West Bromwich Albion make the trip to Blackburn Rovers on Saturday afternoon knowing that a fourth victory in succession will move the club to the brink of promotion to the Premier League.
Meanwhile, Rovers welcome the Baggies to Ewood Park aware that they realistically require three points to remain in contention for a place in the Championship playoffs.
Match preview
© Reuters
After four matches without a win or a goal in the Championship, many were tipping West Brom to eventually be closed down by Brentford after their defeat to the Bees on June 26.
However, the Baggies have since recorded three successive victories and netted nine times, putting them closer to a return to the Premier League after two years away.
Slaven Bilic will stress to both his players and the media that there is still work to do, taking into account that games with Blackburn and Fulham represent stiff tests for his players.
That said, the Croatian will have only taken confidence from the recent performances of some of his flair players, particularly West Ham United loanee Grady Diangana, who appeared to have lost his way.
The playmaker has contributed goals in successive matches for the first time this season and a continuation of that streak, providing that he shakes off an injury, may put West Brom within touching distance of the finishing line.
As far as Blackburn are concerned, three successive defeats have left the North-West outfit regarded as outsiders to claim a spot in the top six.
However, having reacted positively in a high-pressure match at Cardiff City in midweek, Tony Mowbray will be increasingly optimistic about a late surge up the table after closing the gap on the Bluebirds to five points.
Although it took a wonder goal from Adam Armstrong to claim a maximum return, it was a strike which suggested that Blackburn have been given licence to play with a sense of freedom now that they cannot afford any more dropped points.
With West Brom potentially being weighed down by expectation on Saturday afternoon, Mowbray will sense that there is an opportunity to claim a crucial result over one of his former clubs.
Blackburn Rovers Championship form: LWLLLW
West Bromwich Albion Championship form: DDLWWW
Team News
© Reuters
Mowbray must decide whether to keep Joe Rankin-Costello at left-back after the youngster's recent injury issues.
Elliot Bennett is standing by to deputise, but the rest of the Blackburn XI could remain the same.
Although Diangana sustained a knock to his knee in midweek, Bilic is confident that the winger will be available for selection.
Matt Phillips and Callum Robinson are options for the Baggies if Diangana, or Kamil Grosicki, drop out of the side.
Ahmed Hegazi is available again after serving a one-match ban in midweek.
Blackburn Rovers possible starting lineup:
Walton; Nyambe, Lenihan, Adarabioyo, Bennett; Travis, Downing, Johnson; Samuel, Graham, Armstrong
West Bromwich Albion possible starting lineup:
Johnstone; O'Shea, Ajayi, Bartley, Townsend; Livermore, Sawyers; Diangana, Pereira, Grosicki; Austin
We say: Blackburn Rovers 1-2 West Bromwich Albion
While Blackburn are on a high after their success in midweek, we feel that West Brom will up their level as they bid to confirm promotion. Although it will likely be a hard-fought contest, the Baggies could edge out their hosts.
Data Analysis
Our analysis of all available data, including recent performances and player stats up until an hour before kickoff, suggested the most likely outcome of this match was a West Bromwich Albion win with a probability of 44.8%. A win for Blackburn Rovers had a probability of 29.3% and a draw had a probability of 25.9%.
The most likely scoreline for a West Bromwich Albion win was 0-1 with a probability of 10.81%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 1-2 (9.06%) and 0-2 (7.96%). The likeliest Blackburn Rovers win was 1-0 (8.37%), while for a drawn scoreline it was 1-1 (12.31%). The actual scoreline of 1-1 was predicted with a 12.3% likelihood.
