Reebok Stadium, Sunday 1330 GMTBOLTON WANDERERS:
Bolton Wanderers manager Gary Megson is convinced he is still living in the shadow of Sam Allardyce at the Reebok Stadium.
Megson has struggled to win over home supporters since succeeding Sammy Lee in 2007 - despite keeping the club in the Premier League
The fans are fond of comparing Megson's reign to the Allardyce era when he led them into Europe and also secured the club's highest ever finish in the top flight.
They were disappointed about the acrimonious departure of a man who has returned in charge of Newcastle, but is back now as manager of their local rivals Blackburn for the first time.
Megson said: "Is Sam's shadow still around the place? Yeah it is. Once a manager has worked at a place for a decent amount of time, then that's bound to be the case. If you work in a place for a decent amount of time you will leave your imprint."
Megson's main concern, though, is erasing the memory of the 5-1 defeat in their last game against Aston Villa. He has warned that nobody apart from keeper Jussi Jaaskelainen could complain if they were axed.
He said:"That defeat will rankle for a long time. if Jussi is not playing, he is the only one who could say it is out of order. Everyone else who plays against Blackburn can consider themselves fortunate in my book."
Strategy: Wanderers can leapfrog Rovers with a victory, but they have not beaten them here in eight attempts and are on a poor run of form. Megson's side have struggled over recent weeks, conceding 19 goals in their last four games in all competitions. At least they may not have to face Benni McCarthy, who has netted five times in five starts against them. Megson will be hoping Johan Elmander can add to his goal against Aston Villa and continue to repay his £8m transfer fee.
Injury update: Megson could be boosted by the return of Dan Shittu and Mustapha Riga but Tamir Cohen is still struggling with a groin injury. JLloyd Samuel is available again after suspension and could replace Paul Robinson at left back.
BLACKBURN ROVERS:
It is eight months since Blackburn last celebrated a Premier League away success and Allardyce would dearly love to end that miserable run against his former club.
Allardyce secured Newcastle a 3-1 victory when he returned to the Reebok for the first time after quitting as Bolton's manager in April 2007. A similar outcome would at least ease the pain of the last few months on the road.
Allardyce's outfit endured a nightmare October when they lost to Arsenal, Chelsea and Manchester United within a short space of time. But the Rovers manager has labelled the next few days as the biggest in the club's season.
This game is followed by an away test at Fulham on Wednesday before the visit of Stoke to Ewood Park next Saturday. "We need to pick up a win away from home and we've got an opportunity to put that dreadful run to bed over the next few days," said Allardyce. "Then we come home to face Stoke. These are games we have to be looking at winning."
Strategy: Will Jason Roberts be rewarded with a rare start for the two goals he scored after climbing off the bench against Portsmouth? Is Keith Andrews in the right frame of mind to play on the Premier League stage after his tearful exit from the Stade de France with Ireland in midweek? These are the questions Blackburn fans are asking ahead of the Reebok derby.
Roberts will feel harshly treated if he is not promoted to the starting line up after his heroics in the previous outing. Blackburn have failed to score in three of their last four away games in the league yet Roberts would relish the opportunity of shooting down Megson, his former manager at West Brom.
"I would have liked this week to prepare a system to play against our local rivals, but I've got a lot of food for thought from the last performance," added Allardyce. "We must give a second half performance against Bolton like we did against Portsmouth."
Whether Andrews features remains to be seen. "Keith was totally and utterly distraught on Wednesday," said Allardyce. "We're trying to get him recovered mentally. We'll assess the situation before making a decision."
Injury Update: With the exception of Andrews, who played the full 120 minutes against France, Allardyce has no problems. Vince Grella is expected to return to the squad after a thigh injury while captain Ryan Nelsen, fresh from helping New Zealand book a place in next summer's World Cup, will lead the team out.
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