Sports Mole previews Sunday’s Championship game between Blackburn Rovers and West Bromwich Albion, including predictions, team news and potential line-ups.
Blackburn Rover will look to continue their perfect start to the Championship season on Sunday when they entertain West Bromwich Albion.
The hosts are the only team to win their opening two games in the second division of England Steve Bruce‘s men are two points after consecutive draws.
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The start of the 2022/23 season marked the start of a new era for Blackburn Rovers Jon Dahl Tomasson after the departure of the longtime manager now at the top Tony Mowbray.
After an encouraging pre-season in which draws against Dundee and Celtic were followed by wins and clean sheets against Hartlepool United and Lincoln City, the Lancashire side started the league with a home game against Queens Park Rangers.
They would walk away with all three points Lewis Travis scored the only goal of the game before enjoying a successful trip to Swansea City when Travis was again alongside him on the goalscoring list Sammie Szmodics and Ben Brereton Diaz in a 3-0 win.
Tomasson’s men would record three wins from three competitive games last time out as they beat Hartlepool United 4-0 in the first round of the EFL Cup on Wednesday Scott Wharton, Bradley Dack, Tyrhys Dolan and Dilan Markanday everyone finds the net.
The Rovers, who are already the only Championship side with a perfect record after two games, having amassed six points, hit the net four times and not conceded a goal, will look to continue to build and add a third notch to their winning streak on home soil over the weekend.
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West Bromwich Albion will be looking for their first championship win of their own this season as they look to fight for promotion to the top flight for a second time after a somewhat disappointing 10th place last year.
Steve Bruce’s side started the new season with a trip to Middlesbrough and after falling behind Isaiah JonesThey were able to leave the early start with a point John Swift scored the equalizer just after halftime.
The Baggies then faced another tough test at home against Watford and would again draw 1–1 Karl Grant leveled the scores on the beat of the interval after that Ismaila Sarr‘s remote opener and David Button saved Sarr from the penalty spot in the second half to ensure the spoils were shared.
Bruce’s men would then clinch a first competitive win of the season on Thursday when Grant was another top scorer at the Hawthorns and scored the only goal as they beat Sheffield United 1-0 in a tie in the first round of the EFL Cup .
Hoping to draw confidence from that triumph but with their league schedule not getting any easier, the Midlands side will aim to be the first team to take points ahead of Blackburn this season when they travel to Ewood Park on Sunday .
Blackburn Rovers Championship Form:
Form of Blackburn Rovers (all competitions):
West Bromwich Albion Championship Form:
Form of West Bromwich Albion (all competitions):
Team News
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Blackburn Rovers have made a lot of changes for their cup game against Hartlepool and important men like it Thomas Kaminsky, Daniel Aya, John Buckley and captain Lewis Travis will return from the start at the weekend.
After an injury-plagued season last time out in which he only played nine league games, Bradley Dack was able to start on Wednesday and he will be keen to feature again on Sunday after being included in the goalscoring charts Tyrhys Dolan also found that Netz and registered his claim for a place.
However, they have a lot of competition with Sammie Szmodics. Sam Gallagher and Ryan Hedges All play an important role in the first two league games while Ben Brereton Diaz will certainly be there after opening his account for the season after scoring 21 goals in 36 league games last season.
Bruce also chose to rest some key players midweek and the like Half Ajayi, Conor Townsende and newcomers John Swift and Jed Wallace are about to return to the starting XI.
Wallace and Swift shared the equalizer at Middlesbrough and they will operate behind lone striker Karlan Grant, who has hit the net in consecutive games while being another striker Daryl Dike remains out of action due to injury.
Turkey midfielder Okay Yokuslu, who missed the first two games through injury, made a first start of the season on Thursday and he and Alex Mowatt will both be pushing to stay in the XI, with Jayson Molumby and Jake Livermore so far preferred in the league.
Blackburn Rovers possible starting line-up:
Kaminsky; Brittain, Ayala, Wharton, Pickering; Travis, Buckley; Szmodics, Dack, Brereton Diaz; Gallagher
West Bromwich Albion possible starting line-up:
Button; Furlong, Ajayi, O’Shea, Townsend; Yokuslu, Molumby; Wallace, Swift, Diangana; Grant
We say Blackburn Rovers 2-1 West Bromwich Albion
Whilst West Brom should be a tough test, Blackburn look full of confidence under Tomasson and we’re backing them to record another impressive three-point win with home advantage at the weekend.
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top tip
Our expert Tipster partners at Sporita.com predict over 1.5 goals in this game. Click here to find out what else they predict for this game and for more of their football best tips.About 1.5: data