Mentioned just about everywhere recently, fans have asked if a former could return, some I agree with, some I don't, below is a quick list.
Brian Stock - The midfielder joined Rovers initially in 2006 on loan from Preston. He signed the following transfer window for £150,000. Stock was an important part in midfield, and captained the club to a Wembley winning promotion. This attracted a fair bit of interest in Stocky, who was most memorably linked with Wolves for 2.5 Million, however this never happened. Stock made 178 appearances for Rovers before a 2012 move to Burnley.
After 2 seasons at Burnley, following their promotion to the Premiership, he was released and became a free agent. This has led many fans to wonder if a keepmoat return is on the cards, he did return for a charity match, however I do not believe it will go further then this. Brian is now 32, and in my opinion we should be building a younger squad capable of Championship survival. Especially if Wellens stays on, we could have a midfield of pensioners, Richie, Brian and Paul Keegan, which wouldn't be grumbled at for next season, but I doubt they could take us forward the season after.
As for Brian, I think a League 1 club will snap him up, and he will be a great asset, but for Rovers, we should look at other targets.
Paul Green - Ok, I'll admit it, I'd love Greeny back. He fell out of favour at Leeds, after joining from Derby and has been released. He had spent the back end of last season on loan to Ipswich, despite now being 31, that was his first loan spell. Greeny is a Rovers legend making 236 appearances in a spell that saw him joing a conference club's youth team, a stay with them to League 1 promotion. Many fans have said Paul's motor in midfield is exactly what's needed, however the same applies as with Stock, at 31, could we get a few more seasons out of him that we need? Maybe, I'm not sure. But with budget cuts, an no doubt Greeny has been on a decent wage, I imagine he will stay at a Championship club, possibly Ipswich.
Billy Sharp - Unlikely to return, his latest spell was a sad one for all involved, clearly out of match fitness. Where is he off next? Well Blades fans believe he is returning to Bramhall Lane. But I think if he gets fit he could do a job in the Championship as he has proved many times before. Is he returning to Rovers? No, it's very unlikely. We can't afford his wages and based on last season, we need a different type of striker.
Ryan Mason - Still at Spurs, however his contract is up in the summer. He has bags of skill and potential, since his time at Rovers he has spent loan spells with Millwall, Lorent and Swindon, where he scored 5 in 18, a good return for a midfielder, and in League 1. Remember Ryan is only 22, the type of player I believe we should be focusing on, can perform in League 1 and has the potential to progress. Could we afford his wages? I don't know, would he come back? I don't know. But I would welcome him. A good creative midfielder.
Milan lalkovic - Still at Chelsea and still just, unfortunately for him there are players in the first team of Chelsea, his age or younger. Like Ryan Mason, his contract runs out in the summer and looks likely to move. Could we afford his wages? Well he was rumoured to be on a fair wack at Chelsea. His last loan spell was at Walsall, where he was liked by the fans, he scored 6 goals in 38 appearances. Could he come back? It's unlikely, I think Harry Forrester could be a better option.
Bryon Webster - Centre Back never got a good enough chance at Rovers following Darius Henderson's elbow. He looked promising then, and Yeovil seem to of beafed him up and brought out his best. I believe he is still under contract at Yeovil, but following their relegation he has been linked with a number of Championship clubs including Ipswich and Leeds.
Paul Heffernan - Stop It, yes O'Driscoll maybe should of given him more playing time and he might be doing well in Scotland, playing in the SPL, but Heffs isn't what we need right now, people have wanted him back every window since he left.
James O'Connor - Out of Contract in the summer at Derby, been on loan to Bristol City, until injury forced his return to Derby. He has had a lack of football this season, now aged 29 he could be a possible target. I'm unsure about this one, he could be a decent signing.
JET - Former Arsenal prospect, currently playing for Bristol City with still 1 year remaining on his contract. He could be awful and lazy all game and have a moment of brilliance. He has bags of skill, but he work rate was never there. I would take him back, but I believe he would cost too much to take the risk. That said, he has scored 15 in 46 at league 1 level.
James Baxendale - Since leaving Rovers he has proved himself to be a useful player at Walsall, whilst many question why we let him go, unfortunately his position is one we are strong in, with Copps, Cotts, Duffy, Forrester and even Bennett.
El Hadji Diouf - After leaving Rovers he joined Leeds, and like Paul Green has been released. Diouf enjoyed his short spell at Doncaster, and there is doubting his excellence. However, it is unlikely he will return, due to the league and wages, I wouldn't be surprised to see him play in America.
John Lundstram - Still at Everton, although I believe his contract is up in the summer. Since helping Rovers to League 1 victory he has had loan spells at Yeovil Town and Leyton Orient. He could certainly do a job, but I am expecting him to be given another year at Everton, if he is released by Everton, a top end Championship or lower end Premiership club would snap him up for the future.
Fabien Robert - Former loanee at Doncaster, still at Lorent, now 25 with 1 year remaining on his contract. Unlikely to be a target but added to this list anyway.
So sometimes it is better to move on then go back. Players such as Stock who were great players have sadly peaked, and we should be using the drop to League 1 as a chance to bring through younger players. The ideal situation is Dickov puts together a team that can earn Promotion and then keep going in the Championship, with 1 or 2 additions. This cannot be done signing a load of 32 year olds.
Do not get me wrong, we need leaders on the pitch, Rob Jones, Richie Wellens but these should be there to guide younger players.
Thanks for Reading, what are you thoughts? Who would you like to see back?
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