Blackburn vs Norwich prediction: ENGLAND: Championship betting tips on match 2024-02-23 15:00.
After a defeat at Birmingham followed by successive draws away at Preston and Cardiff, John Eustace will be targeting his first win as Blackburn Rovers manager when he leads his team into a home fixture for the first time on Saturday against in-form Norwich City. Rovers have been in good form themselves at Ewood Park in 2024 with just one defeat from their six home games (W3, D2), and across the whole season they have failed to score in just two matches in front of their fans.
Keeping it tight at the other end has been an issue for the Lancashire side, so Eustace was unsurprisingly “delighted” on Tuesday evening when they drew 0-0 in South Wales to end a run of 17 games (W5, D3, L9) without a clean sheet! That point sees Blackburn in 15th, but by no means are they sitting comfortably as they are only six points above the relegation zone.
Norwich come into this round of fixtures in eighth place, just three points from the play-offs. That only tells part of the story, as only second-placed Leeds United have taken more points over the last eight games (W5, D2, L1) in the division, and in fact, David Wagner’s side have only been beaten by Leeds and Premier League leaders Liverpool across all competitions in 2024!
However, they have struggled on the road with just one win in the league from their last six (D2, L3) and have failed to keep a clean sheet in 14 away matches. But Ewood Park is where the Canaries have flown high in recent times and their supporters will make the unenviable near ten-hour round trip hoping to witness their sixth successive win at the venue!
Players to watch: Blackburn are yet to lose in 2024 when Sammie Szmodics has scored (W3, D2) and his last seven goals have all come in the first half. He also found the net twice in the win at Carrow Road earlier this season! Gabriel Sara got Norwich’s only goal in that game and he is in fine form at the moment with two goals and an assist from his last three matches, as well as an assist in each of his last two away fixtures.
Hot stat: Norwich have scored a first-half goal in just two of their last seven away games.