, Blackburn Rovers man nearing return after two years on the sidelines

Blackburn Rovers man nearing return after two years on the sidelines

Blackburn Rovers manager Tony Mowbray has said to the Lancashire Telegraph that midfielder Ben Gladwin is closing in on a return to action after two years since playing for the club’s first-team.

It has been around two years since midfielder Ben Gladwin played for the first-team at Blackburn Rovers, and it seemed likely that he would be let go in the summer when his deal at Ewood Park was set to expire.

However, manager Tony Mowbray opted to tie the midfielder down to a new contract, keeping him with the club until the end of 2019.

Now, speaking to the Lancashire Telegraph, Mowbray has said that he is keen to wait and see if Gladwin can impress on his return to action before offering him a new contract. Speaking about the 27-year-old, Mowbray said:

“What I see is the player we signed, 6’3, strong, powerful, plays off both feet, shoots with both feet.

“Yet when is he ready? I’m still in daily conversations with the medical department about him. They are overseeing his transition back in to, not full-time training, but a programme of training sessions. Then he’ll have to play.

“He’s close to having some game-time. That doesn’t mean with the first-team at this moment, but my first thought for Ben is to get him fit and eligible to play football again. If he scores three hat-tricks in his first three appearances for the Under-23s then we might talk about extending it until the end of the season, or he might want to take his chance on the open market. Let’s wait and see.

“We’re not rushing to go and offer him a new three-year deal on the back of the last two years. But I signed him because there’s a lot of talent there. I don’t think he started his career with Blackburn Rovers fantastically well, he found it difficult to make that adjustment.

“I’d seen him playing in League One for Swindon and he was very good, too good for that level. Too big, too strong, too powerful, scoring goals. We’ve obviously moved on and past that level now. Whether he gets that opportunity here again, time will tell.

“I don’t have to sit here and make that decision now. Let’s leave him in his own time to get himself fit. He’s got another six weeks before his contract will expire with us and then we’ll have to make a decision whether we offer him another short-term deal or whether he wants to go in to the market and try and ply his trade.”

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