Rovers’ hopes of landing Taylor Harwood-Bellis on a second loan deal are over as he prepares to join up with Manchester City legend Vincent Kompany at Anderlecht.

The teenager has undergone a medical at the Belgian club where he is set to sign a season-long deal after City granted him permission to spend a full year away from the Etihad.

That will be under the watchful eye of Kompany who guided the club to third in the Belgian top flight in his first year in charge.

Harwood-Bellis impressed in his 19-game stay at Ewood Park and that had led to the prospect of a return this season after complimentary comments from the teenager about his time at the club.

The 19-year-old is highly-rated at City, contracted until 2024, but with a regular spot in Pep Guardiola’s side unlikely, they have granted him his wish of playing senior football, with Anderlecht his expected destination.

He was one of five loanees signed by Rovers last season, and second in January, with the club also recruiting Everton’s Jarrad Branthwaite who partnered Harwood-Bellis on three occasions last term during his 10 appearances, his stay cut short by injury.

For Rovers, they will welcome back Hayden Carter from an impressive spell at Burton Albion, and his performances in pre-season could well dictate Rovers’ transfer plans.

Darragh Lenihan will be the mainstay yet again, with Rovers hoping Daniel Ayala can play a much more significant part next season after being restricted to just 10 games in an injury hit debut year after joining as a free agent.

Derrick Williams was sold to LA Galaxy in March, meaning Scott Wharton is the other senior central defensive option on the club’s books, but he is currently battling back from a ruptured Achilles sustained at Brentford in December which is set to sideline him for much of the remainder of the year.

Rovers will consider another central defensive signing with Wharton sidelined, Ayala’s previous injury issues and the possibility of Carter getting another loan move under his belt.

As for Rovers and City, their relationship has blossomed following the signings of Harwood-Bellis and Tosin Adarabioyo in 2019/20, the defender being a regular for Mowbray’s side before later signing for Fulham on a permanent deal.

With Rovers having worked closely with the City loan bosses, that could lead to the prospect of more loan signings, Jayden Braaf a previous target, while the Premier League champions will have plenty of interest in their current crop of Academy stars, with Cole Palmer, James McAtee and Liam Delap all starring in their Premier League 2 title win, with Harvey Rogers also set to be available after spending last season with Lincoln City.

City have emerged as one of the powerhouses of Academy football, yet Rovers ran them closely for much of the Premier League 2 season, before falling away in their final three fixtures.

Enzo Maresca was particularly complimentary about Rovers’ display in their meeting at City, a game which ended 1-1, and with loan players a route Rovers could well look to go down next season, a strong relationship with the Premier League champions isn’t a bad one to call upon.

Equally, Jacob Davenport signed for Rovers from City in 2018, and will be looking for more of an influence next season.