Joey Barton will use the lessons he learned with Paddy Madden and Ched Evans to make Brandon Hanlan and Jonah Ayunga a threatening strike partnership.
The forwards’ best moments in a Rovers shirt have often come without the other on the pitch, and they struggled for cohesion when paired together for the final 20 minutes of Saturday’s 0-0 draw against AFC Wimbledon.
Barton believes Hanlan and Ayunga should be ideal partners, but from previous experience at Fleetwood Town he knows it can take time for strikers to learn each other’s strengths. He had Madden and Evans – two of the best goalscorers in League One over the past decade – to call on at Highbury, but even that pairing took time to mesh.
“Based on what I saw on Saturday, probably not,” Rovers boss Barton replied when asked if Hanlan and Ayunga will start together at Charlton Athletic on Tuesday.
“We’ll need to work with them, they’re two really talented individuals but I think it’s tough putting strikers together.
“I had a real struggle putting Madden and Evans together at Fleetwood, they just never ever complimented each other and I know Brandon and Jonah cause problems when they’re up there and they should be a nice foil for each other.
“Unfortunately, they just haven’t had a lot of game time and that’s something that has to be worked on the training ground. I think there’s definitely potential for it there.
“On Saturday we tried our arm because we’re trying to win a game of football and we wanted to bring goalscorers on, but it something definitely long term that I’ve got in my head.
“You want two goalscorers on the park, certainly with the type of football we are capable of playing, but I also think it’d be naïve of me to play a relatively new partnership at one of the toughest places to go in this league.
“I’ll assess it, but I won’t be telling Lee Bowyer my tactics anyway on your interview, but I’m definitely hoping to put them together because with the size, power and pace of the two of them, they can cause problems.”
Eighth-placed Charlton have several forwards of their own for Addicks boss Bowyer – though speculation emerged on Monday that he has resigned to take the Birmingham City job – to choose from, including Rovers’ January target Jayden Stockley, the muscular Chuks Aneke and in-form Northern Ireland international Conor Washington.
“They’re not Real Madrid,” Barton said. “We can cause them problems. They have got some talented players because if you’re trying to get promoted out of the division you should have talented players.
“We’ve got enough talented players to give them second thoughts as well. If we’re at it like in recent weeks, we can cause anyone problems.
“(I am) six games in now and when I came in I did think there was going to be a bit of a confidence void and a few people who were a bit trodden down.
“But I haven’t found that, they’re a group of lads who have been waiting to get organised.
“We’ve given them a platform now and we’ve just got to hope between now and the end of the season that confidence keeps growing and results keep coming to help that confidence.”
