Michael Appleton weighs up squad rotation ahead of Blackpool's trio of games against Luton Town, Middlesbrough and Wigan Athletic

The Seasiders play three times in the space of eight days before the Championship halts for a month from November 13 to December 9.

Appleton made just one change to his side for the midweek game against West Brom, albeit it was an enforced one with Charlie Patino missing out through illness.

But the decision to otherwise stick with the same side that beat Coventry City three days earlier appeared to backfire, as the Seasiders lacked energy during their 1-0 defeat at the Hawthorns.

“You’ve got to find the right balance,” Appleton told The Gazette.

“Do you make one or two changes? Or five or six changes to freshen it up?

“One thing is for sure, on the back of the week we’ve had with illnesses going around, the next three games more so than ever there will be a little bit of variety in the group.”

First up for Blackpool is a home game against 10th-placed side Luton Town, who continue to keep themselves in and around the play-off picture after finishing in the top six last season.

“One thing is for sure, if you don’t match Luton and compete with what they bring to the table you’re going to end up finishing second best,” Appleton added.

“That’s the standard for us on Saturday and if we’re able to do that, we’ve just got to try and make sure we have a bit more quality on the day than they have.

“They’ve shown over the years how capable they are. They’re comfortable going to places and picking up really important wins.

“They’ve got some really good players. Elijah Adebayo, Carlton Morris, Harry Cornick up top, they’re all talented players and give them variation.

“I like their players in the middle of the park as well, because they’re unsung heroes for them. They’re there for them every single week, put in good performances and are always 7 or 8/10. They’re absolute dream-type players to have in your squad.

“They’ve got a couple of injuries in defensive positions themselves so we’re aware of that, but it should be a good game between two committed teams who go toe-to-toe with each other.”