The trophy for Blackburn Rovers' Player of the Season award will only end in the hands of one player this season.

There is no disputing that Sam Szmodics has been Rovers' best performer. The EFL have nominated him as one of the top three in the entire Championship which speaks volumes.

But if you took Szmodics out of the equation for a minute, Sondre Tronstad would be right at the top of the list for a place on the podium.

A free transfer from Vitesse Arnhem, the midfielder is one of a few major success stories from Rovers' recruitment in the last 12 months. 

READ MORE: Szmodics gets Rovers endorsement for EFL award

It was not a straightforward integration either. It's easy to forget that after starting against West Brom on the opening day, Tronstad didn't make the line-up again until October, a 4-0 win away at Queens Park Rangers.

A few small niggles aside, he hasn't dropped out since. His recent absence highlighted how important he is to this team with his work off the ball in midfield.

Coming back to England, Tronstad admits he had unfinished business after a very short and unsuccessful spell at Huddersfield Town in 2014.

He has proven that he can play in the Championship, not just to others but himself too.

"It was massive for me, a big reason I came here was to prove everyone wrong," Tronstad said.

"The last time didn't go that well. I wanted to come back here and make a name and prove to everyone I was able to play at this level. I have enjoyed every second, even though it's been hard when you don't win games.

"I'm a player that needs games to perform. I started the first game then I was out for a while. I need game time to improve and become a better player, to fit into the system.

"I think I've grown a lot since I came here. There have been ups and downs, in general, I'm happy with how things have turned out.

"It was a difficult start but to come back into the team and prove I could do it was important for me. I'm a bit proud of myself, to be honest. I always set high standards for myself."

The season has been up and down. A fantastic start had supporters dreaming of the play-offs only for a disastrous winter to have Rovers staring at League One.

Tronstad admits it has been tough for the group without victories but believes the 5-1 thrashing of Sunderland is the shot in the arm they needed.

"I think it was much needed to get that win and to score five goals away from home was huge," he explained.

"I don't actually think we created that much but we were very clinical. We'd have liked a clean sheet as well but in general, it was a great performance.

"We scored great goals, some great combinations, few touches. They couldn't handle us. Lots of positives to take from that game to the weekend.

"It was a massive result. It's obvious how important it was after we've not won for a while. To score five goals too was very important for the offensive players to get that feeling of scoring goals.

"We take it game by game, the win on Monday was so important but we still have work to do. We're using all the positive energy we have to produce the same, it'll be tough to win 5-1 again but we can be solid and perform to win.

"We remember the game (reverse fixture). I might've had three or four touches of the ball. It was a tough game and we want revenge.

"We showed against Ipswich that when we play at our best, we can be not far off the big teams. We go in with belief and energy we can beat them."

"He's great, he has come in with a lot of energy and passion," he added on the arrival and influence of John Eustace.

"He has been very clear about what he wants. It was pretty clear before he came that we conceded too many goals. Now after he's come in, we have been far more solid, we're conceding less goals.

"We have lacked scoring goals but then we had Sunderland which made a huge difference for the confidence of the team. It's been good.

"It's difficult when you don't win games, it was about the whole club and the team. We never focused on the (previous) manager or whose fault it was. We're focused together and want to ensure we find a way out of it.

"That's what we're working on and it's been good to have the international break to work on things. It's massive, we were playing every third day and we had no time on the training pitch.

"It's very important to work together, defensive work, the back four and midfield together. It helped us work on the relationships offensively too."