SAM Allardyce fears Real Madrid star Guti won’t wait for Blackburn Rovers after admitting his immediate priority has to be bringing a new striker to Ewood Park.

The Rovers boss revealed yesterday the Spaniard was keen on a move to East Lancashire, having been convinced by former Bernabeu team mate Michel Salgado, but admitted any potential deal had to be put on the backburner.

Allardyce and Guti’s representatives had held discussions over a move to Rovers earlier in the close season but, with available funds limited, any further progress will have to wait until their striker shortage is eased.

With Turkish outfit Galatasaray just one of a number of clubs believed to be interested in signing 33-year-old Guti, Allardyce accepts Rovers could miss out but insists bringing a striker to the club is his pressing concern.

He said: “Guti would be a player we would like to sign there is no doubt about that.

"It has been fronted by Michel Salgado and it has been outstanding that a player like that would like to come to Blackburn.

“But a player in his position is not the priority at the moment.

"One of the stumbling blocks for me is the priority is a frontman and I am not so sure Mr Guti could wait for us to find a front man and see where we go from there.

“But that is the key thing for us to sign a front man and then look elsewhere after that.”