Aynsley Pears will return to Middlesbrough in the best form of his Blackburn Rovers career on Wednesday night.

Pears has not had a straightforward journey to the Blackburn number one shirt. But his performances this season have gone some way to justifying his decision to leave Boro in 2020.

The 26-year-old is now firmly established as a Championship shot-stopper and his form this term deserved acknowledgement, especially after the questions mark that lingered in the summer.

Pears' career at Ewood Park has been filled with highs and lows. By its own admission, he found it difficult to show his best form when being drafted it for cup matches or rare outings whilst playing second fiddle to Thomas Kaminski.

The sliding doors moment was a move to Portsmouth which collapsed in January 2023. The goalkeeper had arrived at Pompey's training ground, only for Rovers' deal to sign Nikita Haikin to fall through. 

That was not the first time something similar happened. Injury to Darren Randolph in 2019 prevented a loan to Macclesfield at Middlesbrough and have him an opportunity.

An injury to Kamisnki then gave Pears his opportunity and that was the moment his Rovers career changed. Jon Dahl Tomasson kept his faith in the goalkeeper until the season's end, Kaminski joined Luton Town, he signed a new deal and inherited the number one shirt.

But last season was not straightforward. Some Blackburn Rovers fans were not convinced after a few mistakes, most notably the own goal against Sheffield Wednesday. A three-month spell on the sidelines, with Leopold Wahlstedt struggling to adapt to Championship football, also didn't help matters.

It was only right that Blackburn Rovers signed a goalkeeper in the summer to really push Pears. The Wahlstedt experiment didn't work, he returned to Scandinavia and Balasz Toth was eventually signed. A Hungarian international with clear designs on making a career in England.

That increased level of competition seems to have spurred Pears to a new level. His form this season has been the best he's produced in a Blackburn shirt. That is also the view shared by John Eustace.

“I think Pearsy has been very good since he’s come back. There is good competition for places in that department now,” he said prior to the international break.

“His game has gone to another level, I feel. I am very pleased with the way he’s performing and I hope it continues.”

There is no doubt that the improvements in Blackburn Rovers' defensive structure has helped. The goalkeeper is facing far fewer shots and is being better protected by those in front of him than under Tomasson.

But Pears is more than contributing too. When called upon, he is making big saves, as illustrated most recently at Cardiff. His decision-making has improved and his authority in the penalty areas has grown.

When the team has needed him, he has been reliable. Using the 'goals prevented metric', which looks at the expected goal value of an opposing attacker's shot, he ranks amongst the best in the league at 3.09 goals prevented. Last season, the same numbers suggest he actually conceded 2.04 more goals than you would anticipate.

Many believe the hallmark of a good manager, or head coach, is how much they can improve the players they inherit. Pears has undoubtedly been a far more consistent performer thanks to the style shift under Eustace and his own hard work with Ben Benson on the training ground.

Pears has had his critcics and they, in the main, have been justified. But it is equally as important to highlight when someone is proving their doubters wrong. 

With each good display, there are fewer at Ewood Park.