Blackburn Rovers have made attempt by striking another double Leeds United transfer deal
Joe Gelhardt and Charlie Cresswell are wanted at Ewood Park, but Rovers could struggle to land the United pair
Despite having the Championship’s top scorer in the form of Sammie Szmodics, Rovers aren’t enjoying life in the second tier of English football this season as they currently sit in 17th position.
Jon Dahl Tomasson’s side have failed to win in their last five league matches, with four of those being defeats, and that has been the catalyst for the slide down the standings – despite a lack of finances at Ewood Park though due to budget cutbacks in the summer, Rovers director of football Gregg Broughton is doing his best to strengthen the squad in the January transfer window.
Captain Lewis Travis has been loaned out to promotion-chasing Ipswich Town, but two new faces have already arrived on loan in the form of Brighton midfielder Yasin Ayari and Aston Villa left-back Ben Chrisene, who are two youngsters that should bolster competition for places.
More will be needed though to try and push Rovers up the table in the second half of the season, and even though it is experience they need, it is younger players they continue to be linked with.
Blackburn pursuing double Leeds United deal for Gelhardt and Cresswell
Rovers are hoping to close out a transfer for Crewe Alexandra centre-back Connor O’Riordan in the near future, with haggling ongoing in regards to the payment structure over a deal for the young defender, but Blackburn are also looking to raid a Championship rival in the form of Leeds United.
According to a report from The Sun’s Alan Nixon via his Patreon account, Blackburn are now chasing a double deal for Whites duo Charlie Cresswell and Joe Gelhardt.
Both players are out of favour under Daniel Farke right now, having appeared in just 10 Championship matches this season between them, with Cresswell’s last league outing being in October and Gelhardt recieving his first cameo in three months against Coventry City in mid-December.
Verstile forward Gelhardt has been on the fringes of Leeds’ starting 11 for a couple of years now, whilst centre-back Cresswell spent the 2022-23 season on loan at Millwall, where he played 28 times and scored four goals.
Nixon reports that if Blackburn are going to lodge official offers for the pair, then they are going to have to offer close to the duo’s full salary in order for Leeds to accept, but they want to offer Cresswell and Gelhardt first-team football after their struggles in the first half of the campaign.
If Cresswell and Gelhardt are not going to get game-time this season at Leeds, then the best thing for their development would be loan moves elsewhere.
And Leeds could play this tactically by sending them to somewhere like Blackburn, who barring a significant upturn in form for the next few months won’t be promotion rivals.
The pair would obviously not be able to play against Leeds at Elland Road in April, but they’d be able to face off against United’s main contenders for the top two, including Ipswich and Southampton and potentially help to take points off them.
