Blackburn Rovers snubbed in transfer bid for Aston Villa man | OneFootball

Lamare Bogarde won't be making a temporary switch to Ewood Park

Aston Villa have rejected a loan enquiry from Blackburn Rovers for the services of versatile defender, Lamare Bogarde.

This comes through a fresh update from Lyall Thomas of Sky Sports on the outlet's Live Transfer Blog (12:58) on Thursday afternoon, with it being stated that the West Midlands outfit have no intention of sending the Dutchman out on loan this window.

Blackburn are currently among the cluster of sides looking to cement themselves as play-off contenders in the remaining 18 games of the season, with John Eustace's side currently occupying the final place inside the top six at present after an indifferent run of recent results.

Rovers have made two signings so far this winter, with the additions of Adam Forshaw and Dion Sanderson, but are looking to add further depth and quality whilst operating within their well-documented restricted financial means, despite the recent hefty sales of Sammie Szmodics and Adam Wharton.

Despite continuing to be linked with an abundance of players in varying departments, the East Lancashire side will now have to divert their attention away from Bogarde, who has recently broken into the first-team picture under Unai Emery.

Aston Villa reject Blackburn Rovers loan approach for Lamare Bogarde

The 21-year-old is no stranger to interest from second tier sides at this point, with previous interest coming from the likes of Southampton, Watford and Cardiff City whilst the Dutch youth international enjoyed a fruitful loan spell in League One with Bristol Rovers last term.

After mainly operating as a central midfielder under Matt Taylor, Bogarde returned to Villa Park in the summer and has been used as a utility player on occasions - starting three Premier League games at right-back against Leicester City, Everton and Crystal Palace, as well as playing the full 90 minutes at the heart of defence in the EFL Cup success over Wycombe Wanderers in September.

Bogarde was also a strong performer across a 53-minute cameo against Arsenal in the 2-2 draw on Saturday and featured for four minutes against Monaco in the UEFA Champions League on Tuesday, despite reported interest from Derby County, Swansea City and sides on the continent.

However, in this latest update from the aforementioned Thomas, Blackburn have seen a loan enquiry snubbed by Villa, who have also rejected an approach from Sevilla for the same deal, as the two sides have held talks over Loic Bade's potential move to B6.

Blackburn Rovers must turn their immediate attention to other targets

As previously mentioned, Rovers have to operate as smartly as possible in the window in order to maintain their play-off bid, or risk falling behind their rivals in the weeks to come.

A swoop for Bogarde makes complete sense in that regard, with his ability to cover a range of defensive and midfield positions potentially freeing up another space in the 25-man squad for Eustace to eye up other targets.

The fact that scenario won't play out will no doubt cause mass frustration for the former Birmingham City boss, but all is not lost as they look set to face a battle with local rivals Burnley for the services of LAFC midfielder Lewis O'Brien, who offers plenty of experience and quality at this level through a previous spell with Huddersfield Town - as exclusively revealed by Football League World.