With Rovers, expect the unexpected

A fourth away win of the season by the 4 November is a really good return for Blackburn Rovers. All of them coming accompanied by a clean sheet too.

They've reached four victories on the road a month quicker than they did last year when they only missed out on a play-off spot on the final day.

It's been a little like feast or famine under Valerien Ismael. He lost five in a row shortly after his appointment last season, but within the next five games, he'd won four on the bounce.

Seven defeats in ten at the start of this season gave cause for concern, and now it's three maximums in a row.

Rovers are the very epitome of the Championship. Expect the unexpected.

It seems that in these three victories, the losing team has turned out to be 'the story'. Southampton and Leicester City are both struggling to come to terms with life back in the Championship, and Bristol City were hit by significant injuries on the back of a 5-1 defeat at Stoke City on Saturday.

I think that's really unfair on Ismael and his side to label it that way. They're a new-look team who are adapting to a new way of playing. The names of some of the players on the team sheet at Ashton Gate probably won't be considered household names in English football, but nevertheless they're learning to hold their own at a level that is simply sink or swim.

The switch to playing three centre-backs is working. They appear more solid, less likely to buckle late on. Scott Wharton has marshalled the back line in outstanding fashion on his return from long-term injury.

The frustration of losing Callum Brittain in the summer has been largely forgotten by the emergence of new recruit, Ryan Alebiosu.

The right-back has been a revelation in a back four or as a wing-back. A player brought up by Arsenal who has appearances in League One, the Scottish Premiership and Belgium already on his CV.

Taylor Gardner-Hickman is making a central midfield position his own following the August departure of Lewis Travis. A permanent move from Birmingham City, you would think, would be a formality.

Andri Gudjohnsen has three in his last three games, and you sense that a front pairing with Yuki Ohashi could bear fruit. Both frontmen have contributed winning goals in this three-match winning run.

It's all the more impressive that Rovers are turning around their fortunes without captain and talisman, Todd Cantwell. He, along with defender Hayden Carter, is close to returning from the treatment table and can only improve matters further.

But the problems picked up at Ashton Gate could give great cause for concern.

Goalkeeper Balazs Toth picked up a knee injury late on. He needed treatment twice before being replaced by Aynsley Pears. Valerien Ismael called Bristol City's reaction to the injury 'a disgrace'.

Toth is having an excellent first season as Rovers' number one, but the head coach's comments post-match were clearly those of a worried man.

Wharton also went off with an ankle problem. If anyone deserves luck regarding injuries, it's him. He missed the whole of last season with a serious knee injury.

And Sondre Tronstad has succumbed to a suspension after picking his fifth yellow card. He'll miss the 150th anniversary fixture against Derby County.

The squad is thin; it's perhaps a blessing that the final international break of 2025 is just around the corner.