Last summer, Blackburn Rovers lost their 29-goal top scorer, ambitious Adam Armstrong lured away by the bright lights of the Premier League like a moth to a flame.
Harvey Elliott, arguably the Championship’s most talented teenager, departed too, returning to Liverpool at the end of a dazzling loan spell.
Barry Douglas, Jarrad Branthwaite and Taylor Harwood-Bellis, three players who made a combined 60 appearances in England’s tier last term, followed Elliott out the door.
So who honestly expected to see Blackburn sitting pretty in fourth place, just six points off the top, nearly halfway through the new Championship campaign?
Summer arrivals Reda Khadra and Jan Paul van Hecke have stepped impressively into the breach. And, in Armstrong’s place, Tony Mowbray has one of the division’s most prolific strikers at his disposal.
Remarkably, Ben Brereton-Diaz has scored as many league goals (17) in just 22 games as Ben Brereton managed in 133.
So while many at Ewood Park are fearing the seemingly inevitable departure of Joe Rothwell, it feels only right to point out that, as of late, Blackburn have shown a remarkable ability to bounce back from the departure of key players.
Is Joe Rothwell swapping Rovers for Rangers?
According to TEAMtalk, Rangers are closing in on a deal that will see Rothwell move to Ibrox on a free-transfer when his contract expires next summer.
One of the most naturally-gifted, talented and watchable footballers in the whole of the Championship, Rothwell is unplayable on his day.
And those days are becoming more frequent all the time.
“We’ve been talking about how amazing Joe Rothwell is, his technique and his outstanding ability to run with the ball,” Mowbray beamed.
“He is the best in this league in my mind at running with the ball and would be one of the best in the Premier League.
“Adama Traore and Saint-Maximin at Newcastle – there aren’t many people who can run with the ball like Joe Rothwell.”
Unless Blackburn join Traore and Saint-Maximin in the Premier League next term – and they are capable of doing just that – finding someone capable of replicating Rothwell’s rampaging influence may be easier said than done.
But not impossible.
The Lancashire Telegraph reports that Blackburn are still tracking Aberdeen’s Ryan Hedges ahead of the January transfer window.
Rovers failed with a £500,000 bid last summer. But Hedges, like Rothwell, will be free to talk to clubs in the New Year with his contract running down.
Whether playing through the middle or out wide, Hedges is the sort of player defenders just hate facing. He’s direct, dynamic and difficult to stop when in full flow.
Remind you of anyone Blackburn fans?
“He’s the type of player who wants to affect games, to make and score goals,” Aberdeen manager Stephen Glass told the Press and Journal recently.
If the Dons agree to sell Hedges next month, Blackburn could have a readymade Rothwell replacement.
And Rangers could have another exciting attacking option to add to their already enviable collection.
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