Rovers are close to appointing a new head of recruitment as they finalise John Park’s replacement.

Interviews were held with three candidates, with the preferred option understood to have been identified and a deal in the process of being finalised.

Park left his position at the end of last month, once his contract came to an end, leaving Rovers searching for a new head of recruitment for the second successive summer.

The Scot was only in post for a year after replacing Stuart Harvey, who left for Sunderland in April 2021, but opted to follow Tony Mowbray and Mark Venus through the Ewood Park departures door.

Rovers are yet to make a signing since the appointment of Jon Dahl Tomasson, and with director of football Gregg Broughton also only appointed last month, it has left the club playing catch up in their search for new recruits.

The incoming candidate, whose appointment could be announced before the weekend, will have to quickly get to work.

Under Rovers’ new structure, the head of recruitment will work alongside Broughton in a bid to source players for head coach Tomasson who will have final say over deals before their completion.

The Dane has made clear where he feels the squad needs to be strengthened having had chance to assess his squad in his first month in charge.

Rovers are currently away in Scotland, their second training camp of pre-season, and will play their third friendly tomorrow when they face Celtic.

That is where Park made a name for himself with signing such as Virgil van Dijk, working with Mowbray at the Glasgow club, as well as at Hibernian.

The pair reunited at Rovers last summer, with Park arriving just after Rovers had cleared the registration embargo they were working under.

However, when Mowbray left at the end of his contract, Park followed suit, but did see his deal through to its June 30 end date.

Rovers asked Park to see out his contract to provide some continuity during a period where they were searching for a director of football and head coach during a summer of change.

But Rovers stepped up their search for his successor after confirmation he would be leaving the club last month. And his successor could be named exactly 12 months to the day since Park was brought in.

Meanwhile, Rovers have been linked with a move for Liverpool defender Ben Davies, with Tomasson confirming that he is an admirer of the 26-year-old.

Any deal would prove a costly one for Rovers, whether they were to pursue either a loan or permanent deal.

Liverpool would want a significant fee for any loan deal, and the permanent move that Davies is said to be prefer also wouldn't be cheap, with wages also set to be an issue.

However, it is understood that a potential deal isn't dead, despite the expected difficulties.

Reda Khadra has been linked with a return to Rovers on loan, but nothing is currently progressing on that front.

Khadra has held talks with Sheffield United, one of a host of Championship clubs to have enquired about the forward who spent last season at Ewood Park.

Hertha Berlin also want Khadra on a permanent deal, with Anderlecht also linked with the German who hasn’t travelled with Brighton for their pre-season trip to Portugal.

Elsewhere, Rovers are still understood to be keen on a move for Malmo forward Jo Inge Berget.

The Norway international is in talks with the Swedish club about an extension to his contract, but a reunion with Tomasson is understood to be a distinct possibility for the 31-year-old, whose deal expires in November.

Should Malmo facilitate a deal, then a fee in the region of 8m Krona (£600,000) would likely be required

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