Megson: Don´t expect any favours from Bolton

Gary Megson has warned old friend Tony Pulis not to expect an easy ride when Bolton and Stoke lock horns on Saturday at the Reebok Stadium.

Megson and Potters manager Pulis are good friends, Megson having spent four months at the Britannia Stadium as unpaid coach in 1999 before returning to management with Leicester City.

But the Wanderers boss says his side won´t make things easy for the visiting team.

He said: "I´m eternally grateful for what Tony did and I would do exactly the same for him. In fact, I helped him out when he had a few problems during his days at Portsmouth.

"We laugh about glossy and non-glossy managers and he´s a non-glossy one like I am. But he is a good manager; a proven manager.

"He´s been successful wherever he´s been and he knows his stuff. But I don´t expect any favours and he won´t be getting any from me."

Megson also warned Stoke´s doubters not to underestimate them, despite being one of the favourites to go straight back down into the Championship: "I´ve been really surprised that people think it´s just a case of turning up and we´ll beat Stoke." He added.

"That´s not the case. Stoke will prove to everybody over the course of the season that they´re a really difficult opponent for everybody that they play.

"They come up with the momentum of being promoted, they´ve got some good players.

"There won´t be a bigger, fitter, more organised team in the league than Stoke, and anybody who doesn´t accept that will find themselves coming undone - Stoke City are not a mug team."