Martin Petrov says he regrets signing for Bolton

When Martin Petrov left Bolton Wanderers for Barcelona in the January window to join Espanyol, it was a bittersweet moment for Bolton fans. On one hand, this was a player who absolutely should have been bossing the Championship with his pace, shot power, and ability on the ball. On the other, it was a player that never set the world on fire.

After 14 appearances in the Championship (eight from the bench) and three goals on the season, Petrov was off. The winger, who had provided a vital winner in Jimmy Phillips' first game in charge against Bristol City, could never carve out a place for himself in the side. At that point, Chung-Yong Lee was returning to full fitness while Chris Eagles was scoring left, right, and center and it didn't leave much of a place for the 34-year-old Bulgarian.

There was not one stretch of two consecutive games that Petrov started this season for Bolton. Despite being on large wages (by Bolton and Championship standards), Petrov could not establish himself under Owen Coyle, Jimmy Phillips, and Dougie Freedman. Then, he was off.

Now, for the first time since joining Espanyol (where he has made three appearances, coming on in all of them after the 65th minute, and being an unused substitute four times), Martin Petrov has said that his time at Bolton was a mistake. The interview, done with Omnisport Media, revealed:

"To be honest I think it was not a good choice for me and that's the first time I say that.

"I didn't have problems there but I think it was not good for me to sign there. Some strange situations happened there but I don't want to discuss that now."

Petrov had spent three largely anonymous years at Manchester City prior to that and with his family settled in Manchester, it made sense for him to sign with the Trotters on a free.

"I don't know why they were just like this with me. The managers, both manager, Owen Coyle, nothing against him personally and against new manager now.

"Every time when I show them what I can, and I know exactly what I can do on the pitch, especially in the Championship now, they tell me I don't have a place to play. Sorry, but I can't accept that."

When all was said and done though, Petrov left Bolton Wanderers on a free transfer to sign a six month deal with Espanyol. Bolton Wanderers were, for the most part, happy with the deal as it meant a non-playing footballer making a ton of money was now off the books.

The full interview is below:

The embedded video isn't working for everyone. To view the clip natively, follow the link here