SAM Allardyce believes Wanderers are paying the price for a lack of investment in the squad.

The former Bolton and England boss, who still lives in the town, claims the strategy of selling players like Rob Holding, Zach Clough and Gary Madine to keep the club afloat has been done without adequately re-investing the money in the playing squad and is now catching up with his former club.

“I feel sorry for Phil Parkinson and Steve Parkin, who are there working every hour God sends to try and keep them in the Championship, because that’s all they can expect this year,” he said on TalkSport.

“The fact of the matter is that Ken Anderson doesn’t have enough financial clout to run a football club like Bolton Wanderers.

“It has been a basis of ‘who can we sell’? And then you don’t buy anyone else, so you are bound to end up where you are.

“It was a miracle that Phil and Steve Parkin got them into the Championship, they did an unbelievable job. It was another miracle last year that they stayed up in the Championship and unfortunately Mr Anderson has been unable to find a buy or two to take the club on from there. He can no longer rely on Bolton Wanderers surviving by selling players.”