Tony Mowbray feels Adam Armstrong can become a more regular source of goals for Rovers if he can add ‘scrappy goals’ to his repertoire.

Armstrong arrived on a four-year deal in 2018, for a fee of around £1.75m, after netting nine goals during a productive loan spell as Rovers secured promotion back to the Championship.

He scored the same number last season, but only five in the league, and his penalty in the FA Cup at Birmingham moved him to seven for the campaign, six of which have come in the Championship.

The 22-year-old is the man most likely to take over the goalscoring mantle following the injury to Bradley Dack which will rule the 10-goal top scorer out for the remainder of the season.

Mowbray knows full well of Armstrong’s goalscoring instinct, having scored 20 times while together at Coventry City in the 2016/17 campaign.

The former Newcastle United youngster has operated largely in the wider areas during his time at Ewood Park, but the injury to Dack could free him up for a more central role.

But his position for the remainder of the season could well depend on Rovers’ ability to recruit in the January window, with either a striker, or wide player, eyed this month.

Armstrong has directly been involved in 36 goals during his time at the club, 25 goals and 11 assists, a record only topped by Dack and Danny Graham during the same period.

“I hope he can (become a regular source of goals), and I hope we can also add a goalscorer to our squad as well,” said Mowbray of Armstrong, who first arrived at Rovers on loan two years ago this week.

“Adam is 22, a young player, a fabulous talent who just gets on with it whether I ask him to play on the right wing, on the left, behind the striker, centre forward, he just loves playing football.

“He’s fast, he can travel with the ball, score off both feet, he’s an exciting prospect. He’s only 22 and we don’t want to over-burden him by saying he will score 20 a season.

“I know he’s capable of that because he did it once for me at Coventry.

“He’s a different type to Bradley who is more instinctive, can sniff out chances before it happens and gets in the six yard box to force it in.

“Adam tends to create his goals for himself a bit more, snaffles up chances by being in the right position.

“We hope that’s something Adam will add to his game as he goes on, that anticipation of spotting the spot in between the defenders and sliding in to the six-yard box to put a toe on it, a scrappy goal.

“Adam tends to score good goals, whereas Bradley scores all types of goals, and that’s probably what he needs to add to his game to get the numbers up where Dack could get to.”