Rovers' head of recruitment John Park identified Reda Khadra during a pre-season friendly against Rangers with Tony Mowbray’s relationship with Brighton’s technical director helping smooth over negotiations.

Khadra starred off the bench on his Rovers debut against Hull City having agreed a season-long loan switch from the Premier League side.

The 20-year-old signed for the Seagulls from Borussia Dortmund and was handed his Premier League debut against Manchester City in January, only for injury to deny him the opportunity of further game-time.

He did feature in pre-season and caught the eye in a 45 minute cameo against Rangers before Rovers made their move to bring him in on loan.

Khadra was set to sign earlier in the window, only for his switch to be delayed by two weeks because of a minor ankle issue, with the club working to get him fully up to speed.

“Reda’s directness is what I want from him, and that’s why he’s here, really,” Mowbray said.

“John Park brought him to my attention when he went to watch Rangers play Brighton and Hove Albion in pre-season and he said ‘if you want directness and a lad who can run up and down and past any full-back, inside or outside, you should go for him’.

“We got into contact with Brighton and their Technical Director, Dan Ashworth, who I know very well as worked with him at West Brom. He proved pretty helpful to us, both with Reda and Jan Paul van Hecke, who will also hopefully help our team.

“I’m delighted for Reda, but given he’s been suffering from an injury it also means, like Butterworth, he’s short of aerobic capacity. There was a glimpse of his trickery, directness, power and speed and although he’s only a young boy, he’s only going to be a good addition for us.”

Fellow Brighton loanee Jan Paul van Hecke is unlikely to feature before the October international break due to injury.