By Ian Smith
For all the talent Bryan Robson brought to Middlesbrough over his seven years in charge on Teesside, you would be hard pushed to find anyone who'd argue that it wasn't Juninho who proved to be Robbo's finest hour in his many forays into the foreign market.
And whilst I wouldn't necessarily disagree, it's actually one of his final throws of the exotic dice that has left the biggest impression on me.
A player who at times looked disinterested, sometimes bordering on 'downing tools' proportions, he was rumoured to have a 40-a-day habit. Add to that his injury record and the much talked about £63,000 a week salary (though this was flatly denied by Robson), it's easy to see why some fans might have found it difficult to warm to him.
In fact, my father often described him as a “lazy bugger”, citing that disengaged persona he carried with him on the pitch from time to time as reason enough to justify such labels.
However, his two and a half years in the Boro red brought some absolutely masterful displays and some real memorable goals.
Of course, the man I'm referencing here is a Croat legend, European Cup winner and a player who once came fourth in the Ballon d'Or. He's won multiple Serie A titles as well as 40 caps for his country, garnering a respectable one in four strike rate.
That man is Alen Bokšić.
A Risk That Paid Off
In what proved to be Robson's final season in the Boro dugout, his proclivity for a maverick led him to Bokšić, a player who'd had quite the career, especially in Italy's top division. It was from one of its leading teams in Lazio that the Croatian made the unlikely switch to Premier League Boro.
Fresh off the back of his most successful season of his two spells at the Stadio Olimpico, Bokšić arrived on Teesside ready for the 2000/01 season having celebrated winning the Serie A title, Coppa Italia and the UEFA Super Cup. Credentials that could've earned him a move to some major players in one of Europe's top leagues, but like so many before him, he was wooed by Robson (and no doubt a healthy wage packet – just not £63k) and the chance to be a hero.
He didn't come without risk, but what player doesn’t? However, like most transfers of this type throughout Robson's reign, he arrived with a greater risk than the more everyday signings. Whilst not extensive, his history with injuries had hampered him at times during his career up to that point. And now arriving at Boro approaching his 31st birthday, the frequency of such occurrences would only increase.
That said, the relatively small £2.5m outlay did reflect this, and boy did we get some moments of pure magic for that.
It didn't take long for the Croat to announce himself to The Boro faithful, hitting a double on his debut away at Coventry in a 3-1 victory. Adding to that his assist for fellow new man Joseph- Désiré Job, it was clear we had some player on our hands.
Both goals were well-taken efforts, especially the second one, a neat flick over the onrushing Magnus Hedman. Such finishes were a sign of things to come, Bokšić displaying the air of someone who had ice running through their veins. Rather delightfully his goal celebrations carried on the cool theme, barely looking flustered as his fellow teammates mobbed him.
He immediately showed an arrogance, but one that was befitting of someone with such talent as he had the skills to back it up.
As he looked around him he may have been forgiven for thinking he'd made the wrong move. Once part of a Lazio trio that included him, Giuseppe Signori and one time Chelsea man Pierluigi Casaraghi, he was now among such players as Brian Deane, Noel Whelan and Hamilton Ricard. Good players in their own right, but with respect they were a far cry from some of the stars Bokšić had shared a changing room with over the years previous.
But if he did, he didn't show it. Unflappable, emotionless at times, cracks of a smile were rare, although when he did decide to give us a grin it was a delight to see.
His form in the early stages of his debut season was impressive, carrying on from his opening day heroics he found the net away at Derby in a 3-3 draw before grabbing another brace away at Southampton as Boro once more scored three on the road in a 3-1 win.
For those not familiar with his style before he rocked up at The Riverside, you'd be forgiven for thinking he would be rather slow, lumbering even. An ungainly figure, he actually had an electric turn of pace over 30-40 yards, gliding past players as if they weren't there at times.
His first goal at The Dell that autumn afternoon displayed those qualities perfectly.
Chasing a long ball forward by Christian Karembeu, he found himself running towards the by-line before cutting back inside, ghosting past two Saints defenders before unleashing a measured effort with his weaker foot as he ran away from goal that found the keepers' bottom right.
It all looked so effortless.
Pure Theatre
However, the niggly injuries that had hampered periods of his illustrious career to date began to take hold. That, as well as an extremely worrying loss of form on the team front, meant Bokšić’s impact wavered, at least until Terry Venables arrived on the scene, signalling the beginning of the end of Robson's reign.
Almost immediately the form returned, and a purple patch of four in three games, including a brace in the 4-0 home thrashing of Derby, signalled the front man was back in business.
And as Boro looked to be steering clear of relegation, Bokšić turned on the style – big time.
A delightful double in the Tyne-Tees derby away at St James' Park gave Boro a 2-1 win, with a stunning free-kick further proof that when his head was on it he could produce moments of magic worthy of the biggest of stages – rather fitting given his goals at times were pure theatre.
He saved his best till last though as Boro romped to a 3-0 victory at Filbert Street to dispatch Leicester City.
Picking up the ball deep inside his own half after wrestling back possession, he proceeded to run at The Foxes, given far too much space. As he approached the oppositions penalty area, he spotted the keeper barely off his line, and without a moment’s hesitation he chipped the ball over the City stopper.
A look over his career will tell you he had a thing for chipping keepers, an art form he'd perfected wonderfully, and the strike at Leicester is the first goal I think of whenever his name is mentioned. It's unerring beauty is enough to bring out goosebumps every time, and once again that fuss-free celebration was on show, barely a flicker of emotion, almost as if to him it was merely just a job.
But to a fan like me it was what made him an icon.
He finished the campaign with 12 goals in 28 games, a very good return for what had hardly been a season of plain sailing. His impact felt so much that he was crowned Supporters’ Player of the Season, reward and recognition of just what he had brought to the squad.
For all his talent and popularity though, talk of issues off the pitch didn't seem to be too far away at any point.
“Extremely High Standards”
If it wasn't the alleged smoking habit or the random trips back and forth to Croatia, talk about his overall professionalism and attitude to training was much talked about.
Gareth Southgate once stated there were “two sets of rules at Boro: rules for Alen and rules for the rest”. Southgate referenced times in pre-season where Boksic “walked away from the group and began his warm down exercises”, pointing to the Croat's apparent feeling that he had “done enough” before everyone else had finished.
Now, that sort of thing could be construed as disrespectful towards teammates, rebellious towards management, which at the time Southgate was referring to was under Steve McClaren who had replaced the outgoing Robson in the summer of 2001.
But it could also be looked at that he knew what was best for him, what was best for his ageing body. A fragile one at that given the injuries that were to come. Remember, this was a time not too long after, in relative terms, Fabrizio Ravanelli's stint at Boro, a player who was well known to be critical of the Club's lack of advancement in modern football's fitness methods. And whilst the building of the training ground had long been completed, it's not too outlandish to suggest that certain players, like Boksic, were coming from clubs who were still light years ahead in terms of player fitness regimes.
Andy Campbell, who was still a young striker at the club during Bokšić’s time there, explained to me that he was “a superb pro”, stating that “off the pitch he was very professional, with extremely high standards”.
Not hard to believe.
What would've been less obvious, though, will have been his willingness to impart wisdom on those like Campbell, young players at the opposite end of their careers to his. Campbell said how Boksic would “help younger players like myself in training”, showing a side that perhaps many probably didn't envisage.
The positive character references don't end there, Dean Windass, signed by Boro in the latter stages told the Evening Gazette how Bokšić was a “gentleman” who whilst being very well paid “stepped up to the plate”.
Despite all that he still had the feel of an enigmatic soul.
Injuries & Waning Influence
The two seasons that followed his first were at best a mixed bag for Bokšić. Despite notching eight goals in McClaren's debut season, a decent return once more, his effectiveness waned as did his fitness levels. Still he managed to grab some pretty vital goals, like the last minute penalty away at Chelsea to salvage a 2-2 draw, or the winners at Blackburn and more impressively at Old Trafford as Boro enjoyed another away day to remember against Manchester United.
Notching wins against Sunderland and Derby, a game which included another awe-inspiring chip, the frustration will have been all too familiar to Bokšić when injuries struck. His body never seeming to allow him a consistent run of games, he could've probably retired at the end of that season, but one would imagine he didn't mainly due to Croatia's participation in the 2002 World Cup.
A tournament that had eluded him up that point having missed out on his country's famous run to the semi-finals in 1998 (although he did make the squad – but didn't play – for Yugoslavia in 1990), he'll have been desperate for involvement in Japan and South Korea.
He got it, but lamentably his team’s performances in what was a much fancied group saw them crash out in the group phase, despite beating Italy.
At this point it would've been understandable had Boksic hung up his boots, after all, injuries had begun to take their toll, his last crack at international football had passed, and in reality he was never going to feature regularly for Boro given his lack of fitness – but he stayed on.
Despite his best efforts he failed to see out the 2002/03 season, eventually succumbing to his body's call for an end to his career in the February. But that wasn't without making 19 appearances in all competitions, although a return of just two goals was a significant reduction in tally to that of years gone by.
One of those two strikes was a rather fitting end to his career, though.
What had become classic Bokšić throughout his years as a professional at the highest level was with him right up till the end.
In the 3-1 home win against Man United he opened the scoring in typical, classy fashion. Following a through ball from Franck Queudrue, Bokšić showed a quick turn of pace to beat the offside trap, before deftly chipping the ball over Fabian Barthez.
It was an appropriate strike to sign off with, not that he knew it at the time. To finish with a tap in would've seemed rather unfair for a player who's career was built on cultured finishes and classy play. In fact, if anything, it displayed that even though he was in and out of the treatment room he was still more than capable of turning back the clock.
It was a rather cruel and tantalisingly way for him to finish as the realisation set in that this was his swansong.
In terms of a lasting impression, I think in part, down to his injury record, his languid style and perhaps the rumour mill that surrounded him throughout his time on Teesside, many will fail to remember him as a fondly as perhaps he should be.
Cynics will say he was the last of the many big name, bumper wage earning mercenaries that Robson brought in. But to me he was a player who not only wowed and excited, but his whole personality left me so full of intrigue. He was such a captivating presence.
When asked not too long back to name my all-time Middlesbrough XI, I included him ahead of the likes of Ravanelli, Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink and Mark Viduka, a player who was arguably very similar to Boksic.
To me, he was THAT good.
When asking for Campbell's thoughts on Bokšić he pretty much summed up how I feel about the former Hadjuk Split youngster;
“In my opinion he had the lot to be a world class player – pace, power, strength and he was an amazing finisher. He scored every type of goal, from the simple to the ridiculous. He would just glide past defenders like they weren't there”.
It was all those qualities that made me feel we were lucky, privileged even to see him play for us.
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