ANALYSIS

Blackburn Rovers victory confirmed one undebatable truth

Blackburn Rovers celebrate the win at Watford. <i>(Image: CameraSport - Lee Parker)</i>
Blackburn Rovers celebrate the win at Watford. (Image: CameraSport - Lee Parker)
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It seems to be forgotten in the black-and-white of social media debate but in football, two things can be true.

Blackburn Rovers fans came away from Vicarage Road enthused after a morale-boosting victory on Saturday. It was the perfect tonic for the club after a difficult August on the pitch and in the transfer window.

As is the case with most clubs, narratives are built around outcomes; there is little room for grey area. Those who had expressed concern about the 'risk and reward' nature of Rovers' summer business were quickly drowned out by those celebrating the early, promising signs.

It is, however, possible to be encouraged by the individual displays at Vicarage Road whilst also still reserving doubts about the decisions taken at the end of the transfer window. Two things can be true at once.

READ MORE: 'I had doubts' - Blackburn Rovers favourite opens up on injury comeback

Like most supporters, I was really excited to witness some of the performances at the weekend. As a collective, Rovers were excellent and value for a much larger margin of victory.

Ryoya Morishita had the perfect debut, scoring in front of the away fans. Whilst he will have peaks and troughs as he adapts to English football, the composure he showed in front of goal is usually quite inherent. You either have it or you don't.

We saw similar with Arnor Sigurdsson when he netted away at Ipswich on his debut. A cool, calm finish across the goalkeeper into the far corner. The brace he'd net a few weeks later at Queens Park Rangers would suggest Rovers had signed a player to build around.

The point is not that fans should not be excited about Morishita or Andri Gudjohnsen, who looked really lively from the substitutes' bench. Ryan Alebiosu has been the standout signing so far, in my eyes; he's been pretty faultless. Sidnei Tavares also had his best game despite a nervy start, he grew into the game as Rovers' gained more control.

However, it is just the reality of the Championship that the winter months will prove to be the acid test. Who will thrive when the games are Saturday, Tuesday, Saturday, you're 20 games in and the injuries begin to set in? That will be a true marker of Blackburn Rovers' squad building and the depth in their squad.

I was delighted as anyone to see Scott Wharton's performance on his first Championship outing for 510 days. He was excellent. As Valerien Ismael pointed out, though, the test for him and Hayden Carter will be to sustain that for the next 10-15 games. Can their bodies cope? I certainly hope so because the quality has never been in doubt.

Perhaps most importantly was the emotional connection wins like Saturday's can foster. The fan base needs new heroes to look up to after the departure of such significant figures around the club.

Similarly, the players need to feel that love too. Vicarage Road's post-match celebrations can help lay the foundations for relationships that will hopefully stand the test of time. You could see in Ismael's uncharacteristically emotional reaction to three points that this meant a lot.

Performances have been better than results this season; it's a drum have banged since the season started. There was self-sabotage against Birmingham City and Norwich City but that shouldn't discredit the positives in those games.

Rovers have not played poorly for 90 minutes in the league. They were undercooked at West Brom with transfer uncertainty swirling and moments of madness cost them in the other Ewood Park games.

Yet in both away wins, they have been dominant for large portions and defensively, been rock-solid. Without the results to back up performances though, credit only goes so far.

The club are all-in on Ismael and I think the fans should be too. His record is not sparkling but mitigating factors have to be considered. He is personable, emotionally intelligent and has Championship experience to keep Blackburn Rovers stable.

We will not know the full impact, positive or negative, of this transfer window until much further down the line. Ismael deserves everyone's full backing to reap the benefits of a bit of calm and normality.

That is the only thing that shouldn't be up for debate.

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