SAM ALLARDYCE has revealed that Bolton Wanderers are close to signing Nicolas Anelka - but must wait for his club Fenerbache to ratify the deal.
The Wanderers boss' long, patient search for a proven goalscorer appears to be on the verge of being fruitful after the former Arsenal and Manchester City frontman confirmed his desire to come to the Reebok Stadium.
But with the player still under contract in Turkey, Wanderers must wait for the green light from Fenerbahce before they can proceed.
"It's no secret that we are trying to sign him but we are in the hands of Fenerbahce until that side of the agreement gets sorted out," said Allardyce.
He added: "We are flattered that Nicolas Anelka would consider joining us as he has expressed - but that is all it is at the moment. Until his club tells us that we can get on with the deal we are really in their hands.
"The deal has been negotiated for a considerable period of time. We've given more time to this than anything else but we can't quite get the president of Fenerbahce to put the rubberstamp on it."
However, Allardyce is concerned that news of the player's interest could alert other clubs and possibly jeopardise the deal.
He added: "Hopefully, that will be done sooner rather than later because when something like this becomes public, it concerns me quite considerably because it could alert other clubs to join in the race and spoil all the negotiations we've had. There's nothing we can do about that other than keep our fingers crossed."
SAM ALLARDYCE has revealed that Bolton Wanderers are close to signing Nicolas Anelka - but must wait for his club Fenerbache to ratify the deal.
The Wanderers boss' long, patient search for a proven goalscorer appears to be on the verge of being fruitful after the former Arsenal and Manchester City frontman confirmed his desire to come to the Reebok Stadium.
But with the player still under contract in Turkey, Wanderers must wait for the green light from Fenerbahce before they can proceed.
"It's no secret that we are trying to sign him but we are in the hands of Fenerbahce until that side of the agreement gets sorted out," said Allardyce.
He added: "We are flattered that Nicolas Anelka would consider joining us as he has expressed - but that is all it is at the moment. Until his club tells us that we can get on with the deal we are really in their hands.
"The deal has been negotiated for a considerable period of time. We've given more time to this than anything else but we can't quite get the president of Fenerbahce to put the rubberstamp on it."
However, Allardyce is concerned that news of the player's interest could alert other clubs and possibly jeopardise the deal.
He added: "Hopefully, that will be done sooner rather than later because when something like this becomes public, it concerns me quite considerably because it could alert other clubs to join in the race and spoil all the negotiations we've had. There's nothing we can do about that other than keep our fingers crossed."