Saints star in Rovers swoop link

Blackburn will reportedly make a £4million bid to try and entice Southampton to part with prolific striker Rickie Lambert.

Rovers boss Steve Kean is desperate to bolster his attacking options at Ewood Park as he attempts to guide the club back to the Premier League at the first attempt following last season's relegation. And, having lost summer signing Leon Best to a long-term cruciate knee ligament injury and his replacement Colin Kazim-Richards limped out of the win against Hull City last Wednesday, the under-fire Scot is looking for further striker reinforcements. That has resulted in reports suggesting that Kean will make an ambitious bid to sign 30-year-old Lambert, who fired the Saints to automatic promotion last term when he bagged 27 Championship goals to take the Golden Boot. It is unlikely that Saints boss Nigel Adkins would sanction the sale of one of his key players, who he reinstated to the starting XI for Saturday's 2-0 home defeat against Wigan after he stepped off the bench to score in their 3-2 opening Premier League defeat at Manchester City a week earlier. If Kean fails to secure Lambert's signature it is thought he will make a loan move for Sunderland's Connor Wickham or Swansea's Luke Moore.