Opinion: Blackburn Rovers ought to think about revisiting their transfer interest in Portsmouth FC.

Opinion: Blackburn Rovers ought to think about revisiting their transfer interest in Portsmouth FC.

In January, Ewood Park may once again have a striker on the roster.

It was obvious going into the summer transfer window that Blackburn Rovers needed to add some new center striker options to their roster.

In the second half of the previous season, Jon Dahl Tomasson’s team suffered greatly due to a lack of senior, experienced choices in that position.

This was followed by a string of missed opportunities in games, which ultimately resulted in Rovers finishing the Championship season level on points with sixth-place Sunderland but narrowly missing out on a playoff spot on goal differential despite spending the majority of the season in the top six.

 

This need was subsequently made even more urgent by the departures of two of Rovers’ top scorers from the previous campaign, Ben Brereton-Diaz and Bradley Dack, after their contracts at Ewood Park expired.

In the end, Niall Ennis and Semir Telalovic would both sign long-term contracts with Rovers, adding two new center forwards to the Lancashire team.

 

However, there may be a case to be made that Blackburn will still need to address the center forward position once the transfer window reopens in January.

Why would Blackburn need to sign another centre forward in January?

Ennis and Telalovic arrived at Ewood Park this summer, but have so far had some difficulty getting into Tomasson’s team.

 

Ennis has only made three substitute appearances in 11 Championship games for Blackburn this season due to fitness difficulties.

In contrast, Telalovic has only played 57 minutes of league football for Rovers off the bench on five occasions, as Tomasson wants to give him time to adjust to a new environment and level after bringing him over from Germany’s fourth division.

 

Sam Gallagher, who has been a senior center forward for Rovers for a longer time and is also currently out for a prolonged period of time due to injury, has also caused problems as he approaches the end of his contract at Ewood Park.

If they decide to go that route, there is a case to be made for Blackburn to reconsider their interest in a former target who is currently having a fantastic season with Portsmouth in League One.

Would Colby Bishop be a good signing for Blackburn?

Blackburn was reportedly one among the teams with an interest in Portsmouth striker Colby Bishop before to the summer transfer window.

Bishop had a productive season in the third division with Pompey the previous year, and he has continued that in the current campaign, where he has been essential to the team’s early push for promotion.

 

Bishop may now be prepared to move up to the Championship, and Blackburn should be the type of team that should be pursuing him given their potential future need for a center forward and the fact that he is continuing to produce goals at that level despite the pressure of a promotion push.

In fact, the fact that Bishop has played in each of Portsmouth’s league games since the start of last season may help allay some of Rovers’ concerns about the fitness of new additions.

 

The striker’s former success with Accrington Stanley, another Lancashire club, also suggests he would be able to fit in well if he does move back to the region with a move to Ewood Park.

It’s true that it might be difficult for Rovers to persuade those involved to make this move given that he has a contract with Portsmouth that runs through the summer of 2025 and that his present side is actively competing for the League One championship.

 

However, the prospect of a January transfer war for Rovers midfielder Adam Wharton, who is reportedly valued at £20 million by the Championship club, implies they could be able to raise the money necessary for this potential deal.

Additionally, the fact that they were successful in persuading Ennis to join in the summer, only a few weeks after he had led Plymouth Argyle to the League One championship, may have given them confidence to persuade Bishop to make a similar transfer to Ewood Park at the beginning of the year.

Taking all of this into consideration, it would seem that Blackburn should not rule out a move for Bishop at that time too hastily as they continue to prepare arrangements for the January transfer window.