I’ll be honest here; this is a must win game. After this game we have league games against Everton and Villa, with a league cup game v Notts Forrest thrown in between those games.

Then after Villa and the retrn of big Brad and Stephen Warnock, we have Le Arse, Chelski, The B@stards, and ManUre.

This is a must win game.

Hopefully we will have a lot of players to choose from. Emerton is close to making a comeback, and Dunn, Reidy and Grella all should have used these 7 days extra to get back into shape and fit. Here’s the team I would put out:

——————-Robbo———————
Jacobsen Samba Givet Chimbonda
Dioufy Dunn Nzonzi Pederson
Benni (if fit) Kalinic

Wolves have earned 4 points from their 4 games but should be ours for the taking. If we go out and play solid defensively (like we have been lately) and our strikers can get some shots on target, we should pull out the 3 points.

Any thoughts about the game? Your XI you would field? As always, let me know and UP THE ROVERS!

Aside from Ryan Nelson doing all that he could to slow down and help the ball along for Shrek, Rovers did a lot right. The 4-1-4-1 Big Sam threw out had a shaky start, but by the equalizer were playing up to the level of ManUre. After that first goal, Ooijer made a fantastic individual effort. Stealing the ball, he took a touch or two and threaded in it nicely for RSC who dribbled around TK and shot it in from a hard angle to equalize.

Late on, Nelson was denied by the post and just the slimest of margins, and Diouf’s rebound shot was goal bound when TK flew in out of no where to smother and stop the shot.

What really gets me, is the luck of the call Rovers never seem to get, and No one seems to get at OT. Howard Webb was in the perfect spot to see C.Cheat7 kick out violently (in the highlights) but didn’t show him the yellow or even the red. He did almost make amends for it by catching the Diver red handed, but the yellow card should have been his second, and he should have been off. But no, just the one yellow and nothing more. Then he gives the Scum the lead later. Pederson gets absolutely thrown by Rafael in the Man U box and nothing is called as he flies down (also in the highlights). Either it’s a penalty, or its a card for diving, and at those speeds, a torque that violent will bring a man down.

The One or Three points that were robbed from us leaves us two points out of safety going into the game against Hull. UP THE ROVERS always. Survival is key.

Man utd v Blackburn

Rumors of emergency trustee meetings and board conferences are all over the place and no one can say for sure how much longer Mr. Ince will be in charge. Replacement ideas? Thoughts to turn this team around? Squad additions you might have in mind for the winter? Let me know.

Then someone lit a fire under Pompey’s asses. And Rovers weren’t ready. 2 goals later the game looked hopeless. Had it had been the Rovers of a few years ago or even last year, it probably would have been. Then Matty Derbs came on and lit a fire under Rovers’ asses and it was a game again. That header was perfect and was also his first touch as well as only 20 seconds after coming on. Then lucky for us, Pompey forgot that Tugay is, in fact, my Turkish Delight, and he had a beauty of a goal.

Then it all went to hell. Matty Derbs blown offside and a mystery foul committed against England’s crappiest number 1, and all a sudden a game that should have been 4-2 was still 2-2. The foul wasn’t a foul so I’m going to stop calling it that. But if you remember from this post here from the game against Man U, we too had a goalie get fouled but no one seemed to mind then. Officiating inconsistencies are really messing up the game. Derbs was onside and then this messed up call, really changed the game. Then the Rovers’ defense went to take a nap and watch some football while Pompey fired in the third and final goal.

The Rover’s inability to finish and close out games is just making this season incredibly frustrating. Stuck in 19th we really need to turn around some things; fast. Man U again for Carling Cup round 5 this midweek. Highlights after the jump.

Maybe we should just file a petiton to play the rest of our games away from Home, I don’t think any one would mind. And while Rovers would lose some ticket revenue, it would save the fans from watching their team crumble at home. Lets think back a few posts ago, when I vocalized that internal struggle I was having between watching Rovers play “pretty” football and watching Rovers win. I’ve decided. I don’t care how they win, just as long as they do. Losing to mid/bottom table teams at home is just wrong. And shouldn’t be happening. At all. Everrrr.

Oh and we drew United in the cup. Shocked? Yeah me neither who didn’t see that one coming? So this is a defining moment in our season as well as Ince’s career. Spuds coming up and we need to put the revolution down. And Betnely. He needs to be just plain put down. Highlights after the jump. UP THE ROVERS!!!!

These match previews are generally filled up with thoughts about our chances, how we might improve them, and what would be the best team.

However it’s so hard to work out HOW you beat United, though interestingly, in the last 8 league matches against them, we’ve only lost once.

On the plus side Rooney and Scholes are out, so that leaves them ONLY with Ronaldo, Tevez, Berbatov and Nani up front.

I think there’s little to think about tactics wise – clog the midfield and don’t get pulled out of position, then hope Roque has his shooting boots on. I really want to see more of little Carlos but to pick him could be gauged as ambitious by Ince.

Robbo is out so Brown will be in goal. It’s unclear whether Grella and McCarthy are fit to go. Simpson is, of course, ineligible.

United arn’t exactly flying so we have a chance, but a draw will be more than satisfying.

Ince delighted for Jason Brown — TEAMtalk

Tugay showing no signs of stopping — Setanta

Alan Judge working back to 100% — The Blackburn Citizen

Skipper Nelson hails “Team Ince” — The Blackburn Citizen

Ince: “Our fans were absolutely awesome.” — The Blackburn Citizen

Simpson learning for Nigel — FoxSoccer.com

Ince eying Cup Success — SkySports

Ince still looking for more — 4thegame.com

West Ham eying up Zurab? — The Mirror

That should keep you busy as you kill some time this evening before Monday Night Football or Heroes. Up The Rovers!

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Blackburn Rovers chairman John Williams has vowed not to sacrifice the clubs proud family heritage in the quest to find a new owner at Ewood Park.

With more and more clubs being subjected to high profile takeover bids, with Manchester City being the latest as the Abu Dhabi United Group (and all its millions!!!) moves in to finalise the takeover of our Premier League rivals, it makes it increasingly difficult for clubs like Rovers to compete. However, despite the ongoing quest to find a new owner at Ewood Williams is adamant that Rovers WON’T sell out the club simply because a potential investor might have untold millions. The Walker Trustees want to make sure that a potential new owner comes in with the best interests of the club and the fans at heart.

I can’t resist using this blog to comment on the Man City take over and all it’s implications. Seems that in a few years we may as well all give up and go watch La Liga or Serie A – seriously.

English football is already predictable enough. You know that when Man Utd, or Chelsea or Liverpool play anyone but each other that the result is pretty much a foregone conclusion. We play Man United next week and I’ll say it now: we won’t win. Other leagues have this situation but it is not as extreme as that of the EPL, and it’s more fluid. Here success is almost solely defined by money, not good management. Teams like Rovers, Boro and Everton are probably the best run in the league and we can’t even get to the Champions League!

The Man City thing has just added to that. Football is now a game of the haves and have nots and is becoming less competitive. I’m a big fan of the NHL and the contrast in competitiveness in American sport compared to European football is startling. It makes it so much more fun and interesting, and exciting when your team wins.

Winning a normal game, to Man Utd or Chelsea fans, is just an ego booster, a bit of small comfort, a relief. When Rovers win a game it is a joy, a suprise almost. That’s what sport should be about.

A radical rethink is needed. I would be in support of salary caps, draft systems, redistribution of money to the poorer teams in an attempt to keep the league competitive.

In the meantime I’m kind of glad that we haven’t been bought out by an Arab Emirate of some sort, or an American banker or a dodgy Russian oligarch. And I’ve no idea how I’ll react if we become one of the EPL ‘haves’.

But if I do loose all hope (which I haven’t yet I stress), the hockey season starts in 3 weeks…