Blackburn Rovers will discover the future of record-breaking youngster Rory Finneran imminently.
The talented youngster became the club's youngest-ever player in January after coming on for the final minutes of Rovers' 5-2 victory over Cambridge United in the FA Cup.
Aged 15 years and 312 days, Finneran wrote himself into the Rovers history books. The club now hope that he will continue his journey with them.
Finneran will make a decision imminently on his future and whether he will sign a professional contract with Rovers. 'Scholars night' is Friday, May 24 and the club will announce this year's 'class of 2024' which Finneran could be a part of.
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Rovers are trying to fend off serious interest in their talented teenager. Newcastle United and other Premier League teams have been touted as potential admirers. Finneran is already starring on the youth international stage and is therefore attracting plenty of attention.
The 16-year-old has been with the club since he was eight and talks have been ongoing with his family for several months to try and strike a deal.
Former Director of Football Gregg Broughton told The Lancashire Telegraph in March that Rovers were doing everything to keep Finneran but the final decision is out of their hands.
"Rory is a really, really good footballer and he has very high potential," he explained.
"He comes from a very good family network. I've had good dialogue with his father over the last six to 12 months.
"When we look at the success of English football and the England team right now, EPPP has invested a lot of money into youth development and allowed clubs to make significant improvements in how they develop talent and coaching in this country.
"It's an area I know very well because I have been working in it heavily over the last 25 years. The downside is any player can leave any club at any time and most clubs have a highly-developed scouting network now. No players are under the radar in British football.
"Rory is already playing up a year for Ireland. He's made his first-team debut and become the youngest-ever player for Blackburn Rovers. We remain hopeful that Rory will be here.
"We are also not naïve that someone could make a life-changing offer to him and his family that he'll have to consider. That's the reality of British football right now."
Rovers are expected to announce a full list of new scholars over the weekend, with each player set to sign a two-year deal. The annual end-of-season Induction Evening takes place on Friday, often hosted at Ewood Park.
Tom Acheson, Max Davies and Nicolas Michalski were all part of the group in 2023 and have made positive impressions since. Joe Boggan signed his first professional deal with Rovers last week.
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