This summer will no doubt be a busy one for Blackburn Rovers, as they prepare for another season in the Championship.

Off the pitch, the Ewood Park club look set to be under a new manager for the first time in over five years, with Tony Mowbray looking set to leave the club when his contract expires this summer.

On it, there are also likely to be changes, with several players out of contract at Ewood Park in the summer, and five more set to return to their parent clubs when their loan deals expire this month.

As a result, Blackburn will need to bring in a number of new players to help strengthen their squad, and with finances tight, that could see them also look to bring in free agents to help boost their numbers.

So with that in mind, we've taken a look at three players who are set to be out of contract with their current clubs in the coming weeks, that Blackburn could look to sign this summer.

Nathan Byrne

One position that Blackburn will need to add to this summer is right-back, with Ryan Nyambe one who looks set to depart Ewood Park when his contract expires in the summer.

That could see Rovers focus their attentions on Nathan Byrne, who is out of contract at Derby in the coming weeks, and may potentially be reluctant to extend his stay at Pride Park now they have dropped into League One.

The 29-year-old would bring plenty of useful Championship experience to Ewood Park, and could be an important source of leadership for what is a young Blackburn squad, given how well he has dealt with a challenging situation at Derby in recent times.

Yoann Barbet

Like right-back, centre back is another area where Blackburn could look rather depleted this summer, with Darragh Lenihan out of contract and Jan Paul van Hecke returning to parent club Brighton.

That is even before the concerns over the reliability of the fitness of Daniel Ayala are taken into account, so an extra body in the centre of defence such as QPR's Yoann Barbet, could be well worth considering.

The 28-year-old is another who sees his deal expire this summer, though he still has plenty of time remaining to prove an asset for a club such as Rovers, and having spent the last seven years first with Brentford and then QPR, he certainly knows all about competing in the top half of the Championship.

Josh Laurent

Another position where Blackburn will likely need to strengthen is the centre of midfield, where Joe Rothwell, Bradley Johnson and Jacob Davenport could all be set to move on when their contracts expire.

With that in mind, Josh Laurent could be one worth considering, given his contract at Reading is due to come to an end, with the Royals' current situation meaning it is possible that all of their out of contract players will depart this summer.

Laurent would certainly add a useful controlling presence in the centre of the pitch at Ewood Park, and as Rovers already know well, he is also capable of coming up with a crucial, and often spectacular goal at a key moment in vital games, something that would also be useful for the Lancashire club.