• Allardyce had hoped to return for cup tie at Ewood Park
• Blackburn manager now expected back at work on Friday

Sam Allardyce will miss Blackburn Rovers’ Carling Cup quarter-final against Chelsea tomorrow, the assistant manager, Neil McDonald, has confirmed.

Allardyce, who has been absent for his team’s last three games, had heart surgery last week and is recovering at home. It was initially hoped the Rovers manager would return to the dugout for the cup tie at Ewood Park, but Allardyce is now not expected back at work until Friday, a day before Blackburn host Liverpool in the Premier League.

“He is at home, he’s convalescing and hopefully he will be back in work on Friday,” said McDonald, who will continue to stand in for the former Bolton and Newcastle manager. Asked whether it had been optimistic to expect Allardyce back early this week, McDonald said: “It probably was, yes, but all you can do is take the medical advice.

“He has got through the procedure which is really good and he sounds in fantastic spirits. He can’t wait to get back and hopefully Friday will be his first day back.”

So far McDonald has overseen a 2-0 win at Bolton – Blackburn’s first away victory of the season – followed by a 3-0 defeat at Fulham and a goalless draw with Stoke at Ewood Park on Saturday. Allardyce has maintained a heavy influence over team selection and decision-making during that time and McDonald said both he and the manager were feeling positive about how things were progressing in his absence.

“My phone bill is probably sky-high at the moment but that is the way it has to be,” McDonald said. “He is the manager of the football club and we all have to keep in touch with him to see what his views are.

“He has watched the games afterwards and it has given him time to analyse everything. He gives us a little bit of feedback and then we have to implement whatever he wants on the training ground. We have done that and got a few decent results, despite not picking anything up at Fulham.

“It could have gone either way against Stoke – we could have pinched it at the end and got three points. But we have also got our first away victory since he has been away so I think it’s all positive.”

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• Bolton have already had four players suffer from illness
• ‘The medical people [say] it is difficult to contract in that way’

The Bolton manager, Gary Megson, has revealed that members of his own squad have suffered with swine flu, but he is not worried about the virus spreading between players on the pitch. Bolton’s opponents in the Carling Cup fourth round tomorrow are Chelsea, who last played swine flu-hit Blackburn at the weekend.

Since then the Blackburn manager, Sam Allardyce, has suggested there was a chance the virus could have been passed on to Chelsea’s players during the game at Stamford Bridge. But Megson – who has already seen four of his own players come down with and recover from the virus – insisted he was not concerned about it spreading.

Asked if he was worried about his players coming into contact with Chelsea’s, Megson said: “Not from that perspective because I’ve heard varying opinions and I think the one we all need to listen to is that from the medical people, who are saying that it is very difficult, if not impossible, to contract it in that way.

“From our own point of view, you’re not going to be a business with quite a few employees and it totally escapes you. You are going to get one or two with swine flu and I think on the playing staff I think we have had five, four players and one member of staff.

“You try and do your best to avoid it but I would imagine it’s near enough impossible. They are all OK at the moment, but it wouldn’t be right to start giving you names.”

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