MIDDLESBROUGH have had a setback in their pursuit of Blackburn Rovers striker Jordan Rhodes.

Boro tabled a £12million offer for the Scotland international, but that was rejected by Rovers owners Venky’s, a move which manager Gary Bowyer welcomed yesterday.

"Yes, Middlesbrough have been in touch. I think they've put some figures to our owners," Bowyer told BBC Radio 5 live.

"Fortunately for myself and the rest of the lads, and of course our supporters, that bid has been rejected.”

Boro are believed to be furious by the latest development, where they were led to believe that £12m would secure Rhodes’ services, but Venky’s now want £14m for a player that cost them £8m from Huddersfield Town.

Rovers continue to be subject to a transfer embargo following a breach of Financial Fair Play regulations, but remain determined to drive the best deal for their prize asset.

And, having let Rudy Gestede leave last week, Venky’s feel that they can earn even more money from Rhodes, who has scored 73 goals in his 127 league appearances for Blackburn.

"He's been the subject of speculation in the whole two years I've been in charge and he's always dealt with it very well," Bowyer added.

"He doesn't get affected by it and continues to do his job ever so well."

Middlesbrough are now weighing up their options and deciding whether to put an improved offer or change their focus to another striker, with Crystal Palace forward Dwight Gayle understood to be on their radar.

Gayle, who scored twice against Boro in a 3-2 defeat while at Peterborough in 2013, has found himself down the pecking order at Selhurst Park following Palace’s signings of Connor Wickham and Bakary Sako, and could move to the Championship in a bid to find first-team football. Fulham and QPR are also believed to be interested.

Meanwhile, Boro defender Alex Baptiste has been receiving physio from his old club Blackburn Rovers after the Teessiders allowed the summer signing to return to the North-West to commence his rehab.

Baptiste suffered a double leg fracture 22 minutes into his Boro debut at York City.

Rovers defender Matt Kilgallon said: “Baps has been coming into the training ground to get some physio.

“I’m good mates with Baps, so I’m gutted for him, but he seems positive and he’s a fit lad. He’ll be all right.

“I think he’s looking at about January time to be back. Fingers crossed for him.”

Kilgallon, who spent time on loan at Middlesbrough while on Sunderland’s books in 2010, added: “You don’t really get that, to be honest (former players going back to their old clubs). As soon as he walked in he had a big smile on his face.

“Davo (Dave Fevre) is a good physio as well so I’m sure he’s thinking a bit of physio with him might get him back fit even quicker.”

Boro dipped into the loan market to cover the gap left by Baptiste’s absence, drafting in Tomas Kalas from Chelsea and sealing the loan deal of Jack Stephens from Southampton last week.

And Stephens, who spent last season on loan at Swindon Town, wasted no time in making the decision to come to Teesside.

“It (the move) came about on Thursday and I just had to pack my stuff up and get up here,” he said.

“It was a no brainer for me to come here and hopefully we can have a successful season.

“I’ve played most of my football even further away from home – Plymouth, that’s where I’m from – but it (the distance) wasn’t really an issue for me.

“I just had to think in football terms and this was by far the best move I could’ve got. All of the lads were very welcoming to me and they’ve all said it’s a positive place to be.

“It’s going to be very competitive – there are a lot of players and competition for players but it seems like a good group so we’ll all work together and hopefully get the promotion we want.”

Meanwhile, Burnley manager Sean Dyche has blamed Middlesbrough for pushing up the market in the Championship.

Boro spent £5.5m on Stewart Downing in a bid to gain automatic promotion having failed in their attempts via the play-offs last season, and Dyche told Radio Five Live: “It’s been a tough market, there’s no two ways about it.

“Steve Gibson at Middlesbrough is incredible. His support for that club has been absolutely outstanding.

“Differently at Derby, with someone who was sitting in the background and is now in the foreground in Mel Morris. Very, very wealthy clubs from their backers, let alone what they generate.

Dyche, whose club will pocket £24million in a parachute payment following their relegation from the Premier League in May, added:“The two clubs we mentioned, they’re taking it higher all the time so you go in for a player and guess what, the club use them as a guide and say look what they’re spending so therefore the player that you want from us, we’re just adding another million or so, so it does push the whole level of the market higher.

“Lo and behold, as we’ve come out of that market, a twist of fate means there are people who are so thirsty to get back in there, particularly the two clubs mentioned, they’ve started going, right, we’re going again and throwing even more money at it.

“The market is very, very tough at the minute and there’s a couple of people I’ve spoken to and managers I’ve spoken to and they feel this is as tough as it’s been.”