Mario Jardel’s stint in England was short and sweet, but happenings off the pitch couldn’t have been much different.
The Brazilian forward arrived in the UK in 2003 as one of Bolton’s most exciting-ever signings, joining from Sporting on a free transfer.
Jardel scored a goal a game at Porto, Galatasaray and SportingAFP A two-time Golden Boot winner rocking up at Bolton had fans in shockGettyThe deal was another in the mould of what had brought Sam Allardyce’s Wanderers great success to start the millennium, giving huge names big paydays, with their salaries offset by their free agent status.
There was all the hope in the world Jardel could be as good as or even better than Youri Djorkaeff, Jay-Jay Okocha and Ivan Campo, as his CV was one of the best on the continent.
The Fortaleza-born star won the European Golden Boot in 1999 and 2002 and was quite frankly unstoppable in front of goal.
He swapped a 169 goals in 175 games record for 34 in 43 at Galatasaray, and then 67 in 62 at Sporting.
It appeared as though Bolton and Allardyce had pulled off a coup for the ages, yet it soon became clear that all was not well.
Jardel did score three in 11 for Wanderers to show why they signed him, but his injury-hit spell on the sidelines for Sporting the previous season had a more worrying explanation behind it.
Later opening up on his personal trauma post-retirement Jardel recalled: “In 2002, I overdosed on cocaine and stayed awake for seven days.
“I hired escorts and I stayed in that life thinking that nothing was going to happen to me, that everything was fine with me.
“Being a person in the public eye is not easy. We have a very high salary and, at my level, even more so.”
Jardel wasn’t strictly a free agent, and Bolton had to agree to pay up to €1.5million based on his performances, but they never came.
Jardel helped Bolton to the League Cup final with a goal at Anfield but that was thatGetty The talent he’d shown winning a youth world cup with Brazil disappearedAFPHe failed to find the net in the Premier League, and although his three goals helped Bolton to the League Cup final, he departed halfway through the season to Serie A side Ancona where things weren’t any better.
Jardel had ten Brazil caps and one goal at this point, but would never appear for his country again.
The tale becomes all the more tragic when you factor in how aware he was of what was at stake.
Upon signing for Bolton on a £45,000 per-week as the highest paid player in club history, he said: “This is the opportunity I need to resurrect my career.
“I still have the ability to score a lot of goals and I want to become a hero in Bolton and a success in the Premiership.”
Jardel’s scoring never came back, though, and short stints in Argentina, Brazil, Portugal, Cyprus, Australia and Bulgaria followed.
Jardel’s biggest success was getting clean and living a healthy lifeGetty Jardel’s incredible scoring left at Bolton and never game backIt was clear the young Brazilian who tore up Europe was never going to return, but with more at stake in his personal life, there was at least a happy ending.
“I am very aware of my problem, of my daily struggle,” he said, years later reflecting on his career.
“What matters is that I am alive and I say ‘no to drugs’.”
Fast forward to 2025 – and it is another Sporting star dominating headlines during the summer transfer window.
talkSPORT understands Arsenal are finally set to land goal machine Viktor Gyokeres, with a deal worth up to £69million in the works and personal terms agreed on a five-year contract.
The Gunners were first linked with Gyokeres last summer, with reports of their interest continuing over the course of last season, which saw the Swedish striker score 54 goals in 52 games.
talkSPORT reported in June that Gyokeres had decided to join Mikel Arteta‘s side this summer, choosing them ahead of other potential Premier League suitors Manchester United.
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