Blackburn Rovers should make this a priority to avoid another Ben Brereton Diaz situation: View | OneFootball

Highlights

When Blackburn Rovers signed Tyrhys Dolan in the summer of 2020 following his release from local rivals Preston North End, there probably wasn't any expecation from anyone that just a few months later he would be a regular in the first-team at Ewood Park.

Dolan was expected to be nurtured in Rovers' under-21's, and the fact they were able to pick him up for free from PNE was surprising as by all accounts, he was one of their top youth prospects.

However, after an impressive pre-season with the first-team, Dolan was promoted immediately by Tony Mowbray into the senior setup, and he impressed in spells with 37 Championship outings in his first year.

The winger's end product can often leave a lot to be desired, but there are signs in recent weeks that he is settling into a role of a striker whilst there is somewhat of a fitness crisis among Jon Dahl Tomasson's options in the final third.

Just like Rovers suffered by not cashing in on Ben Brereton Diaz though before his contract expired last summer and subsequently joined Villarreal, the club need to be currently doing all they can to be getting Dolan tied down to a multi-year deal.

Tyrhys Dolan's contract situation at Blackburn Rovers

Heading into the 2023-24 season, Dolan had just one year remaining on his current deal at Ewood Park, although the club were somewhat protected by the fact that they own a one-year optional extension, which is likely to be triggered if a new deal cannot be agreed before the end of the January transfer window.

That will secure Dolan to Rovers until the end of 2024-25, but it will be in the best interests of the club if they are to get the attacker tied down for a longer period of time, just like they've done with Adam Wharton, Harry Leonard, Joe Rankin-Costello and others, who all have deals until 2027.

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There has been complications though for the last few months which Rovers themselves have not been able to control, which mainly stem from Dolan's change in agency.

Dolan's previous agreement ended at the start of October, as confirmed by Gregg Broughton back in September, meaning since then, Rovers have been able to start negotiating with the player's new representatives.

The player himself though wasn't in the mood to give too much away recently, stating that he wasn't worried about the contract talks and that they will be done by his agent, but it now needs to be a Blackburn priority as they do not want to be stung once again like they were with Brereton Diaz.

Tyrhys Dolan's long-term Blackburn future and his best position

It's probably fair to say that Tomasson hasn't got Dolan's actual position locked down as of yet, as he sees the youngster as an individual who can operate fluidly in a number of different roles.

The position that Dolan started in the most in the 2022-23 season was at centre-forward, often dropping deep and wide for the ball which would allow him to try and drive at defenders.

Many believe his best position however to be cutting in from the left flank, although Arnor Sigurdsson's presence creates a bit of an issue for the current campaign, as when the Iceland international is fit then he's surely a guaranteed starter.

With Rovers lacking out-and-out striker options, Dolan has been starting as a striker with many attacking players supporting him out wide and in behind, scoring two goals and notching two assists in the five matches in a row where he has been used as a central forward, with Rovers winning four of them.

It is fair to say that Dolan is rather effective in the current role he's playing, but in the long-term, Blackburn will need more of a focal point in attack and the 21-year-old can go back to playing either as a number 10 or cutting in off the left, should Sigurdsson not remain at the club beyond 2023-24.

Blackburn will need to reach an agreement soon though as whilst they are somewhat in safe hands for now with the optional extension, Dolan's head could get turned if other clubs are watching and even though they couldn't lose him for absolutely nothing in 2025 because of his age, it would be for far less than they could get in an open market.