It wasn’t the easiest of starts to the Championship season Blackburn Rovers, or indeed, Christian Walton.

Back to back defeats to newly-promoted Charlton Athletic and recently relegated Fulham had left Tony Mowbray’s side propping up the rest of the Championship table, and at that point, you had to feel that the risk Mowbray had taken on Walton, had yet to pay off.

To see just how big a risk it was Rovers had taken on the Brighton loanee, we first have to go back to the start of the summer transfer window, when Walton had just returned to the AMEX Stadium following a second straight season on loan at Wigan Athletic, and David Raya was still Blackburn’s undisputed number one.

Throughout the course of the previous campaign, there had been numerous questions asked of Raya, who, despite his undoubted ability when it comes to shot stopping, left plenty to be desired in terms of his decision making, and command of his area.

Indeed, there had been suggestion that there was a serious intent to bring in a second, established goalkeeper to challenge Raya at this level, with only Canadian Jayson Leutwiler – whose experience in the Championship had been four games at the end of the 2018/19 campaign – currently rivalling the Spaniard at Ewood Park.

In the end however, Rovers transfer activity in the goalkeeping department worked out rather differently than that.

In early July, it was confirmed that Raya had left Blackburn to join Championship rivals Brentford, with Walton making the move to Ewood Park on a season-long loan as the Spaniard’s replacement a few weeks later.

Once again, it was hinted that a second goalkeeper could be targeted to provide support and competition for Walton in the coming campaign, although that never materialised, leaving the Brighton loanee as Rovers’ only real option for the number one spot this season.

Initially, it was a risk that felt as though it was going to backfire.

In his debut for the club in that defeat to Charlton, there was an argument that Walton could have done better with both of the Addicks goals in the 2-1 defeat, with the goalkeeper struggling to claim either of the crosses that led to the goals for Ben Purrington and Lyle Taylor.

The following week against Fulham, there was admittedly little Walton could do about either Tom Cairney’s wonder goal, or Aleksandar Mitrovic’s close range finish that handed Scott Parker’s side the victory.

Even so, concerns around Walton would rear their head again on matchday three of the league season, despite Rovers grinding out their first win of the league campaign over Middlesbrough.

With Mowbray’s men looking to hold onto a 1-0 lead, a cross into the Rovers penalty was flapped at by Walton, only for Marcus Browne to divert the ball against the post with the goal gaping, handing Blackburn a first three points of the season, and Walton a much needed let off.

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It is a reprieve that the goalkeeper certainly seems to have taken.

The following Tuesday, Walton was in outstanding form as Blackburn made it back-to-back wins with another 1-0 victory – this time at Hull City – with Walton playing a big part in that.

After saving Jarrod Bowen’s early penalty, Walton enjoyed a perfect game in command of his area, coming for the right crosses, and leaving the right ones, something that will have come as a big relief following the uncertainty caused by Raya in that respect last season.

Having followed that up with a similar display in Saturday’s stalemate at home to Cardiff City, it seems as though Walton is starting to show the sort of solidity that convinced Mowbray to bring him to the club in the first place, and indeed, not to follow that up with the signing of a second ‘keeper.

With Leutwiler failing to convince in the two Carabao Cup appearances he has made this season, you feel the fact that Walton is starting to do just that will be a big relief for Mowbray and co, given the difficulty it would have left them in had the 23-year-old continued to struggle.

As it is, Walton is starting to show the sort of qualities that led Brighton to decide to let him leave only temporarily, rather than on a permanent basis, and that already looks to have helped boost Rovers results and prospects for this season, so much so that there could be worse options for Rovers than to look to convince Brighton to change their mind about Walton, in order to avoid a repeat of the scramble for a safe pair of hands they have just experienced this summer.