Kasey Palmer’s lack of game-time in pre-season means the Chelsea loanee isn’t ready for the rigours of 90 minutes.

But Rovers boss Tony Mowbray says his new loan signing is working hard behind the scenes to get up to speed as quickly as possible.

Palmer has got two training sessions with his new team-mates under his belt having also worked alone doing extra fitness work.

The 21-year-old will travel with the squad to Ipswich Town for Saturday’s Championship opener, but is unlikely to be among the starting XI having not featured in pre-season.

Palmer, who only started three league matches last season during loan spells with Huddersfield Town and Derby County, didn’t feature for Chelsea despite travelling for their pre-season trip to Australia.

Mowbray said: “It’s not a concern for me, we have to manage his fitness levels back to full fitness so he can play 90 minutes.

“At this minute there’s no chance he can play 90 minutes. A new coach has come into Chelsea and although he’s a young boy around their superstars they have been doing positional play on what he expects from his back four and midfield players.

“That’s a huge change from (Antonio) Conte and his back three so they’ve been doing a lot of standing around, positional play, watching, rather than running around and getting themselves fit.

“The danger for us is that if we were to throw him straight in then he might break down with the physical demands put on him so we will ease him in to our group.

“It’s a long season, there’s no need to think that he’s got to hit the ground running for 90 minutes from day one.”

Jacob Davenport won’t travel with the squad and will have to wait for his debut having been forced off with a hip flexor injury in the pre-season defeat at Accrington Stanley on Saturday.

And attacking midfielder Ben Gladwin, who hasn’t featured throughout pre-season, is another absentee for the trip to Portman Road.

Mowbray added: “Davenport and Gladwin are the only two players that probably won’t be available to travel.

“Davenport has nicked his hip flexor a little bit, Gladwin’s knee has a bit of fluid in it.

“Apart from that we’re all set to go.”