Valerien Ismael drops update on Makhtar Gueye situation - it's got Blackburn Rovers fans reacting | OneFootball

Blackburn Rovers fans react to Makhtar Gueye's recent absence in Valerien Ismael's side

Makhtar Gueye has not been selected for the last three Blackburn Rovers squads, and manager Valerien Ismael has revealed that it is due to a performance issue in training.

The Lancashire Telegraph has reported that the Senegalese frontman has been dropped by Ismael because he has been running less than his team-mates in training.

Gueye is yet to start a game for Blackburn in the Championship this season, but has featured off the bench 16 times in the opening half of the campaign.

Now, given the packed schedule and a slight injury crisis up front, the 28-year-old would be expected to receive more game time. But an issue in training has led the Rovers boss to opt for Axel Henriksson up front, with 18-year-old Nathan Dlamini replacing Gueye on the bench.

"It's my selection [choice], Ismael said. "We were not happy with his performance, especially in the training session.

"He was running one kilometre less than all the others. For me, as I said, the first thing is always the intensity we see on the pitch. So it's up to him."

Understandably, this decision has seen mixed opinions among Blackburn fans.

Blackburn Rovers fans react to Makhtar Gueye's training issue

Blackburn have failed to score in each of their last two games, including last time out against Sheffield Wednesday, in turn handing the Owls just their second clean sheet of the campaign.

Despite this, Gueye, who netted six last season for Blackburn, has been left out of the squad, with Ismael prioritising youngsters who want to run for him over a more experienced outlet in search of goals.

Rovers fans have gathered on X to sound their opinions on this story, with the majority in agreement that the 28-year-old's time at the club is rapidly coming to a close.

"Get rid," "only one way this ends", and "doesn't deserve to play" were among the replies to the story, indicating that the majority of the fanbase are in agreement that effort trumps any ability that Gueye has on the field.

However, while some don't deny that the 28-year-old isn't what the club needs, his status as one of the only fit senior strikers at the club currently should see him in the side, especially given Blackburn's current goalscoring drought.

From that, there has been some criticism of the intensity with which Ismael has his side playing during this current run of four games in 10 days. Those runs are hard on the legs, and an injury crisis up top may be the result of that.

Either way, there's evident discontent at Ewood Park with the current scoreless run that Blackburn is on.

While the majority are in support of Ismael's decision to leave Gueye out, and it's almost unanimous among the fanbase that the 28-year-old isn't the best asset, some do believe that he's better than inexperienced youngsters, and others are deflecting a lack of goals onto the recruitment strategy and the current injury crisis it may have caused.

Makhtar Gueye looks destined for a January move

One thing that the majority of Blackburn fans seem to agree on, however, is that Gueye should be on his way out of Ewood Park this January, as his second season in Lancashire hasn't seen an improvement from his six-goal campaign last year.

The 28-year-old reportedly could have departed for Turkey in the summer, but stayed at the club. Now, a departure seems imminent.

"I don't know [whether he has played his last game]. It's just selection," Ismael said when questioned on a departure.

But if the French manager has opted for inexperienced youngsters over the 28-year-old, the likelihood is that his mind won't change unless Gueye starts to up his performances in training. After a campaign with no league starts thus far and a transfer window opening shortly, the writing may be on the wall.