Sammie Szmodics snub has a silver lining for Blackburn Rovers: View | OneFootball

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Blackburn Rovers go into this international break on the back of a disappointing defeat to local rivals Preston North End.

Rovers went into the game on Friday night in decent form, winning four of their last seven Championship games, with their latest win being a 3-1 victory over Norwich City.

Blackburn found themselves behind after 35 minutes thanks to Alan Browne’s goal before the club and league’s top goalscorer, Sammie Szmodics, levelled the game in the 49th minute.

Sadly for Blackburn, Preston’s winning goal didn’t come until the 90th minute, when defender Liam Lindsay headed home.

The result will be hugely disappointing to Blackburn, as they were building momentum and were in a decent run of form going into the break.

While it may feel like it’s all doom and gloom for Blackburn now, they have received a boost when it comes to their most important player, Szmodics, heading into the international break.

Szmodics has been on the books at Blackburn since last summer, when he joined the club from Peterborough United.

The 38-year-old has been among the goals in the last few seasons wherever he has played, and last season was no different, as he netted seven times in all competitions.

However, in this 2023/24 campaign, Szmodics has taken his game to the next level and has already beaten his tally from last season.

The attacking midfielder has 10 goals to his name already, all coming in the league, and at the time of writing, he was the top scorer in the Championship.

Szmodics has been in excellent form, and it was expected that he would be called up for his national team, the Republic of Ireland, as he bids to win his first cap for his country.

However, when Stephen Kenny announced his squad, it was noticeable that Szmodics wasn’t in the squad.

he said: “He obviously had to leave on the second day of the last camp for personal reasons.

"Those personal reasons haven't changed. He just can't be away for 10 days so he can't be considered."

Why Sammie Szmodics’ Ireland snub is good news for Blackburn Rovers

The attacker has been called up to the last two Ireland squads, but the first camp he had to leave earlier through injury, and the second one in October saw him leave for personal reasons.

So, the 28-year-old is still waiting to receive his first international cap for his country, despite his excellent form this season.

Of course, if Szmodics has personal issues outside of football to deal with, that means that comes first before the football, but the Blackburn player will be gutted to miss out on an international call-up.

There is no doubt that with everything being good outside of football, Szmodics would be playing for Ireland, as his form has been outstanding.

The attacker is averaging 3.6 shots per game, with 0.7 dribbles and 1.3 key passes from his 86.9% pass accuracy, as per WhoScored.com. Szmodics has been excellent for Blackburn, chipping in with goals and assists, and while the player will be disappointed in this international break, Blackburn will be very much pleased.

Szmodics' absence from the national team means he will get a few days off from training but won’t have a match for two weeks. This is good for Blackburn, as it means their best player this season can be wrapped up and rested for a good period of time and be ready for Rovers’ next league game against Stoke City.