Dilan Markanday and Harry Leonard scored their first league goals for Blackburn to give them a hard-fought 2-1 win over West Brom in a pulsating season opener.
On their first league starts for the club, the duo did the damage in a devastating three-minute spell in the first half as Markanday slotted home from a narrow angle and within seconds of the kick-off, academy graduate Leonard hammered in his first senior goal.
The Baggies responded in the second half through Matt Phillips’ superb curling effort five minutes after the restart but they could not force an equaliser against a Rovers side that finished the game strongly.
Their frustration was summed up by Carlos Corberan being sent to the stands late in the second half.
Phillips stung the palms of Aynsley Pears in the 19th minute as the Baggies settled quickest, but were shell-shocked by a quickfire double as Blackburn went ahead a minute later when Markanday dispossessed Conor Townsend, and though Leonard could not get a shot away, Lewis Travis threaded a first-time pass to Markanday on the right and he slotted into the far corner.
Straight from kick-off, Sammie Szmodics cut out a pass and fed Leonard on the right and his rasping low drive flew in at Alex Palmer’s near post in the 22nd minute.
A neat one-touch move in the 34th minute almost gave Rovers a third but Tyrhys Dolan’s curling shot was parried away by Palmer.
Brandon Thomas-Asante almost found the far corner four minutes later when firing goalwards from the right but Pears got down well to push behind.
West Brom came out with real purpose and Thomas-Asante’s cut-back found Jayson Molumby in the area and his shot looked destined for the top corner but for a superb Joe Rankin-Costello block.
The visitors did get on the scoresheet in the 50th minute, though, as Phillips robbed Markanday and exchanged passes with Jed Wallace before curling beautifully into the right corner from 25 yards.
Thomas-Asante was wreaking havoc down the right and another teasing cross found Molumby in the 58th minute but he could not get the ball out of his feet and Rankin-Costello made a brilliant goal-saving tackle.
Rovers should have wrapped the points up 10 minutes later, though, when they cut the visitors open and Travis fed Leonard with Palmer to beat but he directed his shot past the far post.
A sensational Adam Wharton pass gave the teenager another chance minutes later but he once again fired his effort past the post.
The frustration of the afternoon got the better of Baggies boss Corberan who was dismissed for dissent, having already been booked earlier in the second half, and Darnell Furlong’s 89th-minute sensational block from Hayden Carter kept the margin of defeat to one.
World Cup Girlz back in the fold? Gilbert hints at return of experienced players for Brazil friendlies
For the first time in almost nine months, it seems as if Jamaica’s interim Reggae Girlz Head coach Xavier Gilbert will have members of the World Cup squad at his disposal, when they visit Brazil for a two-match friendly international series in June.
The Girlz, who first locked horns with Brazil, and lost 0-3, at the 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup in France, went one better at last year’s global showpiece in Australia, as they not only held the South American giants to a goalless stalemate, but also ensured their elimination at the group stage.
By all indications, that performance, and by extension, the fact that the Girlz made an historic appearance in the knockout stages of the World Cup, earned them even more respect from the number 10-ranked Brazilians, who are currently in preparation for this summer’s Olympic Games in Paris.
The games, scheduled for June 1 and 4, are expected to assist Brazil in their preparation, while the now 42nd-ranked Jamaicans will get a much-needed test to regain their appetite for international competition, having last sported the nationals colours against Canada last September.
Since that Olympic qualifying fixture in Canada, members of the World Cup squad withdrew their services from national representation, citing lack of payment and mistreatment from the Jamaica Football Federation (JFF), among their reasons.
While it is yet to be confirmed how many, if any, of the World Cup players will make the trip, Gilbert gave the clearest indication yet that there might be a few, as he welcomed the games, after not utilizing the last FIFA window.
“It is always important to secure games during the international window. It not only assists in exposing players, but it also ensures the team is active, which helps our rankings, and also our quality of play. Because as you know, the more we play together, especially against quality opponents, the better the team becomes, and we also get to work on different things both offensively and defensively,” Gilbert told SportsMax.TV.
“The expectation is for us to give a good account of ourselves, it has been a while since these players have played together, but the good thing is that they are actively engaged in their respective leagues in Europe and United States. So, it is not like they were inactive, and obviously, it is not the first time they will be playing together.
“So, we just have to keep things as simple or as close to what we did prior to, and during the World Cup, to make sure we are competitive. It is going to be a little bit different, but it’s not far-fetched that we can get another positive result against Brazil,” he added.
Atletico Madrid 3-1 Athletic Bilbao: Hosts close in on top-four finish
Atletico Madrid beat newly crowned Copa del Rey winners Athletic Bilbao 3-1 at home in LaLiga on Saturday as Diego Simeone's side moved a step closer to a top-four finish.
Fourth-placed Atletico moved onto 64 points and have increased their advantage over Athletic, in fifth, to six points with five games to play.
Midfielder Rodrigo de Paul put Atletico in front in the 15th minute with a goal from outside the box. After controlling an attempted clearance from the visitors, his effort dipped just under the bar as his strike deflected off one of the Athletic defenders.
Athletic levelled just before half-time through Nico Williams after Antoine Griezmann lost the ball through a careless pass.
But Angel Correa restored the lead for Atletico in the 52nd minute and later came close to scoring again.
With 10 minutes to play, away goalkeeper Unai Simon inadvertently made it 3-1 with an own goal after Samuel Lino’s effort came back off the post, ending any Athletic hopes of a comeback.
Hull City 3-3 Ipswich Town: Tigers fight back three times to deny Tractor Boys
Ipswich Town missed the chance to move into an automatic promotion spot as play-off-chasing Hull City came from behind three times in a thrilling 3-3 Championship draw at The MKM Stadium.
Ipswich knew a victory would take them second after Leeds United were surprisingly beaten 4-0 by Queens Park Rangers on Friday, and they led on three separate occasions, George Hirst opening the scoring before Omari Hutchinson produced two brilliant strikes from the edge of the area.
However, buoyed by slip-ups from rivals Norwich City and West Brom earlier on Saturday, Hull dug deep to fight back on each occasion, Ozan Tufan and Liam Delap scoring their first two equalisers.
With Liam Rosenior's men 3-2 down with just four minutes to play, substitute Noah Ohio blasted his shot in off the crossbar to punish an error from Ipswich goalkeeper Vaclav Hladky.
The result keeps Ipswich behind second-placed Leeds on goal difference, though the Tractor Boys have a game in hand to come at Coventry City on Tuesday.
Hull, meanwhile, are two points adrift of the top six, with Norwich's goal difference advantage meaning their top-six spot is all but assured. The Tigers will, however, leapfrog West Brom if they beat Plymouth Argyle on the final day and Albion lose to Preston North End.
Data Debrief: Hutchinson's best not enough
Hutchinson was a man who deserved to be on the winning side on Saturday, giving Ryan Allsop no chance with two near-identical left-footed strikes from the right corner of the penalty area.
His goals came from an expected goals (xG) total of just 0.6, and he led all players on the pitch for shots (eight) and passes in the final third (21), also laying on three chances for his team-mates.
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