Press Association Sport Staff

Andri Gudjohnsen’s second brace in a week earned Blackburn a clinical 2-0 win over Wrexham.

The Icelandic striker’s return from injury has coincided with an upturn in Rovers’ results as goals in each half delivered a third win in five games that moves Tony Mowbray’s side to within two points of the play-offs.

His first, a minute before half-time, was a poacher’s finish as he swept in when Sam Morsy’s shot was parried, and he made the game safe in the 79th minute with an emphatic strike from 12 yards for his eighth of the campaign.

It could have been more comfortable as Dapo Afolayan and Augustus Kargbo went close, and although Sam Smith headed wide for Wrexham with the score at 1-0, Phil Parkinson’s men were outclassed as their winless away run stretched to four.

Rovers were a whisker away from hitting the front in the third minute when Jayden Fevrier cut in from the right and curled agonisingly wide of the far post.

Wrexham settled into the game with both Kieffer Moore and Callum O’Hare’s shots blocked in the 14th minute as Rovers desperately tried to clear their lines.

Mowbray’s men weathered that pressure and nearly gave the visitors a taste of their own medicine when Hayden Carter’s outstretched foot diverted Todd Cantwell’s 42nd-minute corner goalwards, only for the ball to strike the post before Anthony Patterson gratefully gathered.

There was no reprieve two minutes later when Moussa Baradji, making his first start of the season, wriggled away from two players and set up Sam Morsy, whose long-range effort was parried by Patterson straight to Gudjohnsen, who clinically swept into the bottom right corner.

Afolayan missed a glorious chance to double the advantage four minutes after the restart when Cantwell’s pass sent him through one-on-one but Patterson spread himself brilliantly to repel the effort.

Wrexham started to create chances of their own as Matty James volleyed wide before O’Hare’s 57th-minute cross found Smith, who glanced a free header wide of the far post.

They went close again 10 minutes later when Jacques Ekomie raided down the left and crossed for Moore, whose left-foot shot was blocked and fell to Joe Worrall, who hammered just wide of the left post from inside the area.

Rovers introduced Kargbo from the bench and his express pace almost brought a counter-attacking second as he burst forward from a Wrexham corner on to Cantwell’s pass and drove low from the right, forcing Patterson to parry behind.

However, Gudjohnsen made the game safe 11 minutes from time with another deadly finish, latching on to Cantwell’s pass 12 yards out before turning away from Worrall and burying into the top corner.