Simon Grayson insists Blackpool duo Armand Gnanduillet and Sullay Kaikai weren't dropped

Gnanduillet came off the bench to score Blackpool's winner at Doncaster on Tuesday night

Simon Grayson says Blackpool's top scorers Armand Gnanduillet and Sullay Kaikai were rested, not dropped, for Tuesday night's 1-0 win at Doncaster Rovers.

Blackpool nursing 'one or two' knocks ahead of Accrington Stanley trip

The forwards have 10 goals between them this season yet they found themselves named among the substitutes at the Keepmoat Stadium in midweek.

It was a decision that shocked many, but it paid off with Gnanduillet coming off the bench to net the late winner in second-half stoppage time.

It was the striker's sixth goal of the season in all competitions.

When asked about the Frenchman's form so far this season, Grayson said: “He’s not the only player that is frustrating to manage and watch to be fair and that’s case the length and breadth of the country.

“Armand is a handful and has his own strengths and his own weaknesses.

“We felt on Tuesday that changing to play with Joe (Nuttall) and Ryan (Hardie) gave us something different.

“My bench was so strong, but people weren’t dropped on Tuesday night they were rested or rotated around because we can afford to do that.

“We will do it over the next few weeks and months because of the strength in depth we’ve got.

“There’s no point being stuck in our ways of using the same personnel and the same system every game because there will be days where we will change things around.

“You saw the work the two forwards did on Tuesday night, they ran themselves into the ground.

“I then wanted to freshen things up by bringing Sullay and Armand on and all of a sudden they’re fresh and wanting to go.

“I think if Ryan and Joe had still been on the pitch they wouldn’t have made up the ground to get into the box as Armand did for the winner because he was fresh and had a desire to do that.

“You win games from the bench and how strong it is and that proved to be the case on Tuesday.

“All I do when I make substitutions is tell players to go and affect the game and he certainly did that.

“Sullay is another one who has been an outstanding player for us this year. But I reiterate, they weren’t dropped, they were rotated to freshen the team up.

“Accrington is going to be the third game in a week which physically is tough to do at times. That’s the case whether you’re in League One, the Championship, Premier League or whatever.

“Three games in a week can be tough for people so we might freshen it up again tomorrow.”