Preview: Blackburn Rovers vs Bristol City

With the business end of the season drawing nearer and every game having a major impact on the Championship table, relegation candidates Blackburn Rovers host playoff outsiders Bristol City at Ewood Park on Tuesday night.

Rovers, now under new management, secured their third victory in four matches to boost their survival hopes, while the Robins slipped to a narrow 1-0 defeat in South Wales to continue their frustratingly inconsistent run.

Match preview

In their fight for survival, Michael O'Neill marked his first home game in charge of Blackburn Rovers with a huge three points against their Lancashire rivals Preston North End.

Rovers left it late on Friday night, with Yuki Ohashi striking in the 95th minute to seal a dramatic victory that moved them five points clear of the relegation zone with just 13 matches remaining.

In their quest to secure Championship football for the 2026-27 campaign, Blackburn parted ways with Valerien Ismael after a run of just 11 wins in nearly a year.

His successor, O'Neill has made an immediate impact, beginning life at Ewood Park with back-to-back victories while continuing to balance his role with managing the Northern Ireland national football team.

Earning a first away win for nearly three months and securing a huge victory over their Lancashire rivals now means Rovers have hauled themselves out of the relegation zone and have momentum behind them that they hope can continue to keep them up.

Although they have scored four goals in the last 180 minutes of football, their overall attacking output has been a let down.

Their 31 Championship goals for the season is the third-lowest in the division and a huge reason as to why they are in the trouble that they are in,.

However, since the arrival of the Northern Irish manager there have been encouraging signs of improvement, and they will believe increased efficiency in front of goal could be enough to preserve their second-tier status.

As for Bristol City, their erratic form since the turn of the year has seen them fluctuate dramatically between the playoff places and mid-table, and they head into Tuesday’s contest sitting 12th, despite being in the playoff places just a few weeks ago.

Following their trip to South Wales at the weekend, the Robins were undone by a Zan Vipotnik strike, meaning Gerhard Struber's side returned to England empty-handed after a narrow 1-0 defeat.

Having faced Welsh opposition twice in less than a week, Bristol City failed to win either encounter and have slipped into midtable, though the playoffs remain just four points away.

A consistent run could quickly propel them back into the top six and keep alive hopes of securing a playoff finish for the second consecutive season, but consistency has proved hard to come by in recent weeks.

Since the New Year, Struber’s men have repeatedly struggled to build momentum, failing to follow up victories with positive results and even suffering a damaging 5-0 home defeat that sent shockwaves through the club.

The pair lock horns for the second time this season after Blackburn came away from Ashton Gate 1-0 winners thanks to a Ohashi strike, similar to their most recent result.

Blackburn Rovers Championship form:

D L W L W W

Bristol City Championship form:

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Team News

Injuries have plagued Blackburn throughout the campaign, and they remain without several first-team players heading into this clash.

Despite coming away from their latest clash with no added injury woes, Rovers will be without Scott Wharton, Ryan Hedges, Matty Litherland, Augustus Kargbo, Sidnei Tavares and George Pratt.

The wait for O'Neill to utilise captain Todd Cantwell will go on after it was confirmed he will be out for the next couple of weeks.

However, the Northern Irish boss will have to wait until next season to have the services of Lewis Miller who will miss the rest of the campaign after being stretchered off against QPR.

As for Bristol City, they have more players available to them than they have had all season with a number of players having returned from injury in recent weeks.

Despite coming off injured against Wrexham, Adam Randell started against Swansea and could do so again, while Ross McCrorie missed both games after sustaining a concussion, but is likely to return to the matchday squad during the week.

Struber opted for a back four against Swansea rather than his preferred back five, and it remains to be seen which system he deploys here.

However, Luke McNally and Adam Murphy are both expected to remain sidelined for the foreseeable future.

Blackburn Rovers possible starting lineup:

Toth; Alebiosu, Carter, McLoughlin, Cashin, Pickering; Baradji, Tronstad, Morishita; Jorgensen, Gudjohnsen

Bristol City possible starting lineup:

Vitek; Tanner, Dickie, Atkinson, N. Borges; S. Morsy, Randell; Sykes, Twine, Armstrong; Riis

We say: Blackburn Rovers 2-2 Bristol City

With both ends of the table affected by this one, it is a hard to call. We expect both sides to get the better of their defences but with the points ultimately being shared on the night.

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