PREMIER LEAGUE

Saturday 16 August

EVERTON 2

Ayegbeni Yakubu (64)

Mikel Arteta (45)

BLACKBURN 3

Andre Ooijer (90)

Roque Santa Cruz (66)

David Dunn (22)

Paul Ince begins his tenure as Blackburn manager when he takes his team to Goodison Park to face a tough Everton side on the opening day of the season.

Ince will be hoping he can improve on Rovers' seventh-place finish last season, despite losing star winger David Bentley to Tottenham.

Everton have not been very active in the transfer marker having only acquired the services of Steven Pienaar from Borussia Dortmund, while Andy Johnson and Lee Carsley have left for Fulham and Birmingham respectively.

Blackburn are without Brett Emerton who we had expected to challenge for a place in the side after recovering from a bruised foot picked up in pre-season. But Paul Ince has included one of his four new signings, goalkeeper Paul Robinson.

David Moyes is without James Vaughan and is forced to play Yakubu as a lone striker with no other strikers available.

EVERTON: Howard, Neville, Yobo, Lescott, Nuno Valente, Arteta, Rodwell, Jagielka, Baines, Osman, Yakubu. Subs: Turner, Jutkiewicz, Gosling, Agard, Kissock, Baxter, Wallace

BLACKBURN: Robinson, Ooijer, Samba, Nelsen, Warnock, Reid, Dunn, Mokoena, Pedersen, Roque Santa Cruz, Roberts. Subs: Brown, Kerimoglu, McCarthy, Villanueva, Simpson, Treacy, Derbyshire

Referee: Andre Marriner (W Midlands)