Tyrhys Dolan’s Ewood Park contract is set to expire at the end of this season
Going into their clash with Sheffield Wednesday on Saturday afternoon, head coach Jon Dahl Tomasson found himself unable to call upon 11 senior players for that clash with the Owls.
Ten of those were absent for fitness reasons, while club captain Lewis Travis missed out due to suspension.
All of that left Blackburn with a substitute bench at Hillsborough, that carried just 33 Championship appearances, a tally that includes just nine starts.
A number of the club’s more senior and experienced players such as Dom Hyam, Sam Gallagher and Ryan Hedges, were also among those unavailable.
As a result, that lack of depth and nous would ensure this proved a step too far as the third game of the week for Rovers, and after back to back wins, they slipped to a 3-1 defeat at Hillsborough.
One other player whose presence was no doubt missed for Blackburn in that clash with the Owls, and looks set to be for some time now, comes in the form of Tyrhys Dolan.
What is Tyrhys Dolan’s injury situation?
Little more than ten minutes into his side’s 4-2 win over Birmingham City on Wednesday night, Dolan went down under a heavy challenge from Blues defender Emanuel Aiwu.
Although he initially attempted to play on after that blow, Dolan would be forced off just moments later, to be replaced by Harry Leonard.
In the build-up to Saturday’s trip to Sheffield Wednesday, Tomasson then confirmed that the attacker is facing up to two months on the sidelines, after damaging knee ligaments in that challenge.
Given their already lengthy injury list prior to that setback, the loss of that extra depth offered by Dolan looks set to be a major blow.
Indeed, that is further enhanced by the fact that the 21-year-old had been starting to look back to his best for Blackburn, scoring two goals and providing two assists in the seven league games prior to that clash with Birmingham where he picked up his injury.
However, while all of that has come at what is clearly a bad time for Blackburn when it comes to their situation on the pitch, there is an argument that it could at least do them a favour off it, as they look to secure Dolan’s Ewood Park future.
Could Dolan’s injury impact contract talks with Blackburn Rovers?
As things stand, Dolan’s current contract with Blackburn is set to expire at the end of this season, albeit with the club holding the option to extend that deal by a further 12 months.
Even with that option though, the attacker’s longer-term future at Ewood Park is still somewhat uncertain, and given the talent he can offer them, Dolan’s future is something the club will surely want confirmed sooner rather than later.
Despite that, it was reported last month by The Lancashire Telegraph, that Dolan has put talks over a new contract with Blackburn on hold for now.
It is thought that was due to the fact that the winger was keen to focus on regaining his best form for the club, after a somewhat slow start to the season.
Even so, Dolan was said to be keen to stay with the Lancashire club, and as such, this fresh twist could at least provide a different sort of opportunity for Blackburn.
With the winger now set to be out of action for many weeks to come, there is unfortunately, no need for him to focus on getting back to his best form, for quite some time.
So with that no longer an issue for Dolan, there is a case to be made that the contract talks he may have seen as a distraction to his playing form, ought to now be back on the table.
That way, the 21-year-old can ensure that his long-term future is clear and confirmed before he returns to action, which will ensure he can focus all his attention on getting back up to his top level, once he is fit to play again.
For those behind the scenes at Ewood Park too, this would allow them to put to bed something of a long-running saga in the near-future, giving them one less thing to worry about heading into next year’s transfer windows, and ensure they can quickly secure the extended services of a big asset.
With all that in mind, it seems as though this latest blow for Blackburn Rovers, does at least give them the chance to secure what would be a welcome boost, from a long-term perspective.
