Envious Sam bows to Fowler’s finish
5:51pm Monday 10th April 2006 in Sport By Gordon Sharrock
ALTHOUGH Sam Allardyce had just seen birthday boy Robbie Fowler single-handedly tear the heart out of his Wanderers side with a typically clinical finish he could still find nothing but praise for the former Toxteth terror.
Now 31, Fowler's blonde streaks and Spice Boy' days might be over, but the man who has done more damage to Wanderers than any other striker in the Premiership era is still capable of grabbing the headlines.
Fowler's snapshot deep into first-half injury time was the former England hitman's 12th goal in 13 appearances against Bolton.
"When you look at the goal, it is probably what Robbie Fowler is all about," admitted Allardyce, who was on his way to deliver his half-time team-talk when Fowler struck.
"He mishit it, and it has bobbled into the corner, but that is why he has scored so many goals. Even if he mishits them, he makes sure they are on target."
With Fowler's contract up for renewal in the summer, Liverpool have kept tight-lipped as to whether they will retain his services beyond this season. Asked whether Wanderers would be interested in bringing him to the Reebok, Allardyce said the decision would likely be out of his hands.
"Depends what the big number is," he said, referring to Fowler's reported £28,000-a-week wages. "You would always want to think about a goalscorer like him, but if he keeps scoring goals for Liverpool then they will want to keep him themselves."
In the end, Allardyce was left reflecting on a string of missed opportunities earlier in the game, which were magnified by the savage timing of Fowler's strike.
"When you look at what could have been," he said, "Kevin Nolan's opportunity from Abdoulaye Faye's header, and then Stelios had an even better chance probably the best of the game for either side.
"The last thing I thought at half time was that we would be a goal down, but we have allowed that to happen. That really killed us off.
"They tried as hard as they could after that, but never really believed they could get there. It's a shame after creating so much early on.
"There is a real down' feeling within the players at the moment that I can sense and that is because even though the performances have been there, the results haven't and that knocks confidence."
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