Former Bolton Wanderers goalkeeper coach Fred Barber has recalled being blocked from signing Wojciech Szczsny.
Szczsny, now with Juventus, eventually moved to England with Arsenal.
But the Trotters rejected Szczesny as well as fellow countryman and West Ham stopper Lukasz Fabiaski in cut-price deals at the start of their careers.
Barber told The Sun: "I had Fabianski and Sczcesny on trial at Bolton. But the club didn't pay for keepers then.
"We wouldn't pay 100,000 for Sczcesny or 50,000 for Fabianski.
"We had Jussi (Jaaskelainen) and Ali Al-Habsi and they were both free."