JOE ROTHWELL underlined why Blackburn must hold on to him as doggedly as they clung to their lead here to refresh their promotion bid.
Rovers midfielder Rothwell scored the only goal and then formed part of an aggressive 10man guard that kept Cardiff's crude approach at arm's length.
It gave Blackburn their first win of 2022 and suggested the Championship's surprise package are not going to be deflected by either transfer talk or their recent FA Cup defeat to League One neighbours Wigan.
Rothwell is understood to be a target for Bournemouth while a number of Premier League clubs want Ben Brereton Diaz.
Chilean hitman Brereton Diaz hardly had a sniff but worked his socks off - like the rest of his team - to make sure Ryan Nyambe's sending off would not lose them the points.
This story is from the January 16, 2022 edition of The Sunday Mirror.
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This story is from the January 16, 2022 edition of The Sunday Mirror.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
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