The clean sheet against Wrexham on Saturday did not arrive by accident. Tony Mowbray made his feelings known after Blackburn threw away a two-goal lead at West Brom, singling out the centre-backs in public. Their answer at Ewood Park was organised, disciplined and uncompromising, and goalkeeper Balazs Toth did not have a single save to make. That is how a dressing-room responds to a manager it respects.
The same squad, a completely different team
What makes the turnaround so striking is the personnel. This is largely the same group of players that endured such a difficult campaign last season. Yet the standards are rising, confidence is building and, crucially, there is now an identity to Rovers that was simply absent twelve months ago.
The numbers underline it. Blackburn managed just four home wins across the whole of last season. By the end of October, they have already matched that total. Four home wins before Halloween tells you everything about the shift in mentality Mowbray has engineered since arriving at the club.
Opportunities seized from the sidelines
Injuries to Ryoya Morishita and Kristi Montgomery ended both players' ever-present records and forced Mowbray's hand in selection. Jayden Fevrier and Moussa Baradji came in and both seized the moment. Fevrier provides the kind of direct, cut-inside threat that defenders find deeply uncomfortable, and went close to opening the scoring. Baradji produced what BBC Radio Lancashire's Andy Bayes described as his most convincing display in a Rovers shirt.
Mowbray's assessment of Baradji was unambiguous: "We've spent a bit of time with him in the analysis suite talking about discipline because he's got every attribute to be a top, top player. He can leap like a salmon, he's fast, he's as strong as an ox, he's got twinkling feet... what can't he do?" The challenge, as Bayes notes, is reproducing that level at Swansea next weekend.
Cantwell and Gudjohnsen pulling the strings
Todd Cantwell is flourishing in the way Mowbray's best signings tend to. The manager has a long record of unlocking gifted footballers, and Cantwell is now delivering both the moments of quality and the numbers to match. He was heavily involved in the second goal, with excellent work that allowed Andri Gudjohnsen to finish the game off.
Gudjohnsen himself continues to build a reputation in the Championship. His first-half goal showed the instincts of a natural goalscorer, arriving in the right space at exactly the right moment. His second was ruthless. Two goals and a growing partnership with Cantwell: Rovers have a combination in the final third that opposing defences will fear.
A ground transformed
Mowbray brings something beyond tactics and team selection. He has overcome serious personal challenges in recent years and, by all accounts, is relishing being back in management. That calm, experienced presence filters through to the players and to Ewood Park itself.
Not long ago, home matchdays at Ewood carried a weight of anxiety. Right now, the ground feels like a place supporters want to be, not one they feel obliged to attend. That shift in atmosphere is real and, in a long Championship season, it matters. No one inside the club is getting carried away, and there is still a considerable distance to travel. But the direction of travel is unmistakable, and Mowbray's fingerprints are all over it.
Frequently asked
- How many home wins have Blackburn Rovers had this season?
- Blackburn have already matched their total of four home wins from the whole of last season, achieving that by the end of October.
- What has Tony Mowbray said about Moussa Baradji?
- Mowbray praised Baradji's physical and technical attributes, saying the winger has every quality to become a top player, while noting they have been working together on discipline and decision-making in the analysis suite.
- How did Blackburn keep a clean sheet against Wrexham?
- Rovers were well-organised and disciplined defensively, providing such strong protection for goalkeeper Balazs Toth that he was not required to make a single save throughout the match.