Blackburn will face Leeds at Ewood Park in front of supporters for the first time since February 2020

Blackburn will face Leeds United at Ewood Park as they look to build up yet more pre-season momentum.

Welcoming their home supporters back into the stadium for the first time since February 2020, they will want to put on a show as the new season draws ever closer.

Rovers have not made any notable signings this window but there was already a strong group available to Tony Mowbray, who faced and continues to face pressure from elements of the support who feel the club should be kicking on.

Tyrhys Dolan may see some minutes on the field as he has returned to training, although the likes of Bradley Johnson, Bradley Dack, Sam Gallagher and Joe Rankin-Costello remain absentees.

Having enamoured the nation of Chile during the Copa America, Ben Brereton will be back in home comforts to kick on from that success and provide a spark in the final third for Rovers this time out.

As for the opponents Leeds, this will be their first real test of pre-season and new arrival from Barcelona Junior Firpo may find himself some early action alongside England star Kalvin Phillips, fresh from Euro 2020 heartache.

Marcelo Bielsa is not exactly well known for easing into things when it comes to pre-season so Rovers will expect to come against an aggressive intensity and a team that have continued to monitor their fitness levels throughout the summer break.

This will be a good chance for Tony Mowbray to see what areas of his squad may need strengthening, particularly with a number of long-term injury concerns to contend with.

He knows more than most the importance of getting off to a good start this Championship season as failure to do so will see the pressure on his managerial position intensify, especially with supporters now back in stadiums.

But, he has a fine mix of youth and experienced talent that can certainly offer more than they did in spells of the last campaign.

Once the right balance is struck and Rovers show some adaptability to their play based on opponents they face, they can be a relentless force at times once it all comes together.

Mowbray will hope the signs of that being the case will shine through at Ewood Park when the game gets underway at 7:30pm.

Follow us on Twitter @ProstInt

[columns]
[column size=”1/2″][blog type=”timeline” posts=”10″ cats=”609″ heading=”EFL” heading_type=”timeline” /][/column]
[column size=”1/2″][blog type=”timeline” posts=”10″ cats=”1072″ heading=”News” heading_type=”timeline” /][/column]
[/columns]