Bournemouth intend to recall James Hill from his loan spell at Blackburn Rovers in the January transfer window.

The Lancashire Telegraph can reveal that the Premier League club are keen to bring the young defender back to the South Coast after a spate of injuries in their squad.

The Cherries are without first-choice right-back Max Aarons as well as defenders Lloyd Kelly and Milos Kerkez. As a result, they want to activate a clause that will see Hill's season-long loan end early.

Hill has been a regular in Jon Dahl Tomasson's side since October and this will be a big blow to his squad. The England youth international has made 20 appearances in all competitions, 18 of those coming in the Championship.

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It's understood that the option does not become valid until the second week of January but Rovers are aware of Bournemouth intentions. Hill would be unable to move to another club this season as he's already featured for two teams, Rovers and his parent club.

Bournemouth boss Andoni Iraola has admitted he doesn't expect his side to be busy in the January window despite the issues they have in defence.

“I don’t think in the winter market we are going to see a lot of changes," he said.

"Normally it is not a market where you can sign a lot of players. I suppose and I think some of the players that are not having the minutes they want, they will ask for loans or departures to other places.

“If there are departures, we will have to replace them with other players.
“But I don’t expect as much movement as normally happens in the summer.”

Tomasson has already urged the club to strengthen his options this month, with Crewe Alexandra defender Connor O'Riordan a target. The Lancashire Telegraph reported last week that Rovers have triggered a 500K release clause in his contract, with talks ongoing to finalise the deal.

O'Riordan would be a logical replacement for Hill, though obviously less proven at Championship level. The 20-year-old has predominantly played on the right of a three-man defence and can cover at right-back, as Hill has done throughout his loan.

Leeds United defender Charlie Cresswell has also been linked with a loan move to Ewood Park. The England youth international has dropped to fourth-choice in Daniel Farke's pecking order despite signing a new long-term contract in the summer window.

Cresswell would be a more like-for-like replacement with Hill in terms of pedigree, though it remains to be seen if that deal is feasible. The 21-year-old had an impressive loan spell at Millwall last season, making 28 appearances and scoring twice.