Rovers' lack of goals is a problem Tony Mowbray knows he can fix and is mindful of changing one area of the pitch to risk creating a problem at the other.

It is now four games without a goal for Rovers, who have managed only two in eight 2022 fixtures, but a strong defensive return of five clean sheets in that time has allowed them to still pick up nine points.

Mowbray pointed out the set-up of the team has remained the same as the one which scored in eight successive matches at the end of 2021, including 4-0 home wins over both Peterborough United and Birmingham City.

The loss of top scorer Ben Brereton to injury will impact on Rovers’ plans, yet Mowbray feels the chances being created are a sign that things will turn in their favour.

He said: “We were playing the same way when we were scoring lots of goals.

“I’m pretty sure we played a false nine and two wide strikers against Peterborough and Birmingham when we scored four.

“I don’t think it’s that simple. When you’re a football manager you’re vulnerable as soon as you don’t score everyone knows the answers, and as soon as you let a few in everyone knows the answers.

“Yet the team are working extraordinarily hard, we’ve gone a few games without scoring a goal but it’s not as though we haven’t had chances to score, we just have to take them.

“Hopefully we can get the first goal and I’m pretty sure we’d have got something against both Swansea and Nottingham Forest if we had scored the first goal.

“Let’s keep going, football is a balance, the team you select and the tightness of the division. There are a lot of good teams, and we’re one of them. We’re competing at the top end of the league which is nice for the club because it’s been a while since we competed at the top of this league.

“I’m trying to get the players to enjoy it, stick together and see where it takes us.”

Rovers are yet to lose any game this season when scoring first, but have only managed five points when going behind, with Mowbray believing that is a key statistic for his side.

A makeshift backline in the absence of captain Darragh Lenihan and the experienced Daniel Ayala kept Rovers’ 13th clean sheet of the season, and fifth in eight games at West Brom on Monday, which Mowbray says gives them a platform to succeed.

Backing them to get it right at the other end, he said: “The clean sheets are good, you can win football matches with clean sheets.

“The problems have been at the other end, we haven’t scored for four games now.

“Up until three weeks ago we were second highest scorers behind Fulham so it’s something we know we can fix.

“But we’ve been good the other end at stopping the ball going in our net because that gives you a chance to win games and if you don’t score then you can still get a draw."