Allardyce is a good friend of Sir Alex Ferguson's but he admitted he felt a twinge of relief at Old Trafford on Wednesday night when he watched Rooney - top scorer in the Premier League with 26 goals so far - limp off after 55 minutes. Allardyce said: "Of course I did, he's scored so many goals for them this year he would be a massive danger to us if he was fit and able to play. "Wayne has scored the vast majority of their goals and the second leading goalscorer is called 'OG'. "They have had 13 own goals in their favour this year. That shows the pressure they put on other teams but it also shows there's a big gap and a big loss with Wayne not playing and hopefully that can only be a help for us to get a result." Allardyce was the grateful recipient of some largesse from Ferguson at Aintree on Thursday as the United manager's horse What A Friend romped home with the pair doing jigs of delight in the stands, but he will have no compunction about upsetting him on Sunday. "I'm as fiercely competitive as he is and we want to write the headlines on Monday morning," added Allardyce, who paid tribute to Ferguson for always being willing to share his wisdom. "Sir Alex is one of the people in football I'm close to along with Phil Brown, David Moyes and Steve Bruce. "When we meet up we like to have a drink together and chew the fat and discuss football matters. "I consider him to be the greatest manager of a team the world has seen over the last two decades, so you would always accept advice from someone like that. "It's a nice thing to know you have got in your locker the ability, if for whatever reason you're struggling with something, to pick the phone up and discuss it with someone who has the guile, the know-how and the experience he's got." Blackburn should be confident going into the match at Ewood Park as they have lost only three out of 27 games on home turf since Allardyce became manager in December 2008. Allardyce also has a full squad to choose from with Ryan Nelsen, Keith Andrews and Vince Grella all available after injury. Allardyce's biggest selection dilemma is whether to recall his skipper Nelsen to the starting XI or continue with 18-year-old centre-back Phil Jones, who has made a dramatic impact in the last four games. In those four games Blackburn have been unbeaten, conceding just two goals, winning two matches and holding Chelsea to a 1-1 draw.
