Sparks usually fly whenever Burnley and Blackburn Rovers collide and the first East Lancashire derby of the EFL Championship season has the potential to be a cracker.
Both teams have made good starts to the league season, with Rovers sitting third after three games and the Clarets just a point and two places behind them.
After smashing nine goals in wins over Luton and Cardiff, the momentum has stalled for Burnley a little with successive defeats to Sunderland and Wolves in league and cup. But they remain second favourites to go up under Scott Parker, a man who has masterminded promotions at Bournemouth and Fulham.
Blackburn Rovers also bowed out of the EFL Cup in midweek as they lost at home to League One Blackpool so both managers will be looking for a response.
The stakes are always high whenever two local rivals face off but this opening derby could set the tone for the whole campaign so it will be fiercely contested.
How the bookies view it: Home advantage gives Clarets the edge
Even though Blackburn are in better form heading into this derby, it's Burnley who are Betfred's 8/11 hot favourites with home advantage. Rovers are 3/1 outsiders and the draw pays 5/2.
Recent head to head: Blackburn out to end 14 years of hurt
This derby has been dominated by Burnley in recent seasons and they've gone nine games without a defeat against Blackburn since losing 1-0 at home in 2010.
The Clarets won both derbies when these sides last faced off two seasons ago, a 3-0 romp at Turf Moor and a 1-0 victory at Ewood Park that brought up a bet for our man Gabriel.
Players to watch: Men in the middle worth a look
Although Burnley have been scoring freely, none of their nine goals so far have come from centre forwards Lyle Foster and Jay Rodriguez. Midfielder Josh Brownhill has chipped in with a couple and he's 18/5 for another goal here.
A midfielder might be the best option for a Blackburn goal too, given John Eustace has been rotating his strikers. Joe-Rankin Costello scored last week in the win over Oxford and is 9/2 to repeat the trick.
Probable line-ups
I'd expect both managers to make a few changes from their midweek cup defeats. New Blackburn keeper Balazs Toth is unlikely to be given a baptism of fire but Burnley recruit Hannibal Mejbri could feature again after a quickfire debut in midweek.
Burnley: Trafford, Esteve, Egan-Riley, Roberts, Pires, Brownhill, Vitinho, Hountondji, Massengo, Rodriguez, Foster
Blackburn Rovers: Pears, Brittain, Pickering, Hyam, Carter, Tronstad, Dolan, Rankin-Costello, Hedges, Travis, Ohashi.
Anything else catch the eye?
Derbies are usually played a 100mph, with chances often at a premium, so the half-time draw is always a good option and that pays 5/4 here.
Cards and corners are another market worth looking at in these kind of games and over 52.5 booking points is priced a tempting 11/10. A red card might also be flashed and the odds are longer for that at 3/1.
Blackburn Rovers have won 17 corners across their last two games at home so over 10.5 corners also looks good at 10/11. Backing Rovers at +2 in the corner handicap could also pay off at evens with Bet365.
This England Championship match between Burnley and Blackburn Rovers will be played on Aug 31, 2024 and kick off at 12:30. Check below for our tipsters best Burnley vs Blackburn Rovers prediction. You may also visit our dedicated betting previews section for the most up to date previews.
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