Blackburn Rovers 3 Bolton Wanderers 0:REUNIONS CAN contain the cruel realisation that the past was preferable to the present. For Bolton Wanderers the sight of Sam Allardyce serves as reminder of an infinitely superior era. The manager who oversaw four successive top-eight finishes at the Reebok Stadium has quietly taken Blackburn to the verge of safety and, in the process, endangered his old employers.
Goals from Nikola Kalinic, Jason Roberts and Gael Givet ensured Allardyce extended his unbeaten record against the club he served as player and manager in emphatic fashion. “It was a fantastic day for us,” Allardyce said. “Now we are looking up rather than down for the first time this season.”
For Bolton it was a heaviest defeat under Owen Coyle. They continue to languish in the relegation zone. “We’ve had a bad day today, no doubt about it,” said Coyle. “It’s as simple as that. I was certainly disappointed by the level of performance. I expect better. We know there is room for improvement.”
There is certainly scope in both penalty areas. The former Burnley manager arrived promising a more progressive approach but his side have equalled an unwanted club record by failing to score in their last five league games. Such style as there is has not been accompanied by substance while their attacking efforts were undermined by a defensive naivety.
“The goals we lost, I wouldn’t expect to lose those goals on a school playground,” Coyle added.
For the opener Zat Knight was left isolated against two attackers when Junior Hoilett directed a diagonal ball forwards. Morten Gamst Pedersen headed it into Kalinic’s path and the Croatian, aided by a deflection off Knight, scored his second league goal.
Rovers doubled their advantage when the influential Pedersen’s corner was half-cleared, Givet hooked it back into the penalty area and Roberts sprung the offside trap to finish. The garnish was added to the scoreline when Givet applied a glancing header to El-Hadji Diouf’s cross.
Jussi Jaaskelainen was the reason the scoreline was not four or five, denying Hoilett and Steven Nzonzi. Kalinic had also struck the woodwork immediately after Fabrice Muamba had cleared Keith Andrews’ header off the line.
Guardian Service
