Josh Murphy’s cool first-half strike gave Portsmouth a 1-0 victory over Blackburn to add weight to their survival chances and put a dent in Rovers’ play-off hopes.
Murphy’s superb one-two and finish lit up a low-quality affair which condemned Valerien Ismael’s Blackburn to a fourth straight defeat and extended his winless start as Rovers manager.
Ismael is now five matches without a win since replacing John Eustace – who failed to record a victory in any of his first 10 games – with Blackburn now five points adrift of the top six after dropping to 11th.
Portsmouth, meanwhile, ended a two-match losing run to pull out a seven-point buffer on the relegation zone.
Pompey have scored 19 points at home since the turn of the year, more than anyone else in the Championship, so it was no surprise when they opened the scoring.
A shot-less opening 20 minutes was broken by Murphy’s seventh goal of the season. Andre Dozzell picked up on a loose defensive header before playing the ball to the winger, who got into the box via a one-two with Colby Bishop before beautifully curling into the bottom corner.
Rovers attempted to bounce straight back and Ryan Hedges, a 13th-minute substitute, bounded into the penalty area but his fierce effort was saved by Nicolas Schmid at the near post.
Murphy then had Pompey’s second and last shot of the first half when he drilled a low effort from 25 yards, but Aynsley Pears easily gathered on the dive.
The hosts edged the midfield battle but it was Rovers who had the better chances on the approach to half-time.
Cauley Woodrow, on his first Blackburn start since arriving on loan from Luton, thought he had caught Schmid out from 45 yards but the goalkeeper recovered to catch the lob.
Woodrow then produced a stunning cross to the back post but ex-Portsmouth loanee Hayden Carter could not squeeze the ball in.
Yuki Ohashi barely made Schmid work with a tame header and Lewis Travis skied over the bar from the edge of the area as Rovers continued to lack quality after the break.
Carter also cleared the goal after a fine passing move, while Terry Devlin ended a 45-minute wait for a shot by having an effort deflected just wide.
Blackburn had plenty of the ball in the second half but loose passes cost them whenever they threatened, with their last shot coming in the 67th minute.
And Pompey could have grabbed a late second when a defensive mix-up gave Devlin a chance to capitalise, but the ball would not fall for him.
Chris Wilder labelled his side’s 2-0 win over Stoke a “proper away performance” as they got back to winning ways.The Blades had seen their automatic promotion hopes ended after losing four of their previous five, including their last three matches away from Bramall Lane.An improved showing saw Sam McCallum, making just his eighth start of the campaign, score late in the first hal...

Goals from Sam McCallum and Andre Brooks ensured Sheffield United returned to winning ways with by beating Stoke 2-0.The Blades had seen their automatic promotion hopes ended after losing four of their previous five, including their last three matches away from Bramall Lane.McCallum had scored just one goal since his summer move from Norwich but popped up at the back post when Rhian Brewster&rsquo...

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Let's start our Daily Laugh today. Then & Now This Klopp seeing Slot can win the league with 80 points whilst he finished 2nd with 97 No, I won't. Real Madrid released a statement protesting the referee selection for Saturday's Copa del Rey final. Run Forest, run! In comparison Please stay tuned on Daily Laugh. There will be more fun tomorrow!(Credit: Justtoonit, originaltrollfootball, Bleache...

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Paris Saint-Germain gave serious thought to signing Christopher Nkunku during the winter transfer window but ultimately chose not to move forward. Although he remained at Chelsea, signs now point to a possible departure this summer.Nkunku joined Chelsea from RB Leipzig in 2023 for £52 million, but injuries and competition have kept him from locking down a regular spot in the starting lineup, ...

Ruben Amorim has said he is convinced that Manchester United can land their summer targets even after a disastrous season which could end in failure to qualify for European competition.United's hopes of reaching the Champions League rest on winning the Europa League. Even if they lift the trophy, Amorim's team remain on course for their lowest Premier League finish.The Portuguese coach is plotting...

Rashford urged to move to Newcastle by WrightIan Wright believes Newcastle United would be an ideal club for Marcus Rashford with his future at Manchester United in doubt.Wright told the Ringer FC podcast of a possible deal for Rashford: "It's the kind of signing Newcastle should be making. That would be amazing. That would be dangerous. Rashford at Newcastle? Yeah. That would be really good. I re...

Birmingham boss Chris Davies says the Blues should be very proud of breaking the 100-point barrier.Alex Cochrane’s winner after 75 minutes was hit from 30 yards and was perfectly-placed to find the corner and hand City a 1-0 win at Stevenage.And it takes them onto 102 points with three games remaining.“I’m very proud,” said the Birmingham boss. “Not many teams will ge...

Alex Cochrane’s superb long-range strike was enough to take League One champions Birmingham over the 100-point mark with a 1-0 win at Stevenage.The game was the perfect example of a clash of styles, Birmingham wanting to play it around, but Stevenage aiming to outwork them.Boro arguably would have been happier with their first-half showing, Jordan Roberts pulling a low shot wide of the targe...



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