VENKY’S intend to stand firm in their attempts to keep Jordan Rhodes at Blackburn Rovers – despite the striker publicly saying he wants to talk to Middlesbrough.

Rovers have rejected a bid of around £10m, rising to £12m if Middlesbrough are promoted to the Premier League, but Rhodes yesterday said he was ‘unhappy’ that he has not been given the opportunity to speak to the Teesside club.

Venky’s do not want to sell the 25-year-old to another Championship club and Rovers managing director Derek Shaw insisted that Rhodes’ statement had changed nothing at this stage.

Rovers hope that the Scotland international, who is currently nearing a return from an ankle injury, will accept that he is staying at Ewood Park and continue to show full commitment on the field.

“We’ve received an offer and the owners have turned it down,” Shaw said.

“We have had two or three different bids for Jordan Rhodes while he’s been at the club, but the owners have always turned them down because they want to keep him at Blackburn.

“If anything changes, we’ll let people know.”

There are understood to have been no further talks between Rovers and Middlesbrough since the rejection of the bid.

Rovers signed Rhodes from Huddersfield Town for £8m in 2012 but the striker, who penned a new five-year contract last year, yesterday publicly suggested that he might want to leave for the first time.

“I have been advised by the club that they have rejected an offer from Middlesbrough for my services which was in excess of what Blackburn paid for me,” said Rhodes, who is believed to have made his stance known privately to Rovers before going public.

“I am ambitious and have never hidden my desire to play at the highest level possible and that was one of the reasons why I left Huddersfield Town for Blackburn.

“When I left Huddersfield I felt the timing was right in the next stage of my career and, having seen Middlesbrough’s performances last season in reaching the play-off final and their ambition this summer in terms of acquisitions, I would have liked to have been able to talk to them and I am unhappy at not being given that opportunity.”

Rhodes’ uncle Steve Agnew is the assistant manager at Middlesbrough. Agnew was previously at Hull when Venky’s dug their heels in and rejected offers from the Tigers 11 months ago.

Rovers boss Gary Bowyer spoke to Rhodes yesterday after the striker's statement was released. Rhodes confirmed to Bowyer that the quotes attributed to him were correct.

Bowyer said: "We have this embargo and he feels that Middlesbrough might be stronger contenders than ourselves, but that’s at this stage of the season.

"But whatever offer gets put on the table, it has to meet the owners’ valuation.

"I can only do my job by what the owners tell me and they’ve told me that it was rejected.

"I don’t have a problem with Jordan Rhodes, he doesn’t have a problem with us.

"He’s more than entitled to his opinion, he’s ambitious to play in the Premier League.

"We’ll continue to work with him until he isn’t here. If he is here I’ll be absolutely delighted."

The owners regard Rhodes as their jewel in the crown and fear a backlash from supporters if he was sold, although 69 per cent of voters in a poll on the Lancashire Telegraph website yesterday suggested that the best solution might be to allow the forward to leave.

Rovers do not want Rhodes to join a Championship rival and in any case would want a guaranteed £12m – something that would not happen if Middlesbrough did not go up.

Middlesbrough also want to stagger payments, while Rovers would want as much money as possible up front to help them escape from their transfer embargo.

The club are in a real quandary given their desire to keep their best players but the knowledge that the only way to move a long way towards having the embargo lifted would be to sell Rhodes or fellow striker Rudy Gestede.

Aston Villa were yesterday linked with a £6m bid for Gestede, but Rovers have had no contact from any club for the Benin international in recent days. He is valued at around £8m.

Villa are looking for a replacement for Christian Benteke and there had been suggestions some weeks ago that former Rovers skipper Tim Sherwood could move for Gestede if he lost his star striker to Liverpool.

Villa are looking to sign two forwards and are attempting to seal a deal for Jordan Ayew, but sources in the West Midlands suggest that Tottenham’s Emmanuel Adebayor is their first choice to fill the other berth providing a sensible wage packet can be agreed.

Rovers are increasingly hopeful of fending off competition for South Korea international Kim Bo-Kyung, who has been at the club for talks this week.

It still remains uncertain though whether the club will be able to secure a work permit for the player following the tightening of FA regulations.

Rovers fear that it may be more difficult for them as a Championship club to secure a work permit for Kim than it would be for a top Premier League club to sign a player who does not automatically qualify under the new rules.