Long-term Newcastle target Brett Emerton picked up a hamstring injury in the 1-0 midweek defeat at Charlton and will be out of the match on Saturday.
Mark Hughes: "We've lost Brett Emerton again to a hamstring, I think that is a consequence of the summer that he's had with his World Cup involvement. I hope, though, it's not too severe and we can get him back in a couple of weeks."
Blackburn have now lost five of their last seven league games and - going into Saturday's match at home to Newcastle - are getting dangerously close to the bottom three.
Glenn Roeder's squad was reduced to just 11 senior players against Reading.