardyce acting as Manager of the Legends team. The Bolton first team won 7–4.
Managerial style
Allardyce is a keen proponent of sports science and using technology and innovative techniques in coaching his teams, such as computerised performance analysis and yoga. Martin Hardy of ''The Independent'' described him as "one of the pioneers of sports science in English football". Former players and pundits have cited his preparation as his main strength, which allows his teams to have better organisation and defensive stability. Former Bolton playerKevin Davies
Kevin Cyril Davies (born 26 March 1977) is an English former professional footballer who played as a striker for Chesterfield, Southampton, Blackburn Rovers, Millwall, Bolton Wanderers and Preston North End. He managed Southport in the 201 ...
also highlighted Allardyce's man-management skills as a strength.
Allardyce has a reputation for using long ball
In association football, a long ball is an attempt to move the ball a long distance down the field via one long aerial kick from either a goalkeeper or a defender directly to an attacking player, with the ball generally bypassing the midfield. R ...
tactics, though he has said that this perception is "totally and utterly wrong". Former Newcastle player Lee Clark (footballer), Lee Clark defended Allardyce from criticism of his tactics and said that Allardyce was right to work hard on set-plays and on the organisation of his team. His talent for getting the best out of modest squads also gave him a reputation as a "survival specialist" who could steer a struggling Premier League club out of the relegation zone.
Criticism of his perceived long-ball tactics became more intense as he managed West Ham United in the Premier League, including discontent from West Ham's own supporters. In January 2014, following a 0–0 draw at Stamford Bridge (stadium), Stamford Bridge, Chelsea F.C., Chelsea manager, José Mourinho criticised West Ham's football, likening it to "football from the 19th century". In October 2014, Allardyce claimed his reputation for playing long ball football was "not founded in fact" and had been used as an excuse by opposing managers such as Arsène Wenger, David O'Leary, Graeme Souness and Rafael Benítez following defeats by sides managed by Allardyce. Allardyce wrote in his autobiography that "when they hit a 50-yard ball it was a cultural pass; when we did it, it was a hopeful hoof". In 2021, Allardyce was described by Pep Guardiola as a genius for his ability to save clubs from relegation.
Personal life
He met his wife Lynne Ward while still a youth team player at Bolton Wanderers, and the pair married on 1 June 1974. They have a son, Craig (9 June 1975), and daughter, Rachael (21 April 1979). He was given an honorary doctorate by the University of Bolton in July 2010. In addition to his football career, Allardyce has also run a number of businesses, including a motor spares firm, a fast-food restaurant, a social club, a public house, pub, a piano bar, and a pub restaurant. He published his autobiography, ''Big Sam'', in October 2015. In January 2013, Allardyce received "substantial", but undisclosed, damages from former Blackburn Rovers managerSteve Kean
Stephen Kean (born 30 September 1967) is a Scottish football coach and former player, who is currently the academy director at Hibernian. Kean played as a winger for clubs in the lower divisions of Scottish, English and Portuguese leagues i ...
. In 2011, Kean had been recorded in a bar in Hong Kong alleging that Allardyce had been sacked from his post at Blackburn Rovers because he was a "crook".
In May 2019, Allardyce's grandson, also named Sam, signed for Oxford United F.C., Oxford United having previously been a youth team player with Manchester United
Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of City of Salford, Salford to ...
and Bury
Bury may refer to:
*The burial of human remains
*-bury, a suffix in English placenames
Places England
* Bury, Cambridgeshire, a village
* Bury, Greater Manchester, a town, historically in Lancashire
** Bury (UK Parliament constituency) (1832–19 ...
.
Corruption allegations
2006 ''Panorama'' investigation
On 19 September 2006, Allardyce, and his son, Craig, were implicated in aBBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC
Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...Panorama
A panorama (formed from Greek πᾶν "all" + ὅραμα "view") is any wide-angle view or representation of a physical space, whether in painting, drawing, photography, film, seismic images, or 3D modeling. The word was originally coined in ...
'' documentary, ''Undercover: Football's Dirty Secrets'', which alleged that he had taken bribes from agents for signing certain players. Two agents, Teni Yerima and Peter Harrison (footballer), Peter Harrison, were secretly filmed, each separately claiming that they had paid Allardyce through his son. Allardyce denied ever taking, or asking for, a bribe. Others implicated of wrongdoing were Harry Redknapp, Kevin Bond (English footballer), Kevin Bond, and Frank Arnesen. As a result of the allegation, Allardyce refused to speak to the BBC. While he also stated he was going to sue the broadcaster to clear his name, Allardyce failed to issue libel proceedings as he was advised that suing for damage to reputation was a costly and time-consuming process. The final report of the 2006 allegations of corruption in English football#Stevens report, Stevens inquiry published in June 2007 expressed concerns regarding the involvement of Craig Allardyce in a number of transactions, stating that: "The inquiry remains concerned at the conflict of interest that it believes existed between Craig Allardyce, his father Sam Allardyce—the then manager at Bolton—and the club itself." Allardyce stated that the inquiry was a public relations exercise and that the conclusion of a "conflict of interest" was "innuendo, without any facts".
2014 Ravel Morrison situation
In February 2014, Daniel Taylor (journalist), Daniel Taylor, chief football writer for ''The Guardian
''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
'' and ''The Observer'', wrote that West Ham player and England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
prospect Ravel Morrison felt he had come "under considerable pressure" from Allardyce to sign up with football agent Mark Curtis, who represented Allardyce himself and a number of other West Ham players, including Kevin Nolan
Kevin Anthony Jance Nolan (born 24 June 1982) is an English former professional footballer and current first team coach for Premier League club West Ham United. He has represented England at under-21 level.
After growing up in Toxteth, Live ...
, James Tomkins (footballer), James Tomkins, Jack Collison, Matt Jarvis
Matthew Thomas Jarvis (born 22 May 1986) is an English former professional footballer who played as a winger.
After an unsuccessful spell as a youth-team player for Millwall, Jarvis began his professional career with Gillingham, making his ...
, Andy Carroll
Andrew Thomas Carroll (born 6 January 1989) is an English professional footballer who plays as a striker for Championship side Reading. He has played in the Premier League and English Football League for Newcastle United, Preston North End, Liv ...
, and Jussi Jääskeläinen
Jussi Albert Jääskeläinen (; born 19 April 1975) is a Finnish football coach and retired footballer who played as a goalkeeper.
During his career, Jääskeläinen most notably represented Bolton Wanderers from 1997 until 2012, making 530 app ...
. Curtis had been charged and eventually cleared by the Football Association during the 2006 English football corruption investigation#2008 investigations, 2008 investigation into Luton Town's illegal transfer dealings. Curtis responded to the allegations by saying they were "nonsense", while Allardyce talked of Morrison complaining about "a groin injury" while the club's medical staff could find "no problem", and made a reference to the player's "disciplinary issues in the past". Morrison was eventually loaned out to Championship
In sport, a championship is a competition in which the aim is to decide which individual or team is the champion.
Championship systems
Various forms of competition can be referred to by the term championship.
Title match system
In this system ...
side Queens Park Rangers F.C., Queens Park Rangers for the remainder of the 2013–14 season.
2016 ''Daily Telegraph'' investigation
In September 2016, ''Daily Telegraph
Daily or The Daily may refer to:
Journalism
* Daily newspaper, newspaper issued on five to seven day of most weeks
* ''The Daily'' (podcast), a podcast by ''The New York Times''
* ''The Daily'' (News Corporation), a defunct US-based iPad new ...
'' reporters posing as businessmen filmed Allardyce, who had recently been appointed the manager
Management (or managing) is the administration of an organization, whether it is a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government body. It is the art and science of managing resources of the business.
Management includes the activities o ...
of the England national football team, England football team, allegedly offering to give advice on how to get around on The Football Association, FA rules on player third party ownership and negotiating a £400,000 deal, subject to FA approval. As a result, he left his job as England manager by mutual agreement with the FA after just one game in charge.
Robert Sullivan, Director of Strategy at the FA, later confirmed to the Commons Culture, Media and Sport Select Committee that Allardyce's comments were "a factual, correct statement around the laws of the English game and having third-party ownership"
Following a review by City of London Police, Allardyce was cleared of any wrongdoing, with ''The Daily Telegraph'' also clarifying that it "did not suggest that Allardyce had broken the law", though he agreed that he had been "a fool".
Speaking to ''The Observer'', Martin Glen, CEO of the FA, said that "it is a tragedy that we have ended up having to part company with him [Allardyce] over the, the – you know – entrapment".
Career statistics
Club
Source: :A. The "Other" column constitutes appearances and goals in theLeague Cup
In several sports, most prominently association football, a league cup or secondary cup generally signifies a cup competition for which entry is restricted only to teams in a particular league. The first national association football tournament t ...
, EFL Trophy, Football League Trophy, and Full Members Cup.
Managerial statistics
Honours
Player
Bolton Wanderers *Football League Second Division: 1977–78 Football League Second Division, 1977–78 Preston North End *Football League Fourth Division promotion: 1986–87 Football League Fourth Division, 1986–87 Individual *PFA Team of the Year
The Professional Footballers' Association Team of the Year (often called the PFA Team of the Year, or simply the Team of the Year) is an annual award given to a set of 55 footballers across the top four tiers of men's English football; the Premie ...
: PFA Team of the Year (1980s)#Fourth Division 8, 1986–87 Fourth Division
Manager
Limerick *League of Ireland First Division
The League of Ireland First Division ( ga, Céad Roinn Sraith na hÉireann), also known as the SSE Airtricity League First Division, is the second level division in both the League of Ireland and the Republic of Ireland football league system. Th ...
: 1991–92 League of Ireland First Division, 1991–92
Notts County
*Football League Third Division: 1997–98 Football League Third Division, 1997–98
Bolton Wanderers
*EFL Championship play-offs, Football League First Division play-offs: 2001 Football League play-offs#First Division, 2001
West Ham United
*EFL Championship play-offs, Football League Championship play-offs: 2012 Football League play-offs#Championship, 2012
Individual
*Football League First Division Manager of the Month: January 2001
*Premier League Manager of the Month
The Premier League Manager of the Month is an association football award that recognises the best adjudged Premier League manager each month of the season. The winner is chosen by a combination of an online public vote, which contributes to ...
: 2001–02 FA Premier League#Monthly awards, August 2001, 2003–04 FA Premier League#Monthly awards, November 2003, January 2004, 2006–07 FA Premier League#Monthly awards, December 2006, 2013–14 Premier League#Monthly awards, February 2014, 2014–15 Premier League#Monthly awards, October 2014
References
General * SpecificExternal links
* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Allardyce, Sam 1954 births Living people English people of Scottish descent Sportspeople from Dudley English footballers Association football central defenders Dudley Town F.C. players Bolton Wanderers F.C. players Sunderland A.F.C. players Millwall F.C. players Tampa Bay Rowdies (1975–1993) players Coventry City F.C. players Huddersfield Town A.F.C. players Preston North End F.C. players West Bromwich Albion F.C. players West Bromwich Albion F.C. non-playing staff Limerick F.C. players English expatriate footballers English expatriate sportspeople in the United States English expatriate sportspeople in Ireland Expatriate soccer players in the United States Expatriate association footballers in the Republic of Ireland English Football League players North American Soccer League (1968–1984) players League of Ireland players Association football coaches Bury F.C. non-playing staff English football managers Limerick F.C. managers Preston North End F.C. non-playing staff Preston North End F.C. managers Blackpool F.C. managers Sunderland A.F.C. non-playing staff Notts County F.C. managers Bolton Wanderers F.C. managers Newcastle United F.C. managers Blackburn Rovers F.C. managers West Ham United F.C. managers Sunderland A.F.C. managers England national football team managers Crystal Palace F.C. managers Everton F.C. managers West Bromwich Albion F.C. managers League of Ireland managers English Football League managers Premier League managers English expatriate football managers Expatriate football managers in the Republic of Ireland People with dyslexia Alumni of the University of Bolton English association football commentators English autobiographers Association football controversies