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Blackburn Rovers welcome Sheffield United to Ewood Park on Tuesday for an EFL Cup second-round tie between two Championship clubs that have both avoided defeat since the start of the new campaign.
Tony Mowbray's side have won two and drawn one of their opening three competitive matches, while Chris Wilder's Sheffield have drawn two and won one of their three.
Read our prediction, preview and betting tips for the game below, and make sure to check out our today's betting tips page for more of our expert predictions.
Blackburn Rovers vs Sheffield United key stats
- Sheffield United have kept a clean sheet in each of their first three competitive matches this season.
- Sheffield United have failed to score in their last two league matches.
- Blackburn have scored in every game this season, but have not scored more than two goals in any of their three competitive matches this season.
Blackburn Rovers vs Sheffield United preview: Rovers face Blades defensive test
Blackburn Rovers vs Sheffield United — Tale of the Tape
| Blackburn Rovers | vs | Sheffield United |
|---|---|---|
| 6th | Position | 15th |
| 4 | Points | 2 |
| 4 | Goals For | 0 |
| 3 | Goals Against | 0 |
| 0 | Clean Sheets | 2 |
| 14th | Home / Away Rank | 16th |
Blackburn have made an encouraging start to the campaign under Tony Mowbray, with the EFL Cup providing another opportunity to build momentum before the Championship schedule becomes more demanding.
The Rovers began their competitive campaign with a 2-1 victory over Burton Albion in the first round before travelling to Wolverhampton Wanderers for their league opener, where they recovered from falling behind to secure a 2-2 draw.
Mowbray's side then produced another comeback at Ewood Park on Saturday, beating Middlesbrough 2-1 after Tommy Conway had given the visitors an early second-half lead.
Andri Gudjohnsen restored parity before Todd Cantwell completed the turnaround with a late winner, giving Blackburn their first Championship victory of the season.
The performance against Middlesbrough was particularly impressive given how little possession Blackburn enjoyed. They had only 29% of the ball but still managed five shots on target from six attempts, compared with Middlesbrough's three efforts on target from 22 shots.
That efficiency could prove important against Sheffield United, who are likely to prioritise defensive organisation rather than committing large numbers of players forward.
Blackburn have already shown that they can remain competitive when matches do not follow their preferred pattern. They recovered from behind against Wolves before overturning another deficit against Middlesbrough, while their cup victory over Burton was secured through late goals from Gudjohnsen and Jayden Fevrier.
Mowbray is still working with a squad that has undergone limited recruitment during the summer, with Sam Morsy, Moussa Baradji and Fevrier representing the main additions. The manager has acknowledged the need for further reinforcements, but the early results have nevertheless provided evidence that his current group can compete.
Blackburn can also draw confidence from their most recent meeting with Sheffield United, when they recorded an emphatic 3-1 victory at Bramall Lane in April.
The Rovers led 3-0 at half time through a Yuki Ohashi brace and a Ryoya Morishita strike before Harrison Burrows pulled one back after the interval. Blackburn remained in control for the remainder of the contest and secured one of their most impressive away victories of last season.
Sheffield United arrive at Ewood Park with a significantly different identity under Wilder, particularly when it comes to their defensive approach.
The Blades opened their Championship campaign with a 0-0 draw against Birmingham City before producing another goalless result away at Swansea City. Their only victory came in the first round of the EFL Cup, where they defeated Mansfield Town 3-0.
Wilder can therefore point to three consecutive clean sheets, but the attacking numbers present a concern. Sheffield United have failed to score in either of their two league matches and have managed only three goals across their three competitive fixtures.
All three goals came against Mansfield, who were playing a level below the Blades, meaning Sheffield United are yet to find the net against Championship opposition this season.
That makes Tuesday's contest particularly interesting because Wilder must decide whether to retain the conservative approach that has made his side so difficult to break down or use the cup tie to give greater attacking responsibility to players who have struggled to produce in the league.
Blackburn Rovers vs.Sheffield United form guide & betting tips
| Blackburn Rovers | vs | Sheffield United |
|---|---|---|
W
D
W
D
W
|
Form | W
D
W
D
D
|
| 9 | Goals For | 5 |
| 5 | Goals Against | 0 |
W |
EFL Cup | W |
Whispers predicts: Blackburn Rovers 1-0 Sheffield United
Blackburn have produced more attacking threat than Sheffield United during the opening weeks of the season and have already demonstrated their ability to recover from difficult positions, while the Blades have yet to concede under Wilder.
The visitors' defensive record makes them difficult to break down, but their failure to score in either Championship match means Blackburn have a realistic opportunity to progress if they can find the breakthrough.
We predict Under 2.5 goals at 1.90 (9/10), while Blackburn to win is priced at around 2.57 (157/100). Given Sheffield United's three consecutive clean sheets, the safer angle is both teams not to score at around 2.05 (21/20), with a narrow Blackburn victory the most likely outcome.
> Under 2.5 goals at 1.90 (9/10) | Likelihood: Probable
> Both teams not to score at 2.05 (21/20) | Likelihood: Possible
> Match result – Blackburn Rovers to win at 2.57 (157/100 | Likelihood: Possible
> Correct score – Blackburn Rovers 1-0 Sheffield United at 4.75 (15/4) | Likelihood: Outsider