Blackburn Rovers manager makes summer departure transfer admission

Tony Mowbray has told media that he believes at least two first-team players will leave this summer once their contracts expire. 

Blackburn have been working hard to tie down the long-term futures of a number of players in recent weeks. Lewis Travis and Thomas Kaminski both signed new contracts recently but the club has been unsuccessful with other first-team players.

Darragh Lenihan, Ryan Nyambe and Joe Rothwell are all out of contract in the summer with Mowbray resigned to losing at least two of them.

He told the Lancashire Telegraph: “I shouldn’t talk about individuals, my own view is that certainly two of them are definitely leaving.

“I’ve tried, talked, and cajoled, but I think there are family issues around people wanting to leave.”

Mowbray also went on to talk about their motivations to leave, with the former Coventry, West Brom, and Boro manager sympathising with them: People’s lives are changing, they’re getting older, they have more responsibilities, they need to earn money than this club can pay them and other clubs are willing to pay them.

“In football there’s an emotional tie, but in life, if someone is going to double your salary and you haven’t got kids in a school and there’s an opportunity to double your salary for doing the same job then you’d probably go as well.”

The Verdict

It’s a big close season for Blackburn regardless of whether they win promotion to the Premier League or stay in the Championship.

With key players being out of contract, they will need to be replaced as well as protecting the long-term futures of a number of key assets.

You could argue that Rovers have been sleepwalking when it comes to offering new deals to players, with Adam Armstrong being allowed to enter the final year of his