More signings on the way?

The Premiership-obsessed Whites appear determined to stop at nothing to preserve their status in the top flight.

Since the turn of the year they have splashed out big time to bring former German regular international Fredi Bobic, current Danish midfielder Stig Tofting and now the biggest name of them all, current World Cup and European Championship winners medal holder Youri Djorkaeff.

And in a masterstroke of management Wanderers have worked it so they will still have their financial heads well above water even if the unthinkable happens and they do get relegated.

Wanderers are believed to be paying Djorkaeff the biggest weekly wage in the club's history in the hope that he can help keep them up over the last 12 games.

But manager Sam Allardyce believes that is a drop in the ocean compared with what the club has to gain.

"I consider it minimal for what is at stake," said Big Sam.

"The deal is for the next four months which leaves the club with no financial commitment after that."

And chairman Phil Gartside, who has carefully balanced the club's finances to secure long term stability and a short term push to avoid the drop, said the figures - reported to be as much as £50,000 a week - did not cause him any headaches. "His people said what he wanted, we did the figures and then said let's do it," he said.

And suggesting it might not be the last deal with three weeks to go before transfer deadline day, he added: "If Sam comes to me with the right man and the money is right and the contract is right then we will look at it.

"Sam will never stop looking for new players. That's the way he is and he will try to convince me."

Allardyce added: "I think we have stretched ourselves financially but you never know what might turn up."

Allardyce also dismissed fears about Djorkaeff's match fitness and his reputation as a bad boy.

The striker has been frozen out at Kaiserslautern for several months after a row with coach Andreas Brehme.

"He has been doing all the training they have set out for him and I don't think there is any problem with his fitness," said Allardyce.

"There might be a problem with his match fitness but I think that can be caught up with very quickly."

"I see him as a link-up player as well as a goalscorer. We will see where he is most effective.

"He is a fantastic player with a fantastic record and he has a point to prove.

"The drive behind it is his ambition to prove Kaiserslautern wrong. He is not afraid to come into a relegation fight.

"I have dealt with players with reputations and who have got themselves into trouble in the past and they are a challenge.

"I think I am a pretty good judge of character and I think his problems were not a one-way thing.

"If there is any problem the players will sort him out. He is accepted into our dressing room and as long as he goes along with the rules and regulations he will be fine.

"He has the quality to get into the French World Cup squad. He just has to prove that he is ready by producing good performances week in week out.

"If you had told me 12 months ago that we were going to sign a player of his calibre I would have laughed at you.

"It's the same with Fredi Bobic and Stig Tofting.

"All three of them are the right characters and I think it makes the town sit up and the rest of the Premiership stand up and take notice.

"I am giving this club the best chance of staying up by bringing players in of this quality.

"I would have preferred to have brought players like Youri into the side after we beat Man United at Old Trafford and the reason we couldn't do it is because we are Bolton Wanderers and they didn't want to come to a club like us.

"The biggest problem with putting so many new players into the side together is going to be getting them to produce the highest level of quality they are capable of.

"It might not happen straightaway and we might have to be patient but the idea is to have them all playing together as well as they can when it matters."