Doncaster Rovers now need to fix these 2 issues ASAP after Billy Sharp news | OneFootball

Doncaster Rovers achieved their ultimate goal and returned to Sky Bet League One in the most recent campaign.

Doncaster Rovers achieved their ultimate goal and returned to Sky Bet League One in the most recent campaign.

They hit form at exactly the right time, battling through the final few games of the season to usurp their rivals and sneak into top spot.

After clinching promotion on the penultimate day of the campaign, they added one more victory to clinch the league title in the final game. It was a perfect ending to a season where Grant McCann had set one sole goal from the very outset - winning the League Two crown.

Now, attention is fixed on the summer transfer window with a number of targets, expiring contracts and other business coming into focus. But, there are two issues that stand out for Doncaster to solve before the start of the new season after their most recent announcement.

Doncaster Rovers had to keep Billy Sharp

First and foremost, Doncaster just had to keep hold of Billy Sharp. The 39-year-old was a key sole of goals in Rovers’ promotion-winning campaign, consistently popping up with decisive finishes in games and moments where they mattered the most.

A late goal in a 2-2 draw with promotion rivals Walsall, a memorable last-gasp winner against Fleetwood Town, and a win-sealing finish against Bradford City all stand out now the dust has begun to settle on the successful term.

He scored nine league goals in his return season in South Yorkshire, and helped McCann’s side at each step of the long road through League Two.

The former Sheffield United skipper will pass 40 in the upcoming campaign, and brings no shortage of experience to the Rovers ranks. Losing him, after already losing ex-captain Tom Anderson and the retiring Richard Wood, would have been a major loss, not just in playing ability but in leadership and experience too.

So, the announcement that Sharp had signed a one-year contract extension was a welcome piece of news for Doncaster, confirming one of the important factors in the promotion-winning season remained at the club.

There are other issues to fix, though:

An Olowu and Anderson-shaped defensive hole

The aforementioned duo of Anderson and Wood are among three central defenders leaving Doncaster. The former has sealed a move to Shrewsbury Town, remaining in the fourth tier, while Wood has hung up his boots at the end of an impressive career.

Joseph Olowu is the third of the trio after it was revealed that he would leave the club and not sign a new contract after a four-year spell at the Eco-Power Stadium.

That leaves just Jay McGrath as a recognised senior centre-back on Doncaster’s books, alongside a flurry of academy players and midfielder Owen Bailey - who has seen success as a make-shift defender over recent months.

If there is one position that Rovers must add to, it is in the heart of defence. Doncaster need at least two more central-defenders before the first ball is kicked in the 2025/26 season, with a third not going amiss either.

Whether they be loans or permanents, frees or paid deals, Doncaster simply need defensive reinforcements to return their ranks to a size capable of competing in a long, hard slog of a season.

Teddy Sharman-Lowe and other loanees leave gaps to be filled

The other key issue Doncaster need to resolve this summer is at the opposite end of the pitch.

While a new goalkeeper is needed, with Teddy Sharman-Lowe returning to parent club Chelsea at the end of a stellar loan spell, and the addition of Barrow midfielder Robbie Gotts already sealed, in attacking areas Doncaster have to strengthen.

Lincoln City loanee Rob Street was a shining light for Rovers after his January arrival, netting a dozen goals in 22 appearances. He must be replaced now that he has returned to the Imps ahead of their League One campaign, otherwise Doncaster risk having limited attacking options.

Street was capable in wide areas, as well as his more natural position as a number nine, so a varied and flexible front-man could well be the order of the day for McCann and Rovers as they enter the summer.

There is certainly work to be done for Doncaster to ready themselves for an ever-more competitive League One, with their title-winning promotion back into the third tier no guarantee of plain sailing one step further up the EFL rungs.