Blackburn Rovers Injury Situation Improves but Ryotaro Ito Deal Stalls

Tony Mowbray believes Blackburn Rovers are finally starting to see light at the end of their injury tunnel – but the door looks to be closing on Ryotaro Ito.

Rovers went into Tuesday night’s 2-1 home defeat to Sheffield United without a recognised striker, forced to use Jayden Fevrier as a false nine. Andri Gudjohnsen, who had carried the bulk of the attacking load with 418 minutes across the opening five games, was missing, while fellow forwards Mathias Jorgensen and Yuki Ohashi are still weeks away from returning.

The result left Blackburn with just one point from their last four matches and under growing pressure ahead of Millwall’s visit to Ewood Park on Saturday.

Striker shortage easing at last

The mood around the treatment room, at least, has started to shift.

Mowbray confirmed Gudjohnsen was back in training on Thursday and could feature against Millwall (15:00 BST), offering a badly needed focal point in attack. There is also the prospect of seeing Moussa Baradji for the first time this season, with the forward being lined up for a potential role off the bench.

"It's starting to improve and starting to get better," Mowbray told BBC Radio Lancashire, welcoming the gradual return of senior options.

"It would be nice to have some more senior players to try and change a game late on as opposed to hoping a young boy comes on and does something quite special."

That reliance on youth has underlined just how stretched Rovers have been. The hope now is that Millwall marks a turning point, not another exercise in makeshift solutions.

Ito deal stalls as Rovers search for help

Off the pitch, the hunt for reinforcements has hit a setback.

Blackburn had been close to a deal for Japan midfielder Ryotaro Ito, who spent last season in Belgium. The 28-year-old was even at the club on Monday, raising expectations that a move was imminent.

Instead, the move has stalled – and Mowbray is braced for disappointment.

"I'm not really sure what's happened," he said. "At this moment there's nothing happening.

"I genuinely don't know but, my experience would suggest to me that it's not going to happen now.

"I don't know why it didn't happen. I asked for help a few weeks ago and the club are trying to put some players in the building to help us."

The collapse of the Ito move leaves Rovers still searching for the extra quality Mowbray has been pushing for, with the games already stacking up.

Results must catch up with performances

On the table, the picture is stark. Blackburn sit four points and 10 places behind eighth-placed Millwall, the kind of gap that can quickly widen if form doesn’t turn.

Mowbray insists performances have deserved more, but he knows the league table will not listen to excuses.

"We know we need to find a result, we can't keep thinking the team is playing quite well but we're getting beat again or drawing again," he said.

"I think we are better than the results have suggested the last couple of games and deserved more from them, but the reality is you have to win matches and get points."

With bodies finally returning and Millwall looming, the question is simple: can Blackburn turn promise into points before this slow start hardens into their season’s story?