Alonso joy at Whites switch
7:30am Wednesday 28th July 2010 in Sport By Marc Iles
NEW Wanderers signing Marcos Alonso reckons he’ll feel right at home in Bolton.
The 19-year-old Spaniard yesterday became Owen Coyle’s third capture of the summer after signing a three-year deal from Real Madrid worth £2.2million.
And the teenager has no concerns over adapting to his new surroundings because he is bringing his family with him to stay in Lancashire.
Alonso will live locally with his father – a former Spain international – mother, and two sisters aged 17 and seven, and he believes their presence will help him settle quickly into life with the Whites.
“It’s very good for me to have my family around me,” he said. “And I think it’s very good for them too. My sisters will learn English and my father will see another culture. It will be a great experience for all of us.”
Alonso turned down a move to Portuguese giants Benfica to move to the Premier League, and joins a list of Spaniards to play at the Reebok that includes Ivan Campo, Fernando Hierro and one of his distant relatives, Mikel Alonso.
“I talked to the coach and had a good feeling about Bolton,” he said. “They are a good team in the Premier League – the best league in the world. I will be very happy here.
“I did not know too much about Bolton before I came over but I do know of other Spanish players who have played here and heard some good things about the town.
“I had other options but sometimes you listen to your head and your heart, and I decided to come here.”
Alonso made one first-team appearance at the Bernabeu and was facing another season on the periphery of the senior squad until Coyle made his interest known. He admits it would have been a hard task to become a regular, with Gabriel Heinze and Marcelo ahead of him last term.
“It is difficult to play at the top at Real,” he said. “To come here is very good for me. I didn’t speak with [the new Real manager] Jose Mourinho. He spoke to the whole team on his first day but not with me alone.
“Maybe this year I would have stayed with the first team and played but I don’t know that. Here at Bolton, if I work very hard, I have that possibility. I hope I have taken the right option.”
Alonso revealed it is not the first time he has visited these shores, having been sent to England for consecutive summers as a 13 and 14-year-old to a Bobby Charlton-endorsed football school in Preston.
“I don’t know why but my mother wanted me to learn English, so she sent me to Preston on a summer camp. I played football and learned the language for two weeks.”
Coyle was delighted to have signed a player he had been monitoring for several months, and one he feels is capable of making a big impact at the Reebok.
“It was lengthy because he’s a fantastically talented player and there was a lot of interest from some top clubs in him,” he said.
“He could have easily sat on the bench at Madrid all year, but he wants to come and establish himself as a first-team player in the best league in the world. He has that drive, enthusiasm and commitment.
“It was a pleasure dealing with him, his representatives and his family. When a club as big as Benfica comes along it could easily have turned their head but they said to me they wanted to get on board at Bolton and I’m delighted to say they followed through.”
click2find
