FORMER Blackburn Rovers and Portsmouth boss Jim Smith fears Sam Allardyce is fighting a losing battle as the inequality of wealth in the game continues to grow.

As his former employers go to head to head in a tense basement battle at Ewood on Saturday, Smith, who is glad to be away from the commercialisation of football, has warned that success for Allardyce and more than half of England’s top flight clubs is now merely survival.

Smith fears for Portsmouth’s immediate future as the cash-strapped club flounder at the bottom of the league and claims boss Paul Hart will have performed a ‘miracle’ if he keeps them up.

‘The Bald Eagle’ is more optimistic about Rovers hopes of staying away from a relegation scrap, insisting Allardyce is the man to steer them to safety, but warns fans will have to get used to mediocrity as “money runs the game”.

“It is a very difficult, sad situation for clubs like Blackburn Rovers, Portsmouth, Bolton, Burnley, Wigan,” said Smith, who managed Rovers from 1975-78 and Portsmouth from 1991-1995.

“You can go on and talk about half of the clubs in the Premier League can’t you?

“It is unbelievable seeing the amount of money being spent by the big big clubs, but it isn’t helping the smaller clubs is it.

"Managers of clubs like Blackburn and Portsmouth really earn their money just keeping them in the Premier League.

“Football used to be more of a level playing field. Don’t get me wrong, it was never level but you always felt there were a lot of teams capable of achieving things.

“That just doesn’t happen any more. Unfortunately you can almost predict who will win all the trophies and the rest are just fighting to stay up.

"The competitiveness has gone and maybe it has gone forever.”

Sam Allardyce’s cautious approach to last weekend’s 2-0 defeat at Old Trafford has attracted its critics, especially on the back of a 10-match losing away run, but Smith insists Rovers are lucky to have ‘Big Sam’ at the helm.

He questions whether anyone would be able to do better in such financially challenging times and is confident Rovers will climb the table, starting with Saturday’s Pompey visit.

“I have no doubt at all that Blackburn Rovers will be fine this season.

"Sam Allardyce is a very knowledgeable manager and there he is way he would let that squad be relegated," said Smith, who is now a director at Oxford United but spends most of his time in his villa in Spain.

“You can understand that fans are a little bit frustrated they are not challenging up nearer towards the top end but that is just the way things are going. Look at the finances and that tells you a lot.

“I am sure Sam is frustrated himself but I’m afraid the best teams like Blackburn can hope for is a mid table finish and maybe a good run in a cup.

"You couldn’t have a better man in charge though.”

Portsmouth visit Ewood on Saturday bottom of the league and with a transfer embargo hanging over their heads as they continue to struggle financially.

But eight goals in the last two games have lifted Pompey’s survival hopes with Smith, 69, full of hope Hart can perform a miracle.

“Of course I hope Portsmouth stay up as well,” he said.

“They had a terrible start but they have picked up and aren’t too far off the rest.

“After everything that has gone on there though, Paul Hart will have done an unbelievable job if he keeps the club up.

"He is fairly inexperienced but he will be learning quickly doing this job.”