Sam Allardyce admits the biggest issue Bolton Wanderers face in the desire to continue climbing back up the football pyramid is going to be finance as he admits he was 'staggered' by recent Premier League spending levels.
Wanderers won promotion to League One last season after being in the fourth tier of English football for the first time in more than 30 years in the 202/21 season.
Ian Evatt's side clinched a top three place and secured automatic promotion back to League One.
READ MORE: Bolton Wanderers player ratings v Crewe Alex as Amadou Bakayoko and Lloyd Isgrove impress in win
The club is one of several big names in the third tier this season and is seeking a return to the Championship as soon as possible.
Allardyce, who managed the club to some of its finest hours in the top flight in the 2000s and leading the club into Europe, believes finance is going to be the biggest issue Wanderers face in aiming to continue their climb back up the football pyramid.
And the former Bolton manager admits he is 'staggered' by the spending levels in the Premier League amid the coronavirus pandemic despite the hit that finances in the game took by it.
He said: "The biggest problem is going to be finance. The owners now have got a real difficult task – the fact that you need investment in any business, and I’m sure they are investing every penny they possibly can.
"So I think it needs to be a slow build process for the Wanderers, not that you can anymore – with Financial Fair Play – find somebody who can come and put millions and millions of pounds in.
"It all has to be done with the right infrastructure from top to bottom - the right owners, the right manager, buying the right players at the right time and gradually working your way back as far as you can possibly go.
"With a good infrastructure and good support and management on and off the field, you can strive for success.
"It’s been a hugely difficult time. I don’t quite know why nobody ever came to buy the club sooner. I don’t know the ins and outs of it of course, but there seemed to be several times when people seemed to be stepping in and I’m thinking, ‘why are people buying other clubs and nobody is buying Wanderers?’
"Based on where it is, the facilities you’ve got, it doesn’t need a new stadium to be built, it needs some work on the training ground and a bit of investment in the team and they could get back in the Premier League.
"They own the ground and the car parks and the surrounding area – the perfect spot for a football club to be in, the biggest town in the county and a great bunch of fans that love to get behind the team.
"But it never materialised to the point where they kept going further and further down.
"I’m staggered by the spending levels after the pandemic. I thought it would have kicked in that the size of these transfers would start to reduce based on the amount of money football clubs lost.
"West Brom lost about £23m when I was there, and they are run on a very, very tight budget which generally doesn’t lose money.
"Somewhere along the line you’ve got to get that back, and that’s why I thought that the spending power and size of the contracts might (decrease).
"Maybe next time when it kicks in a bit more – because it’s a long recovery from everybody, particularly football because they didn’t particularly get any help from the government. They take all the money but don’t give anything back."
Allardyce will be back in the dugout this weekend in a charity game this Sunday when a Wanderers All Stars side which he will manage containing legends such as Jay-Jay Okocha, Kevin Davies and Ivan Campo, will take to the pitch once again in Bolton shirts to take on the current Whites team.
The match is part of fundraising for the treatment of Wanderers defender Gethin Jones' mother, Karen, who has been diagnosed with motor neurone disease (MND).
The family are aiming to pursue the best current care and leading course of treatment which is available only in the United States.
Allardyce is pleased to be back at his old stomping ground and believes there is no better way to raise money for a good cause with a game which will see a return of some of the greatest players ever to don a Wanderers shirt back to the University of Bolton Stadium.
He said: "It’s great. It hasn’t changed much. The drive up brought back some very happy memories for me and coming through those doors does bring back those wonderful days we spent together.
"Obviously for Karen, it’s a terrible time for her at the moment, and for Gethin of course, but for the club to allow this to happen to try and raise that money, it’s why we’re all here.
"What we want to do is put on some great entertainment and raise as much money as we can so everyone can enjoy themselves.
"I don’t think there’s a better way to raise money for a good cause, rather than just giving to charity we’re also giving something back, a little bit of entertainment and for people to come on Sunday and probably remember when they were a lot younger when they were on the terraces watching the players.
"So it’s a great idea that was put together and a lot of hard work has gone on behind the scenes."
Tickets are priced at £5 and £10 for the 1pm kick-off on Sunday, November 14, and are still available HERE
