It could be an extremely good sign that Hughes has convinced every player, Bellamy included, that his place is at risk if he doesn't/isn't able to perform and other players take their chance(s). Todd certainly is finding that out. When fit again, Matteo, Gresko, Amo and Tommo are facing the same problems, probably starting with the Liverpool game if noises from the treatment room are accurate in predicting they will all be available.

The difference between Chelsea and Liverpool at the end of the day was Drogba. Very few forwards can destroy Hyppia like that. Kuqui certainly won't and I'd stick with Dickov and Bellamy up front if Bellamy is fit with Kuqui to offer something different later. This will be a massive game for Liverpool. If we can frustrate them (and that includes attacking them at their end which will erode their confidence even quicker), we might get something out of this game. Will be interesting to see which duo (trio?- I suspect it will be a duo with Hughes sticking to 4-4-2) out of Reid, Bentley, Tugay and Emerton gets the nod alongside Savage and MGP. Brad will have to be at his best but despite his heroics, I think it will be Liverpool 2 Rovers 1

It is sad when (if it is true) an old timer who had done so much for the club, is snubbed like this. However, it is very naive to immediately jump on the club's back if some of the things I've heard going back over the last ten years are true.

Report on season ticket sales at all Premiership clubs. It shows Bolton suffering a small decline which given the local news about the Trotters doing really well with season ticket sales raises some questions. The more I think about it, the more I believe the EU commission's intervention to force the number of televised games up from 106 to 138 was one of the biggest contributors to the fall in attendance. Interesting to read that the "big" games between the Mancs, Arsenal, Liverpool and Chelsea are showeing very big drops in viewing figures. Personally, I avoid these games- so many are anti-climactic bores.

Observer reports Bellamy as having hamstring problems. In that case two weeks will be insufficient. Mark Hughes says its his knee and the medics will be looking at it again today. I really hope he pulls out of the Welsh squad as I simply don't trust Toshack with our players.

Hakan Sukur has just equalised at home for Galatasaray. All the new found Rovers fans in Tromso won't be happy. Tromso can breath a sigh of relief- they knocked out Galatasaray 2-1 on aggregate; a fabulous result for the Norwegians. Quite a few big names are suffering tonight- as well as Galatasaray, Auxerre, Leverkusen, Feyernoord are out, Partisam Belgrade are being thrashed at home by some Israelis making their debut in European competition.

Looks like West Brom will have their full squad fit. Sounds like Curtis Davies, the young centre half they got from Luton is an excellent signing for them and is doing very well in defence. Robson has been quoted as saying he expects Rovers will stick with 4-4-2. This is going to be no pushover but if Hughes gets the lads right, we should take the three points.

Its all academic if you read what Lee has put on the official site. The African Nations Cup in January and February robs us of the Axe and Benny of any chance of coming to the Rovers in the January window. Incidentally didn't Corbett suffer a badly broken leg just after he joined us which didn't heal for about two years? Anyway, Southend are going very well with him back down there.

For anybody arguing with a Manc claiming we were lucky to win at Old Trafford, Opta/Sky have put Van Der Sar in their team of the week!

Reverse osmosis- 70% of malta's water comes from it. Its cheaper than desalienation but not that cheap.

Queroz is only telling the truth though about Manc supporters- be honest! Agreed, he's being a touch undiplomatic and is certainly not helping his chances of being Ferguson's successor which can only be bad news for Rovers. Incidentally, I thought Ferguson's recent criticism of high football ticket prices probably went down a treat (not) with his new owners. So its collective foot in mouth all round at Old Trafford even though Ferguson won't even talk to MUTV now, never mind the rest of the press. Perhaps he sees a hidden agenda at Glazer TV? At the end of the day, the Mancs are struggling to come to terms with the fact that the Rovers' win was neither lucky nor against the run of play. That we had many more shots on target (not forgetting dangerous balls across the box which weren't connected with), they were indebted to their goalkeeper and dear old relegation zone (at 3pm on Saturday) Rovers went to OT to play football and more than held their own in an open free-flowing game must be causing all kinds of alarm bells ringing. The foul count was pretty even and Ronaldo should have walked for the premeditated elbow smash into Gray's face so no Manc complaints on that front either. The footballing legacy of Saturday is the one which is really hurting. It was the manner of the Mancs defeat rather than the defeat itself which is bringing so many chickens home to roost. Without the fear factor (and this Manc team does not instil awe any more), it won't just be Chelsea who will fancy coming away from Old Trafford with three points this season. All credit to Hughes for spotting the weaknesses and going for it!

Judging by this morning's press coverage, Rovers blew the roof off Old Trafford and ended the Ferguson era on Saturday. Good to see that its not just Rovers supporters who go over the top at a bad result. At least Newcastle couldn't be said to have been fortunate to have only scored three!

Had a dream last night that we got a penalty in the WBA game. We missed it!

Less dramatic for the loan players. McEveley apparently played very well in the Ipswich 2-0 win at Leeds and Gally missed a sitter but struck the corner which gave Stoke trheir late consolation in losing 1-3 to Wolves. Derbyshire didn't get on for Plymouth apparently. Colin Hendry is reported as interested in taking Johnson and Harkins on loan. I would think Johnson would only go if Matty is proven 100% OK.

Hartson- not that I think we were ever seriously in for him.

A telling comment from the end of the Telegraph report on Saturday's game: "When the final whistle sounded and the boos rang out, Old Trafford was perhaps a third full after what ironically had been its most thrilling and compelling match of the season. Whatever they say about supporters being starved of the oxygen of entertainment, football is ultimately about who wins." Last season, Chelsea, Man U and Arsenal were so far ahead that for the rest of the Prem it was a case of eeking out wins from 32 games. Premiership clubs simply didn't win enough times to keep the supporters happy. Perhaps there is nothing uniquely disloyal in the Rovers' support. Just that the disproportionate fall off in attendance is a function of only seeing ten league wins at Ewood across two seasons? The disproportionate number of away wins throughout the leagues so far this season doesn't portend well for attendances on that basis.

The comments on formations and players attributed to Mark Hughes after the Man U game are the most encouraging thing to emerge from the Rovers in a very long time.

Glazer takes legal action against Manc fans in the USA I am sure John Williams would be happy to write to them promising them the Rovers would give them every encouragement to display the club crest if they started to support a decent football club. Being serious, this is an absolute outrage by the Glazers. Probably the first of many.

I heard that offside comment as well. From the sideways on camera, Silvestre is a yard behind the Manc line and played MGP well onside. The offside comment didn't get repeated after that angle was shown in the replays of the goal. This is pretty equitable comment from a Manc web site. "Only EvdS saved Man U from a rout" Ferguson is 4/1 for the sack at William Hills by the way. Oh how sweet if Glazer Utd don't qualify for the Champs League this season.

Peter Scudamore of the Premier League and two Club Chairmen putting their "things are OK" spin on it. Only the good fortune of Sunderland, West Ham and Wigan collectively having 25,000 more capacity than the grounds of Norwich, Palace and Southampton makes their claimed increase at this stage possible combined with the some of the clubs with the biggest grounds- Newcastle, Chelsea, having played 4 of their 7 games at home and I think Everton and the Mancs having an even more scewed distribution towards home fixtures.

Seen one televised highlight of West Brom (I think v Wigan) and they looked risibly bad. Of course they'll play brilliantly when they come to Ewood... This game is all about how Rovers perform. In years gone by I'd say a big letdown is coming but I have a feeling Hughes got a big shock/wake up call against Newcastle and won't get his tactics so horribly messed up again. Rovers probably to win narrowly but if there is a team in the Prem which is vulnerable to a pairing of Dickov and Bellamy running riot, I reckon its West Brom.

Don't know about an England recall just yet but that was a sensational performance by Gray yesterday. He was up against the one of the trickiest, quickest wingers around and hardly ever let Ronaldo get past him. Gray showed commendable discipline as Ronaldo got dirtier and dirtier the more frustrated he became. Gray's passing and surging runs forward brought a dimension to Rovers' play we have been missing for ages no matter how solid Matteo has been at LB. Gray has a great chance to make the LB slot his own- based on yesterday's performance I hope he siezes it and plays a blinder at the Bridge to make up for last season's nightmare.

Sky's ratings

Why we should be glad attendances are falling! Some interesting developments- the relegated trio of last season have been replaced by Arsenal, Chelsea and the Mancs on the attendance working party. The fall off in away support has meant that OT has not been full at every game so far this season except the City match. The dilemma for the Mancs of course is that OT is a snooze zone if the away support is not singing. Rovers' 1,000 came over loud and clear on the live coverage for much of the match yesterday. John Williams seems to have got changing the division of Premiership monies onto the agenda (which is probably why the big three have joined the attendance committee). At present, 50% of the Prem money is divided equally, 25% goes in prize money and 25% for TV coverage. It is possible that 14 votes will be mustered for a shift to 80-10-10. A very level-headed piece from Norwich City about building attendances. Of course it helps to have a vast un-footballed hinterland which Rovers don't have the luxury of enjoying. This bit about the unpredictability of the Championship is being over done. Sheff U are already 9 points clear of third place and 18 points ahead of Norwich- makes the Prem look competitive! In France, the league has pulled off a more lucrative TV monopoly deal than Sky ever dreamt of in England and the EU hasn't batted an eyelid. (Perhaps the Prem and Sky should just stick the French agreement through the Google translator and shove that in front of Brussels?). However, the game is going to pot over there as the fall off in goals scored is even more dramatic than in the Prem prompying a national task force to look at the crisis. Attendances are unsurprisingly well down.

This Manc - loving BBC report on the game really is a pile of ignorant garbage. Sky has a much more balanced report- look at the shots on target statistics. Edwin (sic) was a busy boy. I was referring to clubs. There's a whole bunch of squeaky new grounds and ex=non league places we have never won at (and some we hope we never will have to in the league!)