2 points ahead of Boro whose next 5 games include 2 against hapless, hopeless Charlton (though we deservedly lost to them 2 weeks ago) and a clash of potentially monumental proportions at Ewood. Rapidly reviving Wham also have a sequence of winnable games. So the New Year could well see Rovers looking down on only the doomed Charlton and Watford. Then January fixtures include Arsenal and Chelsea. Things are likely to get worse - much worse - before they possibly start trying to close a sizeable gaps on the teams above. What is the cause for optimism or at least the evident complacency about the transfer window? It cannot come from recent performances. Dreadful at Charlton and in the first against both Newcastle and Reading.