John Eustace favourite returns, new role for forward – Valerien Ismael’s strongest Blackburn XI after break

Add as preferred source on Google

Valerien Ismael has had a nightmare start to life as Blackburn Rovers manager, but he now has the international break to assess what is going wrong and make changes.

After John Eustace departed for Derby County, Blackburn Rovers opted to hand the reigns over to Valerien Ismael.

Things have not gone to plan for the 49-year-old during his brief stint at Ewood Park, however.

Blackburn fans slammed Ismael after losing to Stoke City, with that defeat quickly followed by a shock 2-1 lose versus Cardiff City last time out.

He has now failed to win his first three Championship games as manager, seeing Rovers drop down to ninth in the division and five points adrift of the play-offs.

Position	Team	Played MP	Won W	Drawn D	Lost L	For GF	Against GA	Diff GD	Points Pts
6	West BromWest Brom	38	13	18	7	48	34	14	57
7	Bristol CityBristol City	38	14	15	9	49	41	8	57
8	MiddlesbroughMiddlesbrough	38	15	9	14	57	48	9	54
9	BlackburnBlackburn	38	15	7	16	42	40	2	52
10	WatfordWatford	38	15	7	16	47	51	-4	52
11	MillwallMillwall	38	13	12	13	37	39	-2	51

A top-six finish remains on the cards but it’s clear something will need to be changed once Championship football resumes at the end of March.

With this in mind, here is the strongest possible XI Ismael can select to get Blackburn’s season back on track.

GK: Aynsley Alan William Pears

While keeping clean sheets has been a problem in recent weeks, Aynsley Pears remains Blackburn’s best goalkeeper by some distance.

RB: Joe Rankin-Costello

Callum Brittain missed the defeat to Cardiff with a calf problem, leaving Joe Rankin-Costello as the only fit right-back available. It’s not yet known how long the former will be sidelined for.

CB: Hayden Carter

Hayden Carter missed a large chunk of the season due to injury but has returned in recent weeks. He’s yet to help Blackburn fix their leaky backline but is one of the better options available right now.

CB: Dominic Hyam

Danny Batth is probably the best partner for Carter but the 34-year-old suffered an injury in late January and has been out of action in the league since. He could return soon but if not, Hyam will likely start.

LB: Yuri Ribeiro

Yuri Ribeiro has done little to impress at Blackburn since arriving in January but with Owen Beck also having fitness problems in 2025, Ribeiro likely has to keep his place until the Liverpool loanee returns.

CDM: Sondre Tronstad

Sondre Tronstad hasn’t looked at his best following his recent from injury last month but he’s a great leader and has captained Blackburn several times this term. If he finds form again, results should improve.

CDM: Lewis Travis

Similarly, Lewis Travis actually played well against Cardiff, making two key passes and having a 90 percent passing accuracy – enough to keep his place in the side.

RM: Yuki Ohashi

Tyrhys Dolan was the lowest-rated player when Blackburn lost to the Welsh outfit, according to Sofascore and it may be time for him to be benched.

Yuki Ohashi is not a natural winger but he has a goal threat, scoring against Cardiff, and could be moved out wide to make room for a returning star as the 10.

CAM: Todd Cantwell

Todd Cantwell has struggled to maintain a starting berth but was impressive for Blackburn earlier in the season.

Speaking back in November 2024, Eustance heaped praise on Cantwell, labelling him ‘outstanding’.

He said: “I thought his performance was outstanding.

“He’s got better and better and he’s a real pivotal player for us, and gives us that platform to build and play. You can see as we are evolving as a football team he’s a big part of that.

“I think he feels at home now here. The players love him to bits. He’s a cracking lad and it’s important that he keeps developing and improving as the group do.”

The former Norwich man has only been used off the bench or from the left under his current manager but a change back to his preferred 10 role could be just what he needs.

LM: Amario Cozier-Duberry

Emmanuel Dennis looks set for a spell on the sidelines, leaving Blackburn with very limited options on the left.

Amario Cozier-Duberry replaced the ex-Watford man when he was forced off on Saturday and will now likely start in his absence.

ST: Makhtar Gueye

There are not too many options for Ismael to pick from up front given Dennis is out and Cauley Woodrow hasn’t scored a single goal for any club all season, meaning Makhtar Gueye is the best striker available.

Blackburn’s first game back after the international break comes against Portsmouth on March 29th.