Season So Far
Rovers will make the journey South on the back of two straight defeats, sitting just a place above The Bees in the Championship table. Recent results have been very one-sided, either wins or defeats, and their last draw came at the beginning of February.
After being eliminated by Shrewsbury in the First Round of the Capital One Cup, they managed to go a lot further in the FA Cup. The Blue and White halves beat Newport County 2-1 then Oxford United 3-0 before finally bowing out to West Ham United in the Fifth Round to a five-goal performance from The Hammers.
The early season saw previous manager Gary Bowyer struggle to pull them out of the relegation zone, until early November. Since Christmas, they have fought their way into mid-table with a string of good defensive performances coupled with some efficient attacking displays.
January’s transfer window saw six new faces arrive on loan deals including both Jordi Gomez and Danny Graham from Sunderland. Talented young central midfielder Matt Grimes was also one of the new faces to arrive at Ewood Park, he joined from Swansea City. The only permanent addition to the squad was Elliott Ward [AFC Bournemouth].
After a series of bids, and after contributing 11 goals already to this season’s campaign, Jordan Rhodes was finally sold to Middlesbrough on Deadline Day. Marcus Olsson followed him out the door to Derby County and Bengali-Fodé Koita joined Turkish side Karimpasa. Earlier in the same window, Sacha Petshi was allowed to return to native France on a free transfer.
Rovers also confirmed yesterday that they had allowed midfielder Chris Taylor to return to Millwall, his previous club, on loan until the end of the season.
The Gaffer
Paul Lambert was appointed manager of Rovers in November, after a summer break from the game. His previous role with Aston Villa had lasted almost three seasons, before the club replaced him with Tim Sherwood. His early management career included time at Livingston, Wycombe Wanderers and Colchester United. His best period as a manager was felt with Norwich City, a team he guided to successive promotions from League One to the top flight between 2009 and 2011.
The Scottish former midfielder won several honours in his playing days, from domestic titles with Celtic to the Champions League with Borussia Dortmund. Capped 40 times at international level, he played every minute of Scotland’s 1998 World Cup campaign.
Match Officials
Referee: Michael Bull
Assistant Referees: Anthony Da Costa and Paul Kelly
Fourth Official: Ian Fissenden
Ticket News
Tickets are on sale now, and will continue to be available (subject to availability) right up until kick-off tomorrow. Fans can purchase them in person from the Ticket Office or online, however the standard match day price increase comes into effect from 4pm today (Friday). Away supporters are also able to pay cash on the turnstiles from 1.30pm on Saturday.
Bees Player
Bees Player subscribers can listen to match commentary from 2.30pm on Saturday afternoon. Mark Burridge hosts with guests Mick Cabble and Kevin O'Connor.