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Bristol Rovers are back in League One action this weekend as they look to pull further away from the drop zone
Bristol Rovers face Crawley Town at the Memorial Ground on Saturday afternoon. The Gas are currently sat in 20th place in the League One table as they look to avoid relegation to League Two.
They turned to former Brighton and Hove Albion player Inigo Calderon as their manager earlier this season. He was picked as their replacement for Matt Taylor.
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The Pirates are six points above the relegation places with nine fixtures left to play of the campaign. They were beaten 5-0 away by Lincoln City in their last outing so will want to bounce back.
Bristol Rovers’ upcoming opponents Crawley Town make manager decision
Bristol Rovers’ upcoming opponents Crawley have ‘parted company’ with Rob Elliot. They are now in the hunt for a new manager and will be weighing up their options.
The Red Devils are positioned in 22nd in the league and are inside the bottom four with Shrewsbury Town, Cambridge United and Burton Albion. They are 12 points from safety with nine matches left. Louis Storey has been placed in interim charge by the Sussex club as they look to close the gap between them and safety. Meanwhile, Anthony Sweeney has been named as their caretaker number two whilst the search for a permanent head coach gets underway.
Crawley were promoted from the fourth tier last year along with Stockport County, Wrexham and Mansfield Town after they beat Crewe Alexandra in the play-off final at Wembley. However, they have found the step up hard.
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They turned to Elliot in October following Scott Lindsey’s exit to MK Dons after he caught their eye in the National League with Gateshead. He won only six of his 33 matches at the helm though and wasn’t able to inspire them to an upturn in form. The ex-goalkeeper made 222 appearances during his playing days before he hung up his gloves in 2023. He had spells with the likes of Charlton Athletic, Newcastle United and Watford.
Inigo Calderon’s reaction to Bristol Rovers’ thumping by Lincoln City
Bristol Rovers will be hoping for a much better peformance against Crawley than their one against Lincoln. Speaking after their heavy loss to the Imps, Calderon said: “Even from the start of the game, I could see the energy was not there. We were quite flat. I was not happy at all with the performance.
“I think we paid the price today of the last two games. The energy wasn't there. I wouldn’t say that they didn’t try because I think they tried, but we didn’t have the energy. When you don’t have the energy, you have to try to find a way to get something, and I don’t think we could.”
He also added: “We talked at half-time, and I think it was a good chat, but obviously the goals after killed us. When you’re having a bad day when you try to change things, that’s difficult to take and after the next one is coming. It was a really difficult day to be here.”