Vital Reading season preview
Club: Blackburn Rovers
Founded: 1875
Nickname: Rovers
Ground: Ewood Park (Capacity: 31,367)
When we face off: Saturday 23rd November (A), Saturday 22nd February (H)
Last season finish: 17th – Championship
Manager: Gary Bowyer – The former Rovers reserve team manager seemed to be the only man that stabilised the Lancashire side, out of their four managers last season. This is his first full job in management, so still has a lot to learn, but would have been helped by his experiences last campaign.
Key player: Jordan Rhodes – Blackburn certainly paid out big money to bring the Scottish international in, but he has justified his price tag with some important goals in a Rovers shirt. One of the most prolific strikers in the football league and if Blackburn have any success this season, it will probably be because of him.
Season Preview: On paper, Blackburn have a good squad, but as we all know, a match isn’t played on paper! It would have been a blow to lose Martin Olsson, but if Bowyer gets the likes of Hanley, Dann, Judge and Rhodes playing well, Blackburn could be in the play-off picture come the end of the season.
Thanks for your patronising analysis. As a Rovers supporter I want to know why you think we won’t be in one of the automatic promotion places?
Patronising? I’m struggling to see how I have been patronising. I think you may be slightly biased if you think that you are among the best two teams in the league, as I’m afraid you’re not. You are capable of challenging for them, but the likes of QPR, ourselves, Bolton and Wigan currently have stronger squads than you do. Bowyer still has a lot to learn as a manger too. A lot has gone on at your club in the past year and I doubt it has completely filtered through the players heads yet.
As a Rovers fan I agree with some of what you say, the problem is that you don’t know our squad well enough to make any kind of prediction. Chris Taylor looks like a great signing, a winger with real guile and commitment… We also have Ruben Rochina who on his day is one of the best players in the Championship. Leon Best & DJ Campbell may grab us a few goals, Josh King who is a former Man United player full of promise, Jason Lowe a England under 21 player, Josh Morris finally looks like he is ready for a long run in the first team. Our defence – Scott Dann, Matt Kilgallon, A slimmer Grant Hanley & Songo’o if he continues to impress whilst on trail, are among some of the best defenders in the league!! ON PAPER all of the teams you mentioned are strong but if GB can get the squad together and we avoid more circus type behaviour from The Venkys we surely will be up there. However in reality I fear another season of mediocrity and unrest and a poor midtable finish…. Optimism remains for now though.. COME ON YOU BLUES
Fair play Craig, you talk a lot of sense there. I find it hard doing these previews, as it it is so hard to predict where teams will finish, as the Championship is so unpredictable – it’s hard to please everyone! You are one of the few sides I would like to see promoted, your fans have normally struck me as very down to earth. Like us, you have the foundations there for a promotion pushing side, but it is impossible to tell whether it will pay off. I admire your optimism though, I’m sure a few Rovers fans wouldn’t share the same optimism, considered what has gone on in the past few years.