Jesse Aarnikko:, external Don't get the fuss about benching Balotelli. It's just normal and wise rotation that you have to do when you play Champions League.

Orrin James Newbery:, external We play two up front all year and the one up front isn't working. Big game this for Liverpool.

Alan Ferguson:, external Something had to change. Simple as that. Good luck to Rickie Lambert leading the line today.

Mark Lawrenson
Former Liverpool defender on Football Focus

"He is not going to get anywhere near Chelsea's team. So you stick young players in the Championship teams (Bamford is on loan at Middlesbrough and has scored two in seven games this season) and watch them grow. I am a big fan of the loan system. The problem comes when Premier League teams loan to Premier League teams, but sending them down to the Championship is a good thing."

BBC Final Score

Final Score has just started over on the Red Button. Martin Keown and Kevin Kilbane are already chatting away and will complete a big-time move to BBC One at 16:00 BST.

Football Focus
BBC Sport

England U21 manager and former Middlesbrough boss Gareth Southgate: "Patrick Bamford is a good finisher, and Middlesbrough have quite a link with Chelsea. Boro manager Aitor Karanka has a close relationship with Jose Mourinho, and has good links with Spain too.

"They are strong this year Middlesbrough, and I think they can finish up in the top six, along with Derby, Nottingham Forest, Norwich, and the rest is very tight around that."

Cameron Laws:, external Why is Alan Pardew refusing to pick Facundo Ferreyra? No point taking players on loan to not play them, he's a talent!

Will George:, external Good to see Gas legend Rickie Lambert getting a chance ahead of the overrated Mario Balotelli.

FootyOgrapher:, external Rodgers got his summer spendings wrong, none of his signings have hit the ground running. Long season ahead for him!

BBC Radio 5 live

Former Wales international Dean Saunders: "Right now it's all about when Alan Pardew gets the sack. So if Mike Ashley came out in the press and said I'm not going to sack him, he's got the next game coming, then that would be that. You don't need the chairman when you're doing well. You find out how good your chairman is if you are struggling. If the generals and the colonels can't get it right, how can the soldiers win the war?"

"He's got one more game. If we lose against Stoke on Monday night then he's gone. I have had enough." Making a throat-cutting gesture. "Dead. Finished. Over."

That Mike Ashley eh? What a card.

The Newcastle owner said that his comments to a reporter in a late-night London bar were, in fact, a joke. , external

The punchline came when Stoke duly beat Newcastle on Monday night and Alan Pardew stayed in his role. I'm not sure that Newcastle fans are laughing...

Mario Balotelli has been dropped by Liverpool boss Brendan Rodgers for the game against West Brom at Anfield this afternoon...

Andrew, Richhill: WOW! Mario Balotelli has been dropped in place of Rickie Lambert, I can't see that one going down well with the Italian! For his own sake, Brendan Rodgers better have got this one right!

Harry, Leicester: Not sure what all the fuss is about, Lambert was brought in for these sorts of games and Balotelli being rested. Regarding Markovic, give it time.

Henry Dummett, Lewisham: Surely an out of form Balotelli is still more of an attacking threat than Rickie Lambert??

Join the debate on #bbcfootball on Twitter,, external81111 on text (UK only), or via the BBC Sport Facebook page, external and Google+ pages., external

Esteban Cambiasso is missing while striker David Nugent is dropped to the substitutes bench for Leicester in the battle of the newly-promoted clubs. Jeffrey Schlupp and Riyad Mahrez start.

Burnley make two changes to the side hammered 4-0 at West Brom on 28 September. Stephen Ward makes his first league start since signing from Wolves while Ashley Barnes returns to the team. Ross Wallace and Steven Reid make way.

Leicester City XI: Schmeichel, De Laet, Morgan, Moore, Konchesky, Hammond, Drinkwater, Mahrez, Vardy, Ulloa, Schlupp. Subs: James, King, Hamer, Knockaert, Wasilewski, Wood, Nugent.

Burnley XI: Heaton, Trippier, Duff, Shackell, Mee, Boyd, Arfield, Ward, Kightly, Barnes, Jutkiewicz. Subs: Lafferty, Wallace, Sordell, Gilks, Keane, Long, Hewitt.

Gus Poyet brings Steven Fletcher and Jordi Gomez into his Sunderland line-up in place of ex-Manchester City pair Jack Rodwell and Adam Johnson as the Black Cats search for their first Premier League win of the season.

Mark Hughes makes one change from the Stoke City side that defeated Sunderland's rivals Newcastle on Monday night. Marko Arnautovic comes in for Mame Biram Diouf.

Sunderland XI: Mannone, Jones, van Aanholt, Vergini, O'Shea (c), Cattermole, Larsson, Gomez, Buckley, Wickham, Fletcher.

Stoke City XI: Begovic, Bardsley, Shawcross, Wilson, Muniesa; Nzonzi, Whelan; Arnautovic, Adam, Moses; Crouch

Someone has got to stop the Bristol City juggernaut soon, haven't they? Lowly Walsall are the next side attempting to derail the runaway League One leaders, who are five points clear and unbeaten in 10 league games, when they meet at the Bescot Stadium.

City's nearest rivals Peterborough host mid-table Oldham, while third-placed Swindon travel to managerless Leyton Orient, who are still searching for Cardiff-bound Russell Slade's replacement.

Rock-bottom Crewe, who have conceded a whopping 27 goals in their 10 matches, travel to Bradford aiming to cut the five-point deficit from safety.

Leeds United manager Darko Milanic, speaking to Sky Sports: "We had enough chances to win this game. The Sheffield Wednesday goalkeeper was extremely good. It is not only a question of scoring goals, football is also something else, it is fight and [today] I saw a good game, a good opponent. We were closer to winning the game but if you don't score and the goalkeeper plays so well it is difficult. The priority [now] is we know our movements better. This [job] is extremely important for me - it is something else."

Image source, Getty Images

Mario Balotelli is named as a substitute as Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers opts for Rickie Lambert in attack against West Brom. There is no place for Daniel Sturridge in the squad as the England striker continues to recover from a hamstring strain.

West Brom loanee Andre Wisdom is not allowed to play against his parent club, which means right back Christian Gamboa makes his first Premier League start for the Baggies. The Costa Rican is the only change to the team which thumped Burnley 4-0 last weekend.

Liverpool XI: Mignolet, Manquillo, Skrtel, Lovren, Moreno, Henderson, Gerrard, Sterling, Coutinho, Lallana, Lambert

West Brom XI: Foster, Gamboa, Dawson, Lescott, Pocognoli, Gardner, Morrison, Dorrans, Sessegnon, Brunt, Berahino

Johnty Robertson:, external They say Brendan Rodgers is a great man-manager but I'm really not sure benching Mario Balotelli is the way to help him get over his form.

Ross Parker:, external Nothing wrong with Rodgers' decision to drop Balotelli for Rickie Lambert. Rickie was signed as an alternative and now is his chance.

David Pepper:, external Oh Brendan what are you doing! Mario is a good player, we're just not utilising him correctly!

Leeds United defender Jason Pearce, speaking to Sky Sports: "The new gaffer has come in and put new ideas across and we are working hard, getting closer to where we want to be. Today we were unlucky to find Kieren Westwood in great form. We will go again and hope to get the three points next time.

"As players we have to get on with things, it has been difficult, with loads of new players coming in. But we are all gelling as a team and we will move up that league."

Sheffield Wednesday goalkeeper Kieren Westwood, speaking to Sky Sports: "It would have been nice to have nicked it 1-0 but they got the goal and probably deserved it. We are disappointed but it was a very good derby game. The result is a fair reflection."

Image source, Getty Images

We've got around 45 minutes until the Premier League kicks into gear for the weekend. Mike Henson's here to help me with all of that.

Image source, PA

Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers on his decision to drop Mario Balotelli to the bench: "It wasn't hard. It's for me to use the squad. Mario has played in a lot of the games recently and Rickie Lambert has been excellent in training and has got better each day.

"He's got confidence and has been waiting very patiently but has been working hard to get that opportunity. It's very much about the squad. There's no player that can play in every single game. For him it's an opportunity from the bench and if we need him from the bench he can go and affect the game from there."

Hull City's 39-year-old second-choice keeper Steve Harper makes a first league start of the season, replacing the injured Allan McGregor. The only other change from the Tigers' 4-2 home defeat to Manchester City sees defender James Chester recalled at the expense of Liam Rosenior.

Crystal Palace boss Neil Warnock names the same side which beat Leicester last time out. It means fit-again striker Marouane Chamakh, who has recovered from a hamstring problem, has to make do with a place on the bench.

Hull City XI: Harper, Robertson, Davies, Dawson, Chester, Elmohamady, Huddlestone, Diame, Livermore, Hernandez, Jelavic

Crystal Palace XI: Speroni, Kelly, Dann, Delaney, Ward, Jedinak, Ledley, McArthur, Bolasie, Puncheon, Campbell.

Friday couldn't have been much worse for struggling Bolton Wanderers. In the afternoon they parted company with boss Dougie Freedman and then hours later they slumped to the bottom of the Championship table when Blackpool beat Cardiff. Today, they are aiming to put their troubles behind them and earn just their second win of the season when they host mid-table Bournemouth.

At the other end, leaders Norwich welcome newly-promoted Rotherham to Carrow Road for the first league meeting between the teams for a decade. With second-placed Nottingham Forest playing Ipswich tomorrow, Watford have the opportunity to leapfrog them into the automatic promotion spots. Lowly Brighton are the visitors to Vicarage Road.

Elsewhere, managerless Fulham travel to Middlesbrough having won their last three matches under caretaker boss Kit Symons.