Blackburn Rovers wheels in the transfer market are still yet to reach any motion as players return for pre-season testing.

John Eustace and his staff will welcome the squad back to the Brockhall Senior Training Centre on Friday for testing with pre-season starting on Monday.

There will be no fresh faces to greet the head coach, with Rovers yet to make a senior signing in the transfer window. They are far from alone but it is a contrast from last summer.

On June 21, 12 months ago, Rovers announced the loan addition of Arnor Sigurdsson, their third piece of business. That followed Niall Ennis and Sondre Tronstad, hitting a three-player marker Gregg Broughton had set before June ended. Of course, a six-week period of nothing then followed.

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It's far from panic stations at Rovers. A look around the Championship will show very few deals being completed, with the European Championship further delaying potential business. Nobody has signed more than two players.

The loan market has grown increasingly important to Championship clubs since the pandemic. A major tournament only pushes the planning of Premier League clubs back which then has a knock-on effect.

But Rovers do need to start making some headway to ensure this squad has a chance to gel before the season begins in six weeks' time. 

We all know the importance of pre-season and Eustace would undoubtedly like his players in the building as soon as possible.

Clarity over existing members of his squad would be a good starting point. Is Lewis Travis staying put? Are Tyrhys Dolan and Sam Gallagher signing new deals? What about the Sam Szmodics-sized elephant in the room? Though I suspect the latter will drag on and Rovers, at least, have full control over that situation.

Even deals that should be relatively straightforward, such as re-signing Kyle McFadzean to fresh terms, have been slow-moving. It's unclear whether he will be in attendance on Monday until his new deal, agreed in principle, has been signed.

Rovers' behind-the-scenes restructuring has undoubtedly taken some of the focus away from recruiting new faces. The board clearly felt a branch and root review was necessary and the exits have followed.

The outside view is Rovers have returned to something of a more traditional model. From an all-encompassing Director of Football to one Head of Recruitment and the Head Coach's input.

That is not a bad thing. Both John Park and Eustace are experienced operators, with Chief Executive Steve Waggott likely to lead negotiations. 

It remains to be seen how involved Rudy Gestede will be in transfer dealings. Though now termed Head of Football Operations, his responsibilities bear much resemblance to Broughton's in the Director of Football role.

It's never ideal to restructure your recruitment department during the summer window. Ideally, Rovers would've had their Championship status secured and began plans to replace and refresh their backroom staff before the window began.

The noises I hear from sources and those around the industry suggest Rovers are still finalising their budgets and transfer capabilities. 

Waggott confirmed to Rovers Trust last week that funds had been requested from Venky's for operational costs and to strengthen the squad. It was also stated that Suhail Shaikh wasn't in attendance as he was flying to India to discuss budgets with the owners.

With the players now back for pre-season, you'd like to think Rovers know exactly what they can do, if not exactly who they'll spend it on. This squad needs refreshing; more goal-scorers added and depth added to key positions.

As we started with, there is plenty of time for all that to happen. Players will come and go this summer but it feels like there are a lot of plates spinning at the moment.

Hopefully, the start of pre-season will bring some clarity to the lingering questions still rife in the Rovers squad.