Sam Gallagher admitted he was shocked to learn the extent of his calf injury that ruled him out for six weeks.

The Blackburn Rovers forward came off against Middlesbrough as a precaution, with Rovers winning the game 2-0. Jon Dahl Tomasson was optimistic that they had taken him off in time to avoid a serious injury.

It came as a major shock to Gallagher and the Rovers head coach that the scan came back with bad news. The Rovers striker was out for a minimum of six weeks in what proved to be a major blow.

A month on from that Middlesbrough game and the 28-year-old is working in the gym as he steps up his recovery. Patience is vital with this type of injury as rushing back too soon can lead to a reocurrence of the issue.

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Having been ruled out for six weeks, Gallagher is hopeful of making a return to action at the end of October or early November. He conceded it's been a frustrating period, especially with the team trying to build momentum.

“I’m getting there, slowly but surely," Gallagher told RoversTV. “I’m at the stage where I’m still doing work in the gym to get my body into a better position and getting ready.

“This injury has been especially frustrating because I came off in the game as a precaution because we were winning and we felt it would be best to rest up for the Wednesday game.

“With the adrenaline of the game, I probably didn’t realise the injury was as bad as it was, which was really frustrating, especially at a time where it felt we were getting a bit of momentum after that win against Middlesbrough.

“I’ve had quite a few niggles and I know what the script is when it comes to going for a scan and getting a phone call from Proccy [Andrew Procter, physio], you know it’s not really good news.

“I was shocked to find out how long the injury would keep me out for.

“It’s a tendon injury and you feel better quite quickly, but it’s one of those where you need to give it the respect to heal properly. I’m just looking forward to getting back out there.”

Rovers face Chelsea on November 1 in a fixture Gallagher will be desperate to return for. They then travel to Norwich City at the weekend before Preston North End visit on Friday, November 10, the final fixture before the interntional break.