Blackburn Rovers: Szmodics and Gallagher situations will be on John Eustace's mind | OneFootball

The futures of certain players could impact Rovers' transfer window plans

Highlights

There can be no denying that Blackburn Rovers have plenty of business to get through in the summer transfer window.

Only avoiding relegation from the Championship on the final day of last season, there will be pressure to strengthen the squad this summer, to avoid such a situation again.

Meanwhile, with John Eustace having only taken over as head coach back in February, this is his first chance to put his mark on the squad in the transfer market.

But while he will no doubt want to do that, it has so far been a quiet start to the window in terms of incomings to the first-team squad.

As a result, the pressure will be building on the Ewood Park club to get business done, with many other Championship sides now up and running in the window.

However, what happens with certain individuals who are currently on the books of the Lancashire outfit, may influence what business is done in the next two months.

So with that in mind, we've taken a look at two Blackburn Rovers players whose situations Eustace will have to consider as he weighs up plans for the transfer market, right here.

Sammie Szmodics

It seems almost certain that without Sammie Szmodics league-high 27 Championship goals last season, Ewood Park would be hosting League One football in the 2024/25 campaign.

After such a prolific season though, the attacking midfielder is inevitably starting to attract interest from elsewhere, and the likes of Everton, Brentford, Leicester City and Galatasaray have all been credited with an interest.

But given the quality he produced last season, Eustace will surely be desperate to keep the Republic of Ireland international at Blackburn for the coming campaign.

That is not just because of Szmodics' own ability, but due to the fact that other than the 28-year-old, no player scored more than five league goals for the club last season, highlighting his importance to this side even further.

As a result, Eustace will be absolutely desperate to keep the former Peterborough man around. If he is unable to do so, the pressure to find the next consistent source of goals at Ewood Park will ramp up even further.

With two years and an option left on his contract though, Blackburn can demand a big fee for Szmodics, and it would also be intriguing to see how much of that would be reinvested if he is sold.

In their retained list at the end of the season, Rovers triggered 12-month options in the contracts of two players, to ensure they do not leave for free this summer: Tyrhys Dolan and Sam Gallagher.

It has since been reported that Dolan will not be leaving in the current transfer window, even if that means he could be free to walk away this time next year if no new deal is agreed.

So far though, it remains to be seen if the same is the case for Gallagher. The striker is reportedly still the subject of interest from newly promoted Premier League side Ipswich Town after they had bids rejected for him in January.

The added financial strength they have after promotion means the Tractor Boys may now be able to make a bid for the striker, which is tempting for Blackburn to accept.

Given that he is among the club's highest earners and has never really been as prolific as most would hope for a striker, it could be tempting for Rovers to cash in on Gallagher this summer, while they still have the chance to do so.

But with so many of their recent centre-forward signings falling flat, the pressure is already on the club to strengthen in that position this summer. If Gallagher, currently their only fully experienced natural option in that position, was to leave, then it could be argued they would need two signings in that position.

Eustace would then have a decision to make on whether that is the sort of business he wants to focus so much time and funds on when there are other areas of this Blackburn squad that will need strengthening as well.