English League Championship

FT Thursday, January 1, 2026
Wrexham LDLWW 2
–
Blackburn Rovers DLWDD 0
1st2ndT
WXM202
BLK000
Ewood Park · 16,494 att. · Paramount+

Match Report

Cody Froggatt/PA Wire

Wrexham boost playoff chances with 2-0 win against tepid Blackburn

A stunning volley from Ollie Rathbone helped Wrexham to a 2-0 win over Blackburn Rovers.

Full story at ESPN →

Team Stats

10
Fouls
14
2
Yellow Cards
4
0
Red Cards
0
2
Offsides
2
8
Corner Kicks
4
1
Saves
1
47.3
Possession
52.7
7
SHOTS
12
3
ON GOAL
1
0.4
On Target %
0.1
0
Penalty Goals
0
0
Penalty Kicks Taken
0
285
Accurate Passes
334
393
Passes
438
0.7
Pass Completion %
0.8
2
Accurate Crosses
3
20
Crosses
20
0.1
Cross %
0.2
75
Long Balls
53
30
Accurate Long Balls
24
0.4
Long Balls %
0.5
1
Blocked Shots
7
12
Effective Tackles
8
15
Tackles
16
0.8
Tackle %
0.5
14
Interceptions
15
37
Effective Clearances
23
37
Clearances
23

Head to Head

BLK leads series 1-0-1

Lineups

BLK · 3-4-1-2

  1. 1Aynsley PearsG
  2. 15Sean McLoughlinCD
  3. 43George PrattCD-L
  4. 12Lewis MillerCD-R
  5. 6Sondre TronstadCM-L
  6. 24Moussa BaradjiCM-R
  7. 10Todd CantwellAM
  8. 19Ryan HedgesLM
  9. 40Matty LitherlandRM
  10. 23Yuki OhashiCF-L
  11. 18Axel HenrikssonCF-R

Substitutes

  1. 3Harry PickeringSUB
  2. 47Aodhan DohertySUB
  3. 44Brandon PowellSUB
  4. 14Dion De NeveSUB
  5. 5Taylor Gardner-HickmanSUB
  6. 52Nathan DlaminiSUB
  7. 22Balazs TothSUB
  8. 38Tom AtchesonSUB
  9. 4Yuri RibeiroSUB

WXM · 3-4-2-1

  1. 1Arthur OkonkwoG
  2. 24Dan ScarrCD
  3. 2Callum DoyleCD-L
  4. 5Dominic HyamCD-R
  5. 37Matty JamesCM-L
  6. 15George DobsonCM-R
  7. 14George ThomasonLM
  8. 47Ryan LongmanRM
  9. 28Sam SmithF
  10. 27Lewis O'BrienCF-L
  11. 20Oliver RathboneCF-R

Substitutes

  1. 16Jay RodríguezSUB
  2. 18Ben SheafSUB
  3. 33Nathan BroadheadSUB
  4. 13Liberato CacaceSUB
  5. 29Ryan BarnettSUB
  6. 4Max CleworthSUB
  7. 6Conor CoadySUB
  8. 45Harry AshfieldSUB
  9. 25Callum BurtonSUB

Timeline

  1. 11' Goal! Blackburn Rovers 0, Wrexham 1. Sam Smith (Wrexham) left footed shot from the left side of the box to the bottom left corner. Assisted by Matty James with a through ball following a fast break.
  2. 30' Moussa Baradji (Blackburn Rovers) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
  3. 37' Todd Cantwell (Blackburn Rovers) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
  4. 38' Goal! Blackburn Rovers 0, Wrexham 2. Oliver Rathbone (Wrexham) right footed shot from the centre of the box to the high centre of the goal. Assisted by Dan Scarr following a set piece situation.
  5. 45'+1' Sam Smith (Wrexham) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
  6. 45' Substitution, Blackburn Rovers. Harry Pickering replaces Ryan Hedges because of an injury.
  7. 59' Substitution, Blackburn Rovers. Tom Atcheson replaces Matty Litherland because of an injury.
  8. 64' George Dobson (Wrexham) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
  9. 67' Lewis Miller (Blackburn Rovers) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
  10. 72' Substitution, Wrexham. Ben Sheaf replaces Matty James.
  11. 75' Sondre Tronstad (Blackburn Rovers) is shown the yellow card for a bad foul.
  12. 82' Substitution, Blackburn Rovers. Nathan Dlamini replaces Axel Henriksson.
  13. 84' Substitution, Wrexham. Liberato Cacace replaces Lewis O'Brien.
  14. 87' Substitution, Wrexham. Harry Ashfield replaces Oliver Rathbone.

EFL Championship News

All news
News PA Nuno Espírito Santo on West Ham loss: We played with 'hesitation' Nuno Espírito Santo admitted West Ham United's painfully slow start cost them after they crashed to a 3-2 home defeat by Southampton. ESPN PA Andri Gudjohnsen brace extends Wrexham's winless run on the road Andri Gudjohnsen's second brace in a week earned Blackburn a clinical 2-0 win over Wrexham. News ESPN News Services Kyle Walker: 'No intention' of removing Man City tattoos after radio comments Kyle Walker has said he has "never had any intention" of removing his Manchester City tattoos, in the wake of comments the full-back made on Wednesday. News PA Wrexham boss Parkinson gets fans' backing as big win eases pressure Phil Parkinson was delighted with the reaction of his players as a 4-1 win over Championship strugglers Preston eased the pressure on the Wrexham boss.