COLIN Todd has asked his Bolton players to concentrate on getting back to their impressive best in tonight's Reebok clash with Port Vale. Wanderers desperately need a win after three successive defeats but the manager says playing in front of an anxious and expectant home crowd shouldn't be a burden.

"I don't see any pressure," he said calmly. "We've had an indifferent spell but it's something you have to take on the chin.

"And there's no better way to respond than to produce a performance and get a win in front of your own supporters."

The Wanderers boss, who is already without winger Ricardo Gardner and has fitness doubts about centre-back Mark Fish, is thought to be considering defensive changes but was giving nothing away on his selection plans when he said confidently: "Whoever plays will have the ability.

"I've never questioned that." Overnight results, with Sunderland beating Crewe 4-1 at Gresty Road and Ipswich moving into second place with a 2-0 home win against Wolves, underlined the size of the task Wanderers face to get back among the pacesetters.

Todd took his hat off to Peter Reid's Wearsiders, who returned to the top on Sunday with their 3-0 win at the Reebok and have now extended their lead over Wanderers to 13 points. But he says the rest of the division is wide open.

"Obviously there's a gap developed between ourselves and Sunderland, who have hit the sort of consistency we had in the Nationwide League two years ago," he acknowledged. "Ipswich are up there too but, looking at the rest of the division, there's only eight points covering 11 clubs. Anybody putting three or four good results together now can shoot up the table - as Port Vale and Tranmere have done - and that's what we are hoping to start tonight.

"It's going to be another battle but that's what we've got to be prepared for if we are going to pick ourselves up and start perfoming to our abilities again."

Wanderers, who failed to score for the first time this season in Sunday's televised game, will look to top scorer Arnar Gunnlaugsson to get them back on the goal trail.

The Ice-man will be up against a defence which is expected to be strengthened by the return of twin centre-backs Paul Beesley and Dave Barnett, who were suspended for Vale's 3-2 home defeat by Sheffield United - a result that denied John Rudge the October Manager of the Month award.

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