It might be Valentine's Day but Blackburn Rovers' honeymoon period came to an abrupt end at St Andrew's on Tuesday night.

Whilst Andre Dozzell's goal 13 minutes from time was a dagger to the heart, there are few Rovers fans that would argue the hosts didn't deserve their advantage. On the balance of chances created, there was only one winner.

It was a swift reminder for everyone that Rovers' issues over the last two months haven't evaporated with the change of a head coach. John Eustace's first game in charge provided more questions than answers for the new gaffer.

Having played more direct against Stoke City to great effect, Rovers tried to do the same at Birmingham but didn't get the balance right. They didn't take enough care of possession and chose the wrong moments to play and when to be more attritional.

READ MORE: Eustace calls for patience and sets Rovers priorities

Birmingham created the better opportunities, Tyler Roberts missing the most glaring in the first half whilst namesake Marc struck the post with a header. The same pair spurned good chances after the interval too.

As the night wore on, you wondered if maybe Rovers would scrape a nil-nil. They battled hard and were not outplayed by any means but there was a disconnect between midfield and attack.

Rovers saw the benefits of the 3-4-3 system against Stoke but the flaws were also on show against Birmingham. In this shape, you have to be able to sustain attacks and keep possession of the ball.

With Rovers doing neither, the 3-4-3 quickly became 5-4-1, with the 'two tens', Sam Szmodics and Tyrhys Dolan, pinned back and tracking the Birmingham full-backs deep into their own half.

That left Sam Gallagher up on his own and isolated. If the service into him is then poor, it becomes difficult to get out your own defensive third and that is what happened.

It was the first match where Rovers really missed the composure of Adam Wharton in midfield; someone who could put their foot on the ball and dictate play. That's understandable, he's a £20million Premier League footballer, after all.

By and large, Rovers defended their own box well. The chances came from set-pieces, or second-phase moments, or mistakes. Roberts' first-half chance was the only time they were really cut open by intricate play from the hosts.

Kyle McFadzean was Rovers' best player on the night and he already looks like a missing piece of the puzzle for this squad. He reads the game very well and at the heart of a three-man defence, he can do what he does best; defending his box. His distribution was also excellent.

At the end of the day, despite what we've said, Rovers could have left with a point. They probably should have. The replays don't reflect well on Semir Telalovic, who simply hadn't to score at the back post after latching on to Arnor Sigurdsson's clever flicked header.

The initial reaction was to praise John Ruddy for a fantastic save but on reflection, it's a bad miss from a striker who desperately needs his first goal in English football.

With Harry Leonard omitted from the squad for the third game running, Telalovic is under pressure to be the understudy to Gallagher. With Scott Wharton and John Buckley in contention for Saturday's matchday squad, places on the bench won't be a given soon.

So whilst it was far from perfect, perspective is needed. Rome wasn't built in a day and Eustace has only had one training session with the group. 

Had the head coach come out and praised his players to the hills, there might be more concern. But he was under no illusion of the need for improvement and the areas to do so.

Eustace also made clear that points are the priority for Rovers, especially with little time on the training ground with a packed schedule. If it has to be back-to-basics and less exciting football to grind out 50 points, so be it.

This team has conceded too many goals, particularly away from home, this season. They'd leaked 17 in their previous five defeats on the road before Tuesday night and so you can appreciate the desire to tighten up.

Finding the balance between restriction the opposition and imposing themselves is the challenge over the coming fixtures. There are winnable ones in the pack for Eustace if he can muster a winning formula.

They have a healthy seven-point cushion on the bottom three, writing ahead of a massive match between Stoke City and Queens Park Rangers on Wednesday night. They'll have a game in hand still after this round of fixtures, which is away at Cardiff City next Tuesday.

Birmingham was not a blueprint for Blackburn Rovers but the issues that existed under Tomasson don't just vanish. This will take time and patience to put things right.