Tony Mowbray admits his budget never changed and that deadline day moves for Ben Brereton and Luke Freeman weren’t their only multi-million pound bids made throughout the window.

Mowbray revealed Rovers missed out on a player, understood to be from a Premier League club, earlier in the window to another Championship club because of the wages offered, having been willing to match the £4m fee.

Rovers brought in Adam Armstrong for £1.75m on Monday from Newcastle United and saw deadline day bids of £4m and more than £5m for Freeman and Brereton rejected by QPR and Nottingham Forest respectively.

The Rovers boss is taking a long-term view of his Ewood Park project, believing it will take three or four transfer windows to shape his squad.

“It was always the same,” Mowbray said of his budget.

“The budget was agreed when I went over to India in the summer and the budget has always been the budget.

“We spend it when the right players come along.

“We have talked about the transfer window, the World Cup being on and the difficulty of trying to find the right players.

“We identified lots of players, some of the initial stuff we tried to do fell away and we moved on to other things.

“The two bids that became pretty public weren’t the only bids. We tried to spend up to £4m on a footballer earlier in the window who went somewhere else, basically because we couldn’t afford the salary this player was wanting.

“I think he got an amazing salary at another club. I don’t fall out with people, I say ‘good luck, if you can find that somewhere else and if you feel that is the right move for your career then good luck’.

“My frustration was that we couldn’t add some permanent players for the next four or five years who I feel have better quality than we have at the moment and could have helped the group improve and get better.

“They would have to first and foremost, whatever they cost, try and get in this team with the work ethic this team have got.

“Sometimes players have to adjust their settings of how hard they work. We will try hard in this loan window to try and improve the group and I’m sure if we’re doing okay then that funding will still be there for the next window.

“I do feel as though this is a three or four window project where if Blackburn Rovers are to get back to the Premier League then we have to gradually add some qualities.

“With due respect to Joe Rothwell and Jacob Davenport, they are a few hundred grand who will develop in to top players I’m sure.

“But we tried to add some more ready players that would help us be at the top end of the table.”

Mowbray was disappointed he wasn’t able to add to the three permanent signings made before the window closed on Thursday.

But he is eyeing up the loan market to further strengthen his squad who have begun with back-to-back draws against Ipswich Town and Millwall.  

“I like to try and build clubs, I like to try and add our own players if we can and they might be young players as Davenport and Rothwell are who we have added to the group, “Mowbray added.

“They will develop and get better.

“We tried to add a little bit more Championship quality and experience during the week, it didn’t quite happen for us.

“But the loan market is still open.

“It’s just frustrating that we had the opportunity to spend some money to try and improve this club long-term for the next four or five years, we missed the opportunity, it didn’t quite happen.

“But this short-termism of loans we will try and add some players who will excite the fans and help the team as we go on as when injuries and suspensions come, as the team will have to push harder than last year, some bodies will break down as we go on, we need to have some experience and quality waiting in the wings to make sure we don’t fall off the pace.”