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Blackburn Rovers and Southampton will battle for three points in an EFL Championship round 41 clash on Saturday.
The hosts are coming into the game on the back of a 5-1 away thrashing of Sunderland on Monday. Summit Szmodics' first-half brace put the Riversiders on their way to victory, while Ryan Hedges, Tyrhys Dolan and Andy Moran added second-half strikes. Christopher Rigg scored a late consolation strike for the Black Cats.
Southampton, meanwhile, fell to a 3-2 defeat away to surprise package Ipswich Town in dramatic circumstances. They went behind to Leif Davis' 13th-minute strike but drew level straight from kick off.
Adam Armstrong put the visitors ahead in the 23rd minute and they held their lead till the 68th minute when Nathan Broadhead equalised for the hosts. James Bree was dismissed in the 85th minute for the Saints and Ipswich capitalized, with late substitute Jeremy Sarmiento scoring the match-winner with the last kick of the game.
The defeat left Southampton in fourth spot in the table, having garnered 74 points from 38 games. Blackburn are 17th with 45 points to their name.
Blackburn Rovers vs Southampton Head-to-Head and Key Numbers
- This will be the 48th meeting between the two sides. Southampton lead 20-17.
- Their most recent clash came in December 2023 when Southampton claimed a 4-0 home win.
- Southampton have scored at least two goals in four of the last five head-to-head games.
- Blackburn Rovers have won 11 of the last 15 head-to-head games played at Ewood Park (three draws), keeping a clean sheet in four of the last six.
- Southampton have kept just one clean sheet in their last eight league games.
Blackburn Rovers vs Southampton Prediction
Blackburn Rovers' shock 5-1 away win over Sunderland was their biggest league victory in two-and-half years. It was John Eustace's first win in charge of the Lancashire outfit at the 10th time of asking. It also took them five points clear of the relegation zone.
Southampton's 24-game unbeaten run earlier in the season boosted their hopes of automatic qualification. However, those hopes have practically been extinguished despite the Saints having two games in hand on their fellow promotion hopefuls.
We are backing the visitors to claim a narrow win with goals at both ends.
Prediction: Blackburn Rovers 1-2 Southampton
Blackburn Rovers vs Southampton Betting Tips
Tip 1 - Southampton to win
Tip 2 - Both teams to score
Tip 3 - Over 2.5 goals
