Blackburn Rovers v Ipswich Town fixture fallout continues - Valerien Ismael "can't accept" what has happened | OneFootball

Blackburn Rovers manager Valerien Ismael has taken aim at the standard of refereeing in the Championship

Blackburn Rovers manager Valerien Ismael has unleashed a rant on the standard of Championship refereeing following his side’s 1-1 draw with Ipswich Town.

The East Lancashire outfit have improved their form lately, after a disappointing start to the season.

Rovers appeared to be suffering a hangover from last term’s play-off push, losing seven of their first 10 Championship matches to drift towards a potential relegation battle.

However, they have bounced back in the following eight matches, winning four times and drawing twice to shoot back up the table.

One of the major controversies of Blackburn’s season was their home clash against Ipswich Town, which saw them leading with 10 minutes to go thanks to a Todd Cantwell penalty.

Jacob Greaves had been dismissed for the Tractor Boys, which meant a victory for Rovers was all but confirmed. However, torrential rain attacked Ewood Park and a waterlogged pitch forced the match to be abandoned.

Valerien Ismael fumes at refereeing decisions following Blackburn Rovers’ Ipswich Town replay

After much debate, the match was replayed in full, a decision that didn’t go down well with Blackburn.

However, that appeared to matter little, as the Ewood Park outfit looked set to win once more after Andri Gudjohnsen opened the scoring 14 minutes from time.

Rovers’ hearts were broken once more though, as Sindre Egeli levelled proceedings in the 94th minute to earn Ipswich a point.

After the match, Ismael was incandescent with rage, due to referee Oliver Langford's decision not to send off Azor Matusiwa just before half-time, for a last-man foul on Ryoya Morishita.

With a piece of paper in hand, Blackburn’s boss launched into a rant, where he slammed Championship referees for their decision-making.

"I am heartbroken for the boys," said Ismael, speaking to BBC Lancashire.

"We should be talking about three points, enjoying the connection with the fans, but tonight I can't not talk about the referee.

"Now, enough is enough. We have written a list of all the decisions against us this season. The (non) red card is a disgrace. It's terrible. I can't accept that.

"It's a penalty on Yuki (Ohashi) and the last situation should be a corner for us again. The standard from the referee in the Championship is terrible.

"Maybe it's because it's a former Premier League club and they wanted to help them. Nobody can understand. It's a terrible decision and I have to talk about it. It's disgraceful to see that type of performance."

Making use of his list, Ismael exclaimed: "No penalty at West Brom, Gudjohnsen at Watford. Charlton handball, no penalty. Swansea, no penalty. Preston, no red card on Whiteman. No penalty on Pape (Gueye). Wrexham, no foul by Hedges. Ipswich, clear red card and a penalty on Yuki.”

Valerien Ismael must try to focus on the positives at Blackburn Rovers

Throughout 46 matches of a Championship season, all 24 teams are likely to feel aggrieved in certain moments due to refereeing decisions.

Although it is always frustrating to see certain moments in a game go against you, there is nothing Ismael can do about it, which is why he must focus on the positives.

After a dreadful start to the campaign, Blackburn have finally found their feet and look capable of challenging any team in the league.

With the division so tightly compact, a play-off finish isn’t ruled out for most teams, which is why choosing to remain positive is the Frenchman’s only option.