AARON Mokoena has vowed to stop James Beattie firmly in his tracks as Blackburn Rovers aim to get their season up and running at home to Everton tonight.

The South African international, who's known as The Axe', could be pressed into action as an emergency centre-half this evening as injuries and a suspension have left manager Mark Hughes scratching around for defenders.

Lucas Neill, Ryan Nelsen and Dominic Matteo are all definitely ruled out for the Toffees' visit, whilst Zurab Khizanishvili faces a late fitness test on the groin injury that kept him out of Saturday's 3-0 defeat at Portsmouth.

If the Georgian fails to make it then that leaves Hughes with just one regular centre-back in the shape of Andy Todd, who was only given the go-ahead to play in the game yesterday after his red card from the Portsmouth defeat was rescinded.

The other slot alongside Todd could therefore be taken by Mokoena, who is desperate to cement a regular place in Hughes' starting XI after a frustrating 12 months spent in and out of the side.

Whoever ultimately gets the nod at the back faces the unenviable task of trying to tame Beattie - a player who became something of a nemesis for Rovers last season.

Last December, the former Blackburn striker caused his old club no end of problems as Everton triumphed 2-0 at Ewood in a match where Todd saw red for deliberate handball.

Then in the return game at Goodison, Beattie proved the difference once again, his early goal sealing a league double for the Toffees on a day when David Moyes' side had to play 81 minutes with 10 men.

However, the challenge of keeping a lid on the one-time England striker - and his new partner Andy Johnson - holds no fears for Mokoena, who would be happy to answer Hughes' SOS.

"Each and every day in the Premier League, you come up against quality players," said Mokoena.

"It's all about getting your mind right from the beginning of the game.

"Beattie's a good player and I have a lot of respect for him, but we have players in our team who can stop him from making life difficult for us.

"He's a fantastic player, who's incredibly strong in the air, but we've got to believe we can compete with him and stop him from being effective." As Rovers floundered at Fratton Park on the opening day, Beattie and Johnson showed signs of striking up a promising partnership in Everton's 2-1 win at home to Watford, the latter opening his goal account for the Toffees with the aid of a big deflection.

Manager Mark Hughes isn't surprised that Everton's new front pair have struck up what seems like an instant understanding, and he knows that Rovers' chances of recording a first home win effectively hinge on how his defence handles Moyes's little and large duo.

"It looks a good mix, to be fair," said the Rovers boss.

"They've got the big guy and the small guy with pace so, if they keep them fit, I'm sure they'll score lots of goals.

Andy Johnson's a quality player who has scored goals at every club he has been at, so he's a very good addition for Everton.

"As for Beattie, he was excellent against us last season, certainly in the game at Goodison when they went down to 10 men.

"He's caused us problems in the past, but we've got to be ready for it."

If Rovers are to get their season up and running tonight then a big improvement is needed after Saturday's false start.

Mokoena added: "It's always difficult to explain performances like that but I think, mentally, we weren't really right.

"Once you're not ready mentally then that affects everything else you do, but hopefully that was wake-up call for us.

We know what kind of a team we are and we know how much it takes to win games in the Premier League.''