Blackburn Rovers manager Valerien Ismael issues brutal Lewis Travis dig as Derby County transfer nears | OneFootball

Valerien Ismael has fired a dig at midfielder Lewis Travis as his move to Derby County draws nearer.

Blackburn Rovers boss Valerien Ismael has given his scathingly honest view on skipper Lewis Travis' impending move to Derby County.

Rams boss John Eustace has been keen to bring his former player to Pride Park this summer - something that FLW exclusively revealed earlier this summer - and negotiations had been ongoing for a number of weeks before a fee was agreed last week.

Now, Travis is set to depart the club that gave him his break in professional football, in favour of a move to their Championship rivals, but the exit has been messy, with the 27-year-old training away from the club whilst the deal was being agreed.

Blackburn boss Ismael didn't mince his words when discussing the situation with the wantaway midfielder, giving a brutally honest assessment of Travis' behaviour in an interview with the Lancashire Telegraph, saying he'd 'let everyone down'.

With the Blue and Whites' skipper now set to depart the club after a decade of service, everyone connected with the Lancashire side will want to swiftly move on from this messy scenario.

Valerien Ismael - "Lewis Travis let everyone down" as messy Blackburn Rovers exit nears

After the best part of a decade at Ewood Park, the relationship between Travis and Blackburn is set to come to a bitterly disappointing end, with his reunion with old boss Eustace at Derby imminent after a fee was agreed last week.

The nature of this exit has clearly left everyone at the Lancashire club, including manager Ismael, with a rather sour taste in their mouth, and following a 3-0 win over Hull City on Saturday, the ex-West Brom boss didn't hold back when discussing Travis.

Ismael told the Lancashire Telegraph: "After Lewis Travis let down everyone in the last couple of weeks, we needed to adjust to manage the situation.

"There's some negotiation ongoing, and we will see what the next week will bring.

"I'm expecting incomings and outgoings, it will be both ways. We say if someone is leaving, we want to replace them. We know that in an attacking line, we need to do something.

"So you see it will be at least two positions, one for sure and another one if someone is leaving. We want to replace, to stay competitive and at the minute, we're good.

"We managed well the players who were injured to come back, but hopefully we can get some deals over the line next week," the Blackburn boss concluded.

Blackburn must swiftly move on from Lewis Travis frustration

It's easy to see why the frustration is so high at Travis' behaviour in recent weeks, as his actions in the eyes of many is no way for a captain, or indeed a player with a decade of service to the club, should treat that club that gave him his big break.

Ismael was clearly hopeful of retaining the 27-year-old beyond the summer, after he returned from his loan spell at Ipswich Town in the second-half of last season, but it's all but confirmed now that won't be happening.

Now, Blackburn must move swiftly on from any hurt or feelings of being hard done by, as Travis will no longer be their problem once the deal is confirmed.

It's now about using the fee they receive and finding a strong replacement, whilst getting that sense of unity back among the dressing room.