Man of the Match: Nigel Reo-Coker

Sky Sports gave their Man of the Match award to Zat Knight. Frankly, we just don't see how that's possible when Nigel Reo-Coker had such a phenomenal game last night. Not only was the midfielder instrumental in both goals, but his 90 minutes of box-to-box action ensured that Bolton walked out of Ewood Park with three points in hand. Hit the jump for more on why NRC was the obvious choice for us.

Reo-Coker's pass to David Ngog from Jussi Jaaskelainen's clearance is what started the move for the first goal. Ngog then passed back to him and Reo-Coker carried the ball into the box, keeping it in on the touchline and forcing Paul Robinson into a save before the ball was cleared but not really to David Ngog. The Frenchman found Mark Davies in the box and scored the first goal on five minutes.

Had it not been for the combination of Martin Petrov and Nigel Reo-Coker, the second goal might not have happened. Petrov crossed in low from the left flank and NRC cut it out before the ball could be cleared by one of the six Blackburn defenders in the box. His turn allowed him to shoot and hit the back of the net. Admittedly, Morten Gamst Pedersen's challenge was a weak one, but it was Nigel Reo-Coker's goal that proved the eventual game winner.

Over the course of the game, Nigel Reo-Coker did the following:

Won all five of his tackles

Made four interceptions

Completed 77% of his passes