Blackburn Rovers take cheeky Jude Bellingham swipe after Birmingham City win | OneFootball

Rovers took a huge step towards Championship survival at St. Andrew's

Blackburn Rovers' season hasn't gone anywhere near as planned, but the East Lancashire side were able to take a huge step towards ensuring their Championship survival on Good Friday.

Although interim boss, Michael O'Neill, endured disappointment in the international break as Northern Ireland's chances of reaching the FIFA World Cup were dashed by Italy, he returned to club duties for the time being and saw Rovers emerge victorious against Birmingham City through a 1-0 scoreline at St. Andrew's @ Knighthead Park.

With the four sides directly below them - West Bromwich Albion, Portsmouth, Leicester City and Oxford United - all earning draws to kickstart the crucial Easter period, Blackburn's second win in three Championship games saw them establish a six-point buffer in front of the relegation zone with six matches to play.

Blackburn were also able to inflict revenge on Chris Davies' side after the West Midlands team completed a dramatic comeback at Ewood Park back on August 16th, with Todd Cantwell making sure the three points went back up the M6 with a well-taken first-time finish after he latched onto Ryoya Morishita's neat through ball.

The encounter at St. Andrew's was certainly hyped up by the home club beforehand, as they marked their latest high-profile sponsorship deal with Netflix through a 'Peaky Blinders' matchday takeover.

This saw a tifo unveiled before kick-off, which included former Bluenose and current Real Madrid plus England midfield sensation, Jude Bellingham.

However, it was the away side who took the opportunity to fire a cheeky swipe at Birmingham and their academy graduate on social media in the wake of their crucial success.

Blackburn Rovers take aim at Birmingham City and Jude Bellingham after crucial Good Friday victory

In what has been a season of major inconsistency for Rovers, Cantwell's performances have also been hit-and-miss, but there is still no doubt that the 28-year-old is one of O'Neill's key men in terms of the ability at his feet.

The ex-Norwich City and Rangers playmaker has now produced a tally of five goals and three assists in just 25 appearances in all competitions this term.

His strike on Friday was also the first Championship goal Cantwell had struck since the 1-1 draw with Oxford on December 9th, whilst it also remains to be seen if the Rovers captain stays in East Lancashire long-term amid a recent admission from director of football operations, Rudy Gestede, regarding the contract situations involving himself and Balazs Toth.

It was clearly a goal which meant a lot to Cantwell and the travelling support, and the location of his goal also likely influenced his celebration, mimicking that of Bellingham with his arms aloft.

Rovers then took to X on Saturday morning to reference the flashpoint, with the caption wiping out 'Hey Jude', in reference to Bellingham and the well-known Beatles tune, replacing it with 'Todd' to give Cantwell even more focus.

Blackburn Rovers' season could be defined by the Easter weekend

Blackburn have now taken seven points from a possible nine either side of the two-week fixture break, with Friday's win following on from a hard-fought point against promotion hopefuls Middlesbrough and a prior victory against Millwall at The Den.

As such, O'Neill's team could have their season defined by events which unfold across the Easter weekend, as they play host to West Brom at Ewood Park in a mammoth encounter on Monday afternoon.