‘Murphy must be wary’ as Blackburn injury update emerges before Portsmouth clash
Portsmouth star Josh Murphy will be keen to maintain his positive form as Blackburn Rovers prepare to travel to Fratton Park.
The Lancashire outfit are set to travel to the south coast on 29 March, exactly two weeks after their defeat against Cardiff on Saturday (15 March).
Their result was mirrored by Pompey who also fell to a 2-1 defeat as Preston stole three points late on to cancel out a Colby Bishop equaliser.
Looking ahead to the clash after the international break, John Mousinho will want to get the best out of Murphy, which may be difficult after an update from Ewood Park.
Valerien Ismael to welcome Blackburn players back v Portsmouth
The Blue and Whites were without a whole host of first team players for their home defeat against Cardiff City which certainly left their supporters fuming.
An early Yuki Ohashi wasn’t enough to take three points as Yakou Meite went on to score a winner with over 15 minutes to go.
It is clear that Rovers’ manager was far from pleased with the result and spoke out about what he wants to see from his side moving forward.
Speaking after his side’s defeat against the Welsh outfit, he told the Lancashire Telegraph (15 March): “Now we just have to make sure that we first recover properly.
“We get some players back to prepare for the game and we refresh and reset for the next game to get the three points and this is what we need. This is the first step.”
Murphy needs to prepare for Blackburn changes
If the Frenchman is to welcome back some key players for the trip to Fratton Park, there is every chance that Owen Beck and Harry Pickering could return.
If that is to be the case, their defensive ability and versatility down the flanks could cause a problem for Mousinho’s side.
This could especially be the case for Murphy, who has often been relied on for Pompey as their star man in terms of goals and assists.
| Stat (Championship 24/25) | Josh Murphy |
| Games played | 34 |
| Goals | 6 |
| Assists | 10 |
The Englishman has made up for the shortfalls of other forwards like Matt Ritchie who only has four goal involvements since signing.
This can also be said about Adil Aouchiche who only has two contributions since signing on loan from Sunderland during the winter.
As a result, if this Blackburn duo can return and keep the former Oxford United man quiet, it could be a long afternoon for Mousinho’s men.