Blackburn vs. Burnley Betting Tips: Stick with the fouls market at Ewood Park

Blackburn face Burnley in an East Lancashire derby on Tuesday evening live on Sky Sports. Our rambling Rover Anthony Eadson will be at the game and has provided us with two selections that he likes the look of.

As a youngster growing up in the mill towns of the North West, it was a joyful time to be a Blackburn fan, with Rovers going 28 years between 1982 and 2010 without tasting defeat to their bitter rivals. Since then things have taken a bit of a turn with The Blues failing to win the past eight meetings over the last 12 years.

When Rovers travelled to Turf Moor in November they were humiliated 3-0 and now know they must put in a much stronger performance in front of their own fans. Blackburn have failed to win in their last six in The Championship and after conceding back-to-back 95th minute equalisers in their last two games they have now dropped out of the play-off spots into eight.

It’s a tough time to be blue and white at the moment and to make matters worse, after Burnley’s shock defeat at QPR on Saturday, The Clarets now have the chance to secure the league title with a win at Ewood Park.

I’m expecting things to be pretty heated on the field on Tuesday and both of my bets that I’ve opted for arrive from the fouls market. Referee Tim Robinson takes charge and he averages a healthy 22.33 fouls per game across his 27 second-tier appearances this season. 

The first punt is for both Josh Cullen and Sammie Szmodics to concede 1+ foul which is available at 31/20 with Paddy Power or the Betfair Sportsbook.

Only Josh Brownhill and Nathan Tella have given away more fouls for Burnley this season than Josh Cullen. The midfielder has conceded one or more fouls in 12 of his last 13 league appearances and with that in mind, I’m rather surprised to see 1/2 on offer as single here.

After some impressive performances and a goal against Preston on Saturday, Sammie Szmodics should keep his place in the Blackburn starting XI. The former Peterborough man has conceded at least one foul in seven of his last nine starts for Jon Dahl Tomasson’s side and pairing him with Cullen looks a smart play here at 31/20.

For those looking for something at a bit more of a price, I’ve opted for a little double with both Ben Brereton and Hayden Carter to commit 2+ fouls. At the time of writing, this is available at 21/1 with the same betting sites as mentioned with the first pick.

The Stoke-born Chilean Brereton Diaz may have only conceded 2+ fouls in seven of his 37 league starts this term, but considering the hatred between these two teams, I think we could see a nice bit of niggle and a high foul count on Tuesday. Brereton collected eight yellows in the league last season and has five to his name this time around.

The other player I’ve opted for to clear the 2+ fouls line is Hayden Carter. The centre-back has conceded 1+ in his last four for Rovers, most recently giving away three at Preston on Saturday. He may have only conceded 2+ in six of his 22 starts this season but up against some of the best forwards in the division for Burnley, it would be no surprise to see him give away another couple at Ewood.