Middlesbrough centre-back Darragh Lenihan has admitted that Blackburn Rovers' failure to get into the play-offs last season played a part in his exit from Ewood Park, speaking to the Yorkshire Post.

Last summer, the defender had a big decision to make on his future with the Irishman finding himself out of contract in Lancashire. And he opted to make the move to the Riverside Stadium to link up with Chris Wilder.

How have Middlesbrough and Blackburn Rovers done this season?

Even though Djed Spence and Marcus Tavernier had been sold, the Teesside outfit were one of the favourites to win automatic promotion before the start of the campaign, but Wilder was sacked during the early stages of October with Boro finding themselves in the bottom three.

Since Michael Carrick's arrival though, they have been flying, finishing in fourth place and giving themselves a great chance to get themselves back to the Premier League.

Michael Carrick Middlesbrough

Blackburn, on the other hand, missed out on the top six because of their goal difference, with a 4-3 away win at Millwall on the final day not enough to guide Jon Dahl Tomasson's side into the promotion mix.

What did Darragh Lenihan say?

Speaking ahead of tomorrow's first leg clash against Coventry City, Lenihan has admitted he moved to Boro because he felt they had a great chance of winning promotion.

He said: "Missing out on the play-offs with Blackburn definitely played a part in me wanting to make the move.

"At that period in time, I just felt ready for a change. I’d spent 11 years at Blackburn, they’re a great club and I’ve got fond memories there, but I just wanted a change.

"I needed to mix it up and it was a real drive to move to a club like Middlesbrough where I felt confident there could be a real promotion push."

Did Darragh Lenihan make the right decision last summer?

It seems as though his decision to move to the Riverside has paid off at this stage and even if it didn't, he probably wouldn't be too disappointed.

After spending so long at Ewood Park, he needed to take himself out of his comfort zone and he has done this by making the switch to Teesside.

You have to wonder whether he will be a regular starter for Boro in the long term though because they have other options at their disposal including Matt Clarke, Dael Fry and Paddy McNair when fit.

All three are good options to have and if Boro win promotion, they could potentially strengthen this department further.

One man who has been linked with a switch to the Riverside this year is Charlie Cresswell. If he did join, he could limit Lenihan's game time.

But this competition could help to maximise the ex-Blackburn man's performance levels too.