BLACKBURN Rovers have launched an official bid to sign Norwegian winger Morten Gamst Pedersen.

I can reveal that Rovers have now made a formal offer for the highly-rated 22-year-old but their attempts to sign him may yet be scuppered by his club-side, Tromso.

As I understand it, Rovers boss Graeme Souness has made a bid of around £1.5 million for the Norwegian international.

But although Tromso have indicated they may be prepared to sell, they want to hang onto Pedersen until the end of the Norwegian season, which won't finish until late October.

That kind of arrangement would not be acceptable to Rovers because they want a left-sided player in place for the start of their next Premiership campaign, which begins in mid-August.

So Tromso, who are currently top of the Norwegian League, now face a tricky dilemma as they ponder whether to cash in on their main asset or keep him to spearhead a genuine push for the title.

In the meantime, Rovers have denied reports claiming they have made a formal approach to sign Celtic legend Henrik Larsson.

Sources have claimed Larsson turned down a free transfer move to Rovers because he wants to head for sunnier climes.

But Rovers' chief executive, John Williams, insists the club were never serious contenders for his signature.

"I'm sure lots of clubs would like to sign Henrik but we've never made a formal approach."

In the meantime, Rovers have also denied reports linking them with Republic of Ireland defender Gary Breen and Valerenga's Daniel Friedheim Holm.

Elsewhere, Rovers' Academy rounded off another impressive season by winning a prestigious youth tournament at Altstatten in Switzerland at the weekend.

The Under 19 competition featured teams from all over the world and Rob Kelly's young side didn't lose a game on their way to lifting the coveted trophy.

In the group stages, Rovers were involved in 1-1 draws with both Saint Gallen and Ghana champions FC Nania.

They also drew 1-1 with FC America Belo Horizonte from Brazil in their final group game but went through 4-2 on penalties.

That set up a semi-final meeting with Boca Juniors and Rovers enjoyed a terrific 2-1 victory thanks to goals from Matt Derbyshire and Keith Barker.

In the final, Rovers met FC Nania again and after Rafael Devita scored in another 1-1 draw, they went on to win 4-3 in a thrilling penalty shootout.