Tony Mowbray issues Blackburn injury update ahead of midweek Swansea clash | OneFootball

Blackburn Rovers may be without Sam Gallagher for their midweek clash with Swansea City due to an injury picked up against Stoke City yesterday, according to Tony Mowbray, who has also given updates on Elliott Bennett and Joe Rankin-Costello.

The striker came on as a second-half substitute but lasted just 16 minutes on the pitch after crashing into the pitch-side advertising boards along with Potters goalscorer Nick Powell.

Both men had to be replaced in the aftermath, with former Southampton man Gallagher picking up a blow to the back.

With a big game against the Swans coming up, Rovers need all their scoring threats available, but the manager has now revealed that Gallagher is a doubt.

“He said he’d got a spasm in his back that was running down the side of his body,” Mowbray told the Lancashire Telegraph.

“We’ll assess it.”

Mowbray also updated Rovers supporters on both Elliott Bennett and Joe Rankin-Costello, who have been missing for some time with ankle ligament damage and a hamstring injury respectively.

Quiz: The top 16 Blackburn Rovers record player departures – Which club did they join though?

Club captain Bennett – who has been on the sidelines since October –  will return to training next week and will provide depth in both midfield and at full-back, whilst the versatile youngster Rankin-Costello is ‘ahead of schedule’ and may return to the squad by the end of the month.

There’s no return in the pipeline for both Scott Wharton and Derrick Williams though, who will be out for the long-term with achilles and quad injuries, whilst Daniel Ayala is still out with a hamstring problem.

The Verdict

Gallagher hasn’t been a regular starter this season due to the form of Adam Armstrong and the impressive loanee Harvey Elliott, but he is still a strong option off the bench.

Mowbray prefers to use him out wide rather than through the middle and a spell on the sidelines may give young starlet Tyrhys Dolan another chance to impress.

Thankfully for Blackburn they are well-stocked at the top end of the pitch, unlike their issues at the back which would be eased with the returns of Bennett, Rankin-Costello and Amari’i Bell, along with all their sidelined centre-backs.