Following reports that Middlesbrough have had a £4.5 million bid rejected for Brentford star Jota, the west London club could be forced into making some important decisions in the coming weeks.

Throughout the summer, it was stressed by both the club and player that a move to a rival Championship side would not materialise, and the Spaniard would only depart Griffin Park if an offer that met the club’s valuation came in from a Premier League side.

However, if say, Middlesbrough were to up their offer closer to the £10 million region, or Leeds boss Thomas Christiansen decided to spend a similar chunk of the Chris Wood money on the impressive playmaker, could Brentford really turn the the offer down?

It would be a hammer blow to Bees fans if Jota did indeed move to a Championship club having seemingly promised that he would only leave for the top flight, but a bid finally materialising from a Championship side could change this stance.

Brentford have always been a club forced to sell due to the infrastructure currently at their disposal at Griffin Park, but things are set to change when they move into their Lionel Road stadium in the next few years.

A bigger arena with enhanced commercial opportunities will provide the Bees the opportunity to begin to compete financially with the big spenders of the league, and although Brentford have bridged the gap in recent years, they are not quite there yet.

Fans were devastated to lose Andre Gray for a fee in the region of £9 million, although further money has materialised due to add ons being met, and Scott Hogan left for Aston Villa for a similar fee earlier this year.

Selling to Championship rivals has not come back to haunt the Bees just yet, and there is no reason why cashing in on Jota, who has just a year remaining on his current deal, will be an exception.

Brentford spend large cash injections wisely to improve their squad, and will do so again with any money collected from Jota’s sale.

It will be disappointing to see the beloved Spaniard depart for a Championship rival in the coming weeks, but Brentford will come back stronger, as they always do when their star players are poached by rival clubs.

What do you think, Bees fans? Disappointing, but not a disaster for the right fee?