Blackburn Rovers Jamu Coventry City di Ewood Park 17 April

Blackburn Rovers dijadwalkan menjamu pemuncak klasemen Coventry City dalam laga krusial EFL Championship di Stadion Ewood Park pada Jumat malam, 17 April 2026. Pertandingan ini menjadi penentu bagi tim tamu untuk mengunci tiket promosi ke Premier League sekaligus momen krusial bagi tuan rumah guna menghindari ancaman degradasi.

Manajer Blackburn Rovers, Michael O'Neill, menyatakan kesiapan timnya untuk menghambat perayaan promosi Coventry City yang hanya membutuhkan satu poin tambahan. Saat ini Blackburn berada di posisi yang cukup sulit dengan keunggulan hanya empat poin dari zona degradasi Championship setelah memainkan satu pertandingan lebih banyak dibandingkan Oxford United.

"I said to the players, if you're not invited to the party, it's a nice thing to try and spoil it and that's what we have to do," ujar Michael O'Neill, Manajer Blackburn Rovers.

O'Neill menambahkan bahwa anak asuhnya memiliki catatan cukup baik saat menghadapi tim-tim dengan dukungan suporter besar di laga kandang. Ia merujuk pada performa tim saat melawan West Bromwich Albion, Preston North End, dan Middlesbrough di mana mereka tidak terkalahkan dalam laga-laga tersebut.

"They'll bring a big away support, as did West Brom and Preston in particular, and it's Middlesbrough. But we've handled those games well. We're unbeaten in any of those games. We play a team that's top of the league but every game in this Championship is winnable," tegas Michael O'Neill, Manajer Blackburn Rovers.

Pelatih asal Irlandia Utara tersebut juga menekankan pentingnya daya tahan tim saat menghadapi klub-klub papan atas. Ia berkaca pada kemenangan yang diraih Portsmouth melawan Middlesbrough dan Ipswich Town sebagai bukti bahwa tim papan bawah harus bertahan selama mungkin di dalam permainan.

"And the game can become more difficult for them. That's our objective - to make the game difficult for Coventry, but obviously bring our own level of performance to the game as well," lanjut Michael O'Neill, Manajer Blackburn Rovers.

Kabar positif datang bagi lini pertahanan Blackburn setelah bek kanan asal Nigeria, Ryan Alebiosu, dinyatakan fit untuk tampil. Alebiosu sebelumnya ditarik keluar pada babak pertama saat melawan Southampton karena mengalami benturan pada bagian punggung dan tulang rusuk.

"Ryan came through training today having come off in the game on Tuesday night, so that was a bonus," ungkap Michael O'Neill, Manajer Blackburn Rovers.

Selain Alebiosu, gelandang Adam Forshaw juga sedang dipantau kondisinya setelah mengalami cedera betis, sementara Todd diprediksi masih absen. O'Neill memuji kontribusi Forshaw yang telah memberikan menit bermain lebih banyak dari yang diperkirakan sejak kedatangannya.

"We're hopeful that Adam Forshaw might pass a fitness test in the morning, but Todd is probably not going to be available. We'll have that discussion in the morning, but he is a higher risk than Adam is at this moment in time. Adam's been terrific since I came in and has played way more minutes than maybe he expected to and what people maybe thought he was capable," tutur Michael O'Neill, Manajer Blackburn Rovers.

Di kubu lawan, Frank Lampard berharap bisa memberikan kebahagiaan bagi para pendukung Coventry City yang telah menanti selama 25 tahun untuk kembali ke kasta tertinggi. Sekitar 7.000 pendukung dilaporkan akan memadati tribun tandang Ewood Park untuk menyaksikan sejarah tersebut.

"The fans are the most important thing about any football club But with the situation this football club has been through for 25 years, it's heightened. It has an incredible fanbase home and away and 7,000-plus is testament to how they support this team. I wasn't here for the tough teams but I've read some things about situations the club and the fans have gone through. It means it's even more special for us as a football club. It's absolutely rare for teams who have gone through this journey to be one step away [from promotion]," kata Frank Lampard, Manajer Coventry City.

Lampard mengakui bahwa Blackburn Rovers adalah lawan yang tangguh mengingat energi yang mereka tunjukkan dalam perjuangan keluar dari zona merah. Meskipun Blackburn baru saja menelan kekalahan dari Southampton di tengah pekan, Lampard tidak melihat jadwal padat lawan sebagai keuntungan bagi timnya.

"You have to give credit to them in terms of their recent form. You can see Blackburn are a team who are fighting and have a good energy about them. They've had some positive results recently so it will be a tough game. I wouldn't say them playing in midweek when we didn't is a benefit for us. At this point, I would rather play than train," pungkas Frank Lampard, Manajer Coventry City.