N'Gotty Ruled Out Of Liverpool Clash

Last updated : 24 December 2003 By Mark Heys
Bolton Wanderers will be without defender Bruno N'Gotty for their Boxing Day clash with Liverpool at Anfield afther the Frenchman failed to recover from a hamstring injury which kept him out of the draw with Arsenal last weekend.

The influential 32-year old defender is once again to be replaced by Emerson Thome, and the former Sunderland, Chelsea and Sheffield Wednesday defender has proved to be more than an able deputy after forming a strong partnership with Simon Charlton to keep Arsenal duo Dennis Bergkamp and Thierry Henry at bay last weekend.

Bolton manager Sam Allardyce confirmed N'Gotty is the only injury doubt.

"Bruno N'Gotty is our recent problem. There's a couple of sniffles and colds but we don't see that as being a problem" he told the clubs official site.

"Bruno felt a tight hamstring after the Chelsea game and shouldn't have played on the Tuesday against Southampton in the Carling Cup. Emerson should have played instead but went down with a chest infection and we had to ask Bruno to step in. He then aggrivated the problem"

"We are hoping he will be back for the Leicester City game it's a bit to early to say for the Liverpool game" he added.