Blackburn could face a battle to keep hold of Jordan Rhodes with Middlesbrough reportedly weighing up a move for the striker.

The Scotland international has been a revelation at Ewood Park since he joined the club from Huddersfield in 2012 for £8million, scoring 73 goals in 134 Championship appearances for the Lancashire club.

Such consistent form has attracted the attention of Boro, who have already spent big during the transfer window following the acquisition of England international Stewart Downing for £5.5million from West Ham, and the north east club are now believed to be lining up a £12million bid for the Rovers frontman.

It is believed that the Blue and Whites would be willing to discuss the transfer of the 25-year-old if they receive an eight-figure bid from their Championship rivals, who see the forward as being the man to spearhead their push for promotion in the upcoming campaign.

Should the £12million transfer go through then it would make the former Ipswich youngster the most expensive player in Championship history, surpassing the £11million fee Fulham paid Leeds for striker Ross McCormack last summer.

The amount would also be the second highest that Boro have ever paid for a player following their acquisition of Brazilian striker Afonso Alves in 2008.

If Rhodes does complete a switch to the Riverside Stadium then Gary Bowyer’s side will need to quickly fill the void left by last season’s top scorer with the new season set to kick-off in just a few weeks’ time.

Rovers will begin the new campaign with a home match against Wolves and they are slight favourites at 2.38 to secure three points in their opening fixture while Kenny Jackett’s side are available at 3.00 and the draw is on offer at 3.20.