Tony Mowbray’s accolade of being the Championship’s longest serving manager didn’t last for long.

It was an honour he held for the final four matches of last season, following the departure of Lee Johnson from Bristol City and along with Preston North End’s Alex Neil, was one of only two Championship bosses to have been in their current post for over three years.

But with relegations and promotions confirmed, Mowbray has dropped to number three on the Championship’s longest serving list, and was temporarily fourth until Bournemouth’s decision to part ways with Eddie Howe.

After Wycombe Wanderers’ incredible promotion to the Championship, Blackburn-born Gareth Ainsworth is now the longest-serving boss in the second tier having taken over in September 2012.

However, he has lost his crown as the EFL’s longest serving boss, with Harrogate Town’s Simon Weaver having racked up 11 years with the National League play-off winners.

Paul Warne, of Rotherham United, took charge of the Millers three months prior to Mowbray’s appointment at Rovers in February 2017, with fellow Championship new boys Coventry City and recently-relegated Norwich City having had their respective managers, Mark Robins and Daniel Farke, in post for over three years.

Of the teams remaining in the Championship from last season however, only Brentford, Swansea City, Nottingham Forest, Derby County, QPR and Sheffield Wednesday, as well as Rovers, will do with the same manager in the dugout as for the first match of 2019/20.

Mowbray is now 170 matches in to his Rovers career, and just four short of reaching 700 across his career, with his time at Ewood Park now the longest the 56-year-old has spent at any one club throughout his managerial career.

“It just shows the craziness of football. Lee Johnson had four-and-a-half years and football is about expectation,” he said.

“Pep Guardiola might look over his shoulder because he hasn’t won the Premier League and that is the expectation of the owners of Manchester City.

“Yet the teams down the bottom, their owner might be delighted to finish fourth bottom and only get 34 points and stay up, but what a brilliant job they’ve done.

“It’s all about expectation.”

As for his time in charge, Mowbray was unable to keep Rovers in the Championship in his 15 games in charge in 2017, but after signing a new contract, led the club to promotion from League One at the first attempt.

A new deal followed at the end of 2018, with Rovers’ post-promotion season seeing them finish in the Championship, before improving on that by four places, and three points, last term.

As time goes on, and expectations of the owners rise over time given their level of expenditure, Mowbray knows the scrutiny on his position will rise.

“What are the expectations of the owners of Blackburn Rovers?,” he said.

“If we don’t reach that expectation and fall away badly then I’ll be waiting on the calls to hear their expectations and what they want to do.”

Mowbray feels Rovers are going through something of a transition period as they look to evolve from the side which won them promotion from the third tier.

The manager has always taken a long-term view of things since his appointment, but is wary of sounding like he is simply ‘buying time’.

Instead he wants his side to be in a position to challenge for promotion to the Premier League, a feat he achieved at West Bromwich Albion in 2008.

“I just work hard with the team, I try and inspire young guys to want to get better, develop, and try and play at the best and the highest level of football they can and mould a team together that functions,” he added.

“I’m trying to create a team that can dominate the ball and when you see them play you can see an identity that we’re a ball retention team who keep the ball, create chances.

“The starting point for that was a long way away, and the process that we’re on I feel we’re on that journey.

“But I understand that sounds like buying time, I’m not interested in buying time. I understand football, I’ve been the manager at the top of the division, who’ve won this league, reached play-off finals, and understand the pressures of trying to get those points to get over the line.

“At this moment we’re not at that level, but we can compete with everyone, give them all a really hard game, win some, lose some, I just want us to be more controlled so we have a clearer indication of beating this team or winning this game.

“That’s all I’m trying to do, build a team bit-by-bit, with the players we’ve got and some additions that we probably need.”

Championships longest serving managers:

1. Gareth Ainsworth (Wycombe)

2. Paul Warne (Rotherham)

3. Tony Mowbray (Rovers)

4. Mark Robins (Coventry)

5. Daniel Farke (Norwich)

6. Alex Neil (PNE)