What Blackburn boss said after Super Eagles star Emmanuel Dennis received second career red card

Blackburn Rovers manager Valerien Ismael has come to the defence of Emmanuel Dennis after the Nigerian forward was controversially sent off in their 1-1 draw against Norwich City in the EFL Championship, Footynaija.com reports.

Dennis, making his home debut at Ewood Park following a loan move from Nottingham Forest, received two yellow cards in the second half – just 23 minutes after coming off the bench.

The 27-year-old was booked for a foul on Ben Chrisene five minutes after his introduction before being shown a second yellow in the 85th minute after clashing with the Norwich defender while attempting to meet a low cross.

OFFICIAL: Emmanuel Dennis joins Blackburn Rovers on loan from Nottingham Forest.

Best of luck ⚪️ pic.twitter.com/grfBcDb3HD

— Soar Super Eagles (@SSE_NGA) February 3, 2025

Referee Leigh Doughty’s decision left Blackburn down to 10 men, with Ismael describing the dismissal as harsh.

“From my view, I think he didn’t touch him really, so I think the defender made it well,” Ismael said, as per Lancashire Telegraph.

“But it is what it is, in that situation you just need to deal with the situation, just to give straight away the command to the player. As I say, at the end we deserved the point, but it feels like more a win, because the boost and the mentality the player shows, they show me that they are ready to compete for the play-off.”

Despite Dennis’ red card – his second against Norwich after being sent off for Watford in 2022 – Rovers showed resilience. Croatian youngster Ante Crnac looked to have won it for the visitors with a 90th-minute strike, but Andreas Weimann salvaged a dramatic point with a stoppage-time header in the 97th minute.

Ismael, overseeing his first game as Blackburn boss, praised his side’s fighting spirit and thanked the fans for their support.

“First of all, I wanted to say a massive thank you to the fans for the very warm welcome I received, because I feel really something when I came in, it gave me that good positive vibe and energy,” he said.

“We finished the game and we can look at ourselves and say we gave everything, and now we still have 11 games to do exactly the same.”

The result leaves Blackburn seventh in the Championship, level on points with sixth-placed West Bromwich Albion as the race for the play-off spots intensifies.