MANY a Whites fan will have been quietly pleased to see Christian Benteke was in the wars against Swansea on Tuesday night.

Not so David Wheater.

The big defender, reborn after being released and re-signed by Bolton last summer, is keen to pit his wits against the best talent the top flight can muster, and that includes the Belgian who proves a real handful for Premier League stoppers week in, week out.

It may not be an opinion shared by Wanderers supporters keen to see their side cause an upset but Wheater feels if they can overcome Palace at something like their strongest it would make victory all the sweeter.

“To be honest I would prefer it if Benteke played, I want to play against the top players, it’s a good challenge,” said Wheater, arguably Wanderers’ most consistent player this term.

“When we played in the Premier League against Wayne Rooney and people like that it was brilliant to go up against them and see how you do, so I don’t know if he will or will not play, it might be better for us if he doesn’t though.

“He’s a top player but in a one-on-one battle you want to be playing against the top players.”

Wheater is no stranger to Premier League quality, having spent the formative years of his career battling the Manchester Uniteds, Liverpools and Arsenals on a weekly basis.

And now, two divisions down, he accepts the players may not be as naturally gifted, but they know how to take a lump out of you.

“Not to be disrespectful to the League One strikers but the top Premier League players are just that bit sharper in the mind and obviously with the feet as well,” he added. “That’s why they’re in the Premier League and earning the big bucks – everyone in the Premier League is a top player and that’s what you want to test yourself against.

“I think it’s harder to play in the lower leagues, if the strikers aren’t great with the ball they’ll chase you, hunt you down and kick you, you have to just take it.

With Premier League strikers if they’ve got the ball it’s a bit harder to get hold of it, but you don’t get as many knocks.

“I’ve seen Palace and they haven’t got the best defensive record but they have been scoring quite a few goals, which is good for them when they’re conceding.

“It’s going to be tough for us obviously but we think we can go and get a result.

“I have seen Sam Allardyce around Bolton a few times, we’ve had a chat and he seems a nice fella.

“I think he will make them more solid, he’ll make them more defensive than the last managers, and obviously Chungy (Chung Yong-Lee) is coming back as well, he’s a top player so I hope he plays and he gets a great reception from our fans.”