Nolan recalls Allardyce bond and heartbreak when he stepped down

Former Wanderers favourite Kevin Nolan says Sam Allardyce has been a “father figure” during his career.

The pair initially worked together at Bolton and later reunited at later reunited at West Ham as the London club regained its Premier League status.

“For me, he was a father figure in football,” Nolan told No Tippy Tappy Football. “The gaffer knows all my family and how close we are, I still to this day look back at texts he used to send me.

“I know he is always there for me on the other end of the phone and that is unbelievable.

“Talking about Bolton, the gaffer was the focus and we were led by him. We believed in him because of what he brought to all of us, he made us all better.”

Big Sam took the bold decision to hand Nolan the captain’s armband at just 23 years of age following his impressive form for the Whites. Jay Jay Okocha had been the previous skipper.

“Nobby didn’t get enough credit for what he was and what he did,” the former Wanderers boss explained.

“There was a lot of talk about whether he could handle (the captaincy) because he was 23, but he always looked comfortable.

“There are a lot of people you can make captain and it puts them off their game, the responsibility makes them play worse rather than better. But he had big, broad shoulders and could handle the responsibility.

“Bolton was fine, it was all smooth, plain sailing and the only thing we needed was more investment from the board. If we had that and they weren’t so tight, we would have gone to the Champions League.

“We were ready for it, we were nearly there. That spoilt it because it stopped me being at Bolton Wanderers.

“It made me make the biggest decision of my life – to listen to my head and not my heart. My head said if you don’t leave now, it will all go wrong and unfortunately it did.”

Big Sam and Nolan reunited at West Ham (Image: PA)

Gary Speed was the vice-captain, although Nolan got a brief taste of captaincy while he and Okocha were out injured.

“I remember a game at Charlton, I had been captain because they had both been out,” the 42-year-old recalled.

“When I got there, (Allardyce) had told Speedo I was going to be captain but he hadn’t said anything. I got there and the armband was on my kit.

“I looked at Speedo and he said, ‘You’re captain today’. The emotion that went through me was unbelievable, I turned around to look at him and he had been waiting for it.

“I led the team out and scored a goal. The week after, he gave me the captaincy and I remember being in tears because of how much it meant that he trusted me with that. I was always going to do anything and everything I could for him.”

Big Sam’s Bolton tenure came to an end in 2007 following a disagreement with the board over the funds at his disposal.

It was a tough one for Nolan to take, although it would not be the last time the pair worked together in football.

“It broke my heart when he said he was going to be leaving,” Nolan admitted. “I remember going home and telling my dad, ‘I don’t know what I’m going to do. The boss shouldn’t be leaving us, we need him’.

“He said that he would be leaving too because of the financial restrictions (Allardyce) was put under. He was getting everything out of us.

“People talk about Arsene Wenger bringing things into football but what we were doing with the size of our squad - and getting the last bits out of lads who were supposedly finished - was unbelievable. That was due to him building a great backroom staff.”

Allardyce had stints in charge at Newcastle and North West neighbours Blackburn Rovers before heading to West Ham in 2011.

There were a few raised eyebrows when Nolan stepped down to the Championship to reunite with his former boss.

“Kevin came to West Ham, he dropped down from the Premier League with Newcastle to come into a difficult period,” Allardyce added.

“He said, ‘I’ll handle the dressing room, you get on with managing’. I didn’t want any tittle-tattle, I just needed to know if there was big stuff causing a problem.

“He was a good captain on and off the field, he was one of the main reasons we won promotion and kept West Ham in the Premier League for three years.”

Nolan re-joined the Hammers in 2020 as David Moyes’ backroom staff but has now left the club following Julen Lopetegui’s appointment.