Blackburn Rovers

Blackburn Rovers face stiff competition from a string of Championship clubs to sign Sunderland midfielder Alan Browne, who spent last season on loan at Middlesbrough. However, Boro are not expected to explore another deal for the 31-year-old. (Lancashire Telegraph), external

Want to read more transfer rumours? Check out Friday's full gossip column here.

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Blackburn Rovers have promoted Damien Johnson to assistant head coach and head of player development.

The 47-year-old former Northern Ireland international had been working as first-team technical coach after moving up from leading the Championship club's under-21 side.

Johnson joined Blackburn as a player from Portadown in 1997, going on to make 81 appearances before signing for Birmingham City in 2002.

He returned to Ewood Park as an academy coach in 2015, twice stepping into the role of interim head coach in 2024 and February this year and was first-team technical coach and head of player development in 2019 during boss Tony Mowbray's first spell in charge.

"Tony's a fantastic guy. I had a really strong relationship with him when he was first here and I've kept in touch with him," Johnson told the Rovers website., external

"He's come through his health issues and now he's fighting fit and I'm delighted that he's come back."

Blackburn open the new Championship season at Wolves on Friday, 14 August (20:00 BST)

Blackburn Rovers, Bolton Wanderers, Leicester City and Major League Soccer (MLS) clubs are monitoring Greg Docherty as the 29-year-old Scottish midfielder awaits news on a contract offer from Charlton Athletic, where he has a year remaining of his current deal. (Daily Record), external

Blackburn Rovers have rejected several six-figure offers for Irish defender Connor O'Riordan but would be willing to part with the 22-year-old if their valuation is met. (Lancashire Telegraph - requires subscription), external

Leicester City and Rangers are showing an interest in 20-year-old striker Ryan One, but Sheffield United do not wish to sell this summer. (Sky Sports), external

Want more transfer news from the EFL? Take a look at Friday's gossip column here.

Blackburn's 24-year-old Nigerian international right-back Ryan Alebiosu is attracting attention from Bundesliga and Serie A clubs. (Pete O'Rourke, external)

Want more news from the EFL? Take a look at Thursday's gossip column here.

Blackburn Rovers midfielder Kristi Montgomery may have signed a new contract but he still feels he has work to do.

The 22-year-old penned a long-term deal on Tuesday after 21 Championship appearances last season.

Despite starting the past four games, the Leeds-born Scotland Under-21 international thinks he is still making his breakthrough.

"I feel like I'm part of the group but I haven't done enough to say that I'm an established first-team player yet," Montgomery said.

"I've got the contract, that's obviously good. I want to make sure that I'm playing week in, week out to officially say that I'm a first team player.

"Last season I only had 10 minutes here and 10 minutes there. There are a lot of young players who have come through and done that. I just want to make sure that this season I can get as much game time as I possibly can."

Watch the full interview with BBC Radio Lancashire below or listen on BBC Sounds here.

Explore more Blackburn Rovers content on BBC Sounds

Ryoya Morishita is ready to lead from the front for Blackburn Rovers.

The winger, 29, is preparing for his second season at Ewood Park after signing from Legia Warsaw for an undisclosed fee in August 2025 and wants to use his experience to help the team have a successful Championship campaign.

"I feel much more comfortable to start pre-season with the team because last season I joined at the end of August and the Championship had already started," Morishita told BBC Radio Lancashire.

"Now I have to be a leader at Blackburn Rovers because I am nearly 30 years old and last season I played for me but now I have to play for Rovers and for the team - we have many young players so I have to take care of them and I think that is very important."

Rovers finished 20th in the Championship last season, five points clear of the relegation zone and the Japan international is confident they can have a successful year under new head coach, Tony Mowbray.

"Blackburn have the ability to be promoted so this season my individual goal is 10 goals and 10 assists and I believe we can take Blackburn to the Premier League," he added.

"The new coach has humour and makes us laugh. He is a very good guy and I love him."

Blackburn open the new Championship season away at Wolves on Friday, 14 August (20:00 BST).

Listen to more Blackburn Rovers interviews and content on BBC Sounds.

Blackburn Rovers boss Tony Mowbray is the perfect appointment for the club, according to captain Todd Cantwell.

Mowbray returned for a second spell in charge at Ewood Park when he was appointed in June.

"The one thing I felt this changing room needed more than anything was a manager like Tony - a manager who understands the players and has complete clarity around what he wants, but he's got the people skills that go with it," Cantwell told BBC Radio Lancashire.

"There's a lot of boys that are quite new to England, let alone the league, quite new to the country, so naturally they need a little bit of adaption time and when you're fighting down at the bottom of the league you're not getting that time.

"So, it's a real balancing act. I think the manager is absolutely the answer to some exciting times for Blackburn, for sure."

Rovers finished 20th in the Championship last season, five points clear of the relegation zone having sacked head coach Valerien Ismael in February before apppointing Northern Ireland boss Michael O'Neill on an interim basis until the end of the campaign.

O'Neil rejected the offer to take the role on a permanent basis with Mowbray appointed after more than a year out of management having been sacked by West Brom in April 2025.

"He's everything that I think the club needs. He's experienced, he's got an absolute wealth of experience," said Cantwell.

"He's coached here before, so he knows the club, which I think is an important thing to have because I think like any club, they all have their own challenges, and they all have different support bases."

You can listen to more Blackburn interviews and features on BBC Sounds.

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Blackburn Rovers midfielder Kristi Montgomery has signed a new "long-term" deal to remain with the club.

The 22-year-old came through their academy and made his first-team debut at the tail end of the 2024-25 season as a substitute in a draw with Sheffield Wednesday.

Last season he went on to make a total of 23 senior appearances for the club and also made his debut for Scotland's Under-21 side.

Rovers have not disclosed the length of Montgomery's contract extension.

Blackburn Rovers are in advanced talks for a new deal with Scottish midfielder Kristi Montgomery to extend his stay at the club with just one year left on the 22-year-old's current contact. (Football Insider), external

Want more transfer news from the EFL? Take a look at Friday's gossip column here.

Former Wales international Ryan Hedges, 30, is attracting attention from both Championship and League One clubs after the winger's surprise departure from Blackburn Rovers. (Football Insider), external

Want more transfer news from the EFL? Take a look at Thursday's gossip column here.

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Blackburn Rovers have brought in former Wycombe boss Mike Dodds as their new assistant head coach.

Dodds leaves Oxford United, where he worked alongside former head coach Matt Bloomfield, to link back up with Blackburn boss Tony Mowbray.

The 40-year-old began his career as a youth coach at Coventry before spending 12 years within Birmingham's set-up.

He left Blues in 2021 for Sunderland where he worked alongside Mowbray as head of individual player development.

He took charge of 18 games as caretaker manager of the Black Cats, winning four matches, during 2023-24 before being appointed Wycombe head coach in 2025.

Dodds' stint at Wanderers lasted seven months before he was sacked, with the Chairboys having won 10 of 31 games.

The EFL fixture list is out, and we know you are bursting to know what you've got to look forward to - or dread - from your team this upcoming season.

Here are some key dates to put in your diary:

• 14 August 2026 - Wolves (A)

• 22 August 2026 - Middlesbrough (H)

• 5 September 2026 - Preston North End (A)

• 21 November 2026 - Burnley (A)

• 5 December 2026 - Bolton (A)

• 26 December 2026 - Birmingham City (H)

• 1 January 2027 - Derby County (A)

• 6 February 2027 - Burnley (H)

• 17 March 2027 - Bolton (H)

• 10 April 2027 - Preston North End (H)

• 1 May 2027 - Watford (H)

See Blackburn Rovers' full fixture list here.

Tony Mowbray wants to make Bournemouth striker Daniel Jebbison his first signing since being appointed Blackburn Rovers manager earlier this month. The 22-year-old made 40 appearances on loan at Rovers' Championship rivals Preston North End last season, scoring six goals. (Alan Nixon - Patreon), external

Want more transfer news from the EFL? Take a look at - gossip column here.

Sheffield Wednesday are interested in a move for Huddersfield Town and former Wales Under-21s striker Joe Taylor but face competition for the 23-year-old from Blackburn Rovers. (Football Insider), external

The Owls have also made a significant move for York City's English striker Josh Stones, 23. (Football Insider), external

Want more transfer news from the EFL? Take a look at Tuesday's gossip column here.

The EFL will reveal its fixture list for the 2026-27 season on Thursday.

Want to know who your team will face on opening day? The fixtures will be announced at 12:00 BST - but that is not all.

The draws for the group stage of the Vertu Trophy and the first round of the Carabao Cup will also take place.

So check back on 25 June to see who your team faces first, last and everything in between.

Blackburn Rovers have had a £1m bid including add-ons for English former Leeds, Middlesbrough and Preston striker Sam Greenwood, 24, rejected by Polish side Pogon Szczecin. (Sunderland Echo), external

For more transfer news and rumours, read Monday's full gossip column here.

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Phil Jones has left Blackburn Rovers to pursue "another opportunity" away from Ewood Park.

The former Rovers defender, who played for the club between 2002 and 2011, returned in February to be part of Michael O'Neill's coaching staff.

The 34-year-old has been linked with Sheffield United where Chris Wilder is revamping his backroom staff.

"We are naturally disappointed to see him leave [but] we respect his decision to continue developing his coaching career," club said.

Jones posted a message to fans on his social media channels thanking Blackburn for the chance to re-join the club and wishing them every success in the future.

"Returning to Blackburn was something I'd always hoped I'd get the chance to do, so I'm grateful it became a reality. I've loved being back at the club and have enjoyed every moment," he said.

Jones' exit leaves Rovers manager Tony Mowbray without a first-team coach following the departure of Steven Davis who left with O'Neill.

Gregory Vignal's exit at the end of last season has also left a vacancy as U21s coach.

Andy Bayes
BBC Radio Lancashire's Sport Editor

Image source, Getty Images

An interview with Tony Mowbray at the back of Blackburn Rovers' training ground at Brockhall was something I had pretty much consigned to the past but looked back on with fond memories - until this week.

As soon as our conversation started, it felt as though four years had disappeared in an instant. There we were again, swapping pleasantries, talking football and slipping effortlessly back into familiar territory. Some people can leave the game; Mowbray, quite clearly, never really did.

He is steeped in football. Obsessed by it, shaped by it, comforted by it. To say he lives and breathes the sport barely scratches the surface. And from the moment he began speaking, there was a spark back in his eyes - the unmistakable look of a man who feels at home again.

The four years since he left Ewood Park have seen Mowbray hold down three Championship jobs.

Away from football, he faced the sort of battle that changes perspectives and tests every ounce of resilience. A cancer diagnosis and subsequent surgeries would have been enough for many to step away permanently.

So when I asked him, at 62, whether retirement had ever felt like the obvious path, the answer arrived before the words did. The chuckle told the story. Football still has its grip on him and probably always will.

Of course, there is life away from the touchline. He speaks warmly about his wife, his three sons and the dog that has joined him for countless early-morning walks as his strength has returned. But even through that gratitude and perspective, there was clearly something missing.

The dressing room. The daily rhythm. The buzz of the training ground.

Mowbray has always been at his best around players - teaching, encouraging, nudging confidence back into those who have lost it. Few managers wear the role of mentor more naturally. He genuinely loves helping footballers improve, whether they are academy prospects or seasoned professionals needing an arm around the shoulder.

And he returns to a club that remains emotionally divided. Blackburn's tensions between supporters and boardroom are well documented, but they are hardly unique in the modern game. The difference with Mowbray is that he understands the landscape already. He knows some of the personalities, the politics and the pressures. There will be no honeymoon surprises here.

That familiarity matters.

He will build new relationships with a CEO, a head of football operations and a head of technical development but there is comfort in returning somewhere that already feels part of his story.

In many ways, this is less a fresh start and more an unfinished chapter reopening.

Before long, one of his favourite phrases resurfaced again - "soldiers and artists". It is classic Mowbray - simple football language carrying a deeper point. The words are emblazoned across a corridor at Brockhall and, truthfully, they probably tell you everything about the challenge ahead.

Last season's Blackburn side had enough soldiers to survive. What they lacked was artistry. A total of 42 goals in 46 Championship games tells its own brutal story.

Which raises a fascinating question or two.

Can Mowbray coax more consistency and belief out of Todd Cantwell, for example? A player blessed with talent but still searching for sustained impact.

Can he once again convince elite clubs that Blackburn is the right environment for their brightest young prospects to grow? After all, this is the same manager who helped nurture the development of players such as Jan-Paul van Hecke, Harvey Elliott, Taylor Harwood-Bellis and Jarrad Branthwaite.

That reputation still carries weight in football circles.

The workload awaiting him will be relentless. Championship management devours energy at the best of times, never mind after everything he has been through. But there was no sense of apprehension when he spoke - only excitement, purpose and determination to make the most of another chance to do the thing he loves most.

For now, there is a short wait before he meets his players. In the meantime, he joked that he still has thousands of messages from well-wishers to reply to following his return to football.

And perhaps that warmth says something important.

Because this comeback does not simply feel like another managerial appointment. It feels like football welcoming back one of its own.