Coyle's side go into the derby having failed to beat their local rivals at home in the top flight for 12 years. There is added spice in that former Bolton boss Sam Allardyce - who led the club into Europe for the first time - is returning to the Reebok Stadium. Midfielder Muamba, who is aiming to retain his ever-present record in the league this season, said: "The manager has confidence in me. I am enjoying my role and long may that continue. "He encourages me to stay disciplined and prevent the opposition coming forward. It is about doing the simple things and working hard for the team." The 22-year-old expects a hard shift against a side fashioned by Allardyce, who go into the match on the back of a 3-0 victory against Wolves last weekend. Muamba said: "It is a massive game and about time we got a result against them. It will be very physical. There will be a lot of long balls, put it that way. "We will just have to play the way we have done this season - by getting the ball down and passing it. "We must not give away silly free-kicks because they are good at set-pieces. They won last week but we will be confident as we are at home. "Our target? We must make sure get to 40 points as soon a possible and take it from there." Manager Coyle is spoiled for choice in central midfield with Muamba, Stuart Holden, Mark Davies and Tamir Cohen competing for places. He said: "Fabrice is improving all the time. He has shown that with his performances this season. He has tremendous athleticism. "I think he would love to score more goals. It is great there is a lot of competition in the middle of the park." Holden remains doubtful for the match as he is still struggling to shake off a thigh strain that has seen him miss the last two games. Bolton went down 1-0 to Manchester City in their last outing and Coyle added: "The margins between 10 to 12 teams in the league is a coat of paint. You have to make sure you're on the right side of these margins."
