This was the placard a Blackburn Rovers fan was holding aloft at a recent game. You can see where he is coming from. For at least two decades, Blackburn Rovers have been punching above their weight. Jack Walker’s millions helped them to become the only club outside the top group to win a Premier League title, but they have also benefitted from being well run. When top clubs came to Ewood Park they knew they had a game on.
This was the placard a Blackburn Rovers fan was holding aloft at a recent game. You can see where he is coming from. For at least two decades, Blackburn Rovers have been punching above their weight. Jack Walker’s millions helped them to become the only club outside the top group to win a Premier League title, but they have also benefitted from being well run. When top clubs came to Ewood Park they knew they had a game on.
Not any more. Even if Rovers win their game against Bolton Wanderers tonight, they will still be in a relegation struggle. If they lose, it may well be the last game in charge for manager Steve Kean. The front page of the Lancashire Telegraph carried the headline ‘Time To Go Steve’ yesterday.
Indian poultry firm Venky’s acquired the club with the intention of making it a top Premiership club rather than one that was usually in mid-table. That ambition of itself says something about how much they knew about football.
James Ducker, the northern football correspondent of The Times puts it well this morning when he states, ‘a club who boasted one of the most cohesive management structures in the league … have descended into a shambles, on and off the pitch, in the space of 12 months.’
He continues, ‘From inexplicably sacking Sam Allerdyce and installing a novice in his place, to leaning consistently on a succession of agents for advice, Venky’s … have been witless.’ In an accompanying article, Oliver Kay argues, ‘There appears to be no plan with Venky’s, who, having gone into the venture with none of the required knowledge, has lurched from one mistake to another.’
Blackburn’s last recorded wage bill, for the season before last, was £47.6m which represented 96 per cent of turnover. That was not sustainable, but at least then chairman John Williams and Allerdyce had a survival strategy and, although there were some scares along the way, the club pulled it off year after year. Even if Kean goes, as he surely must, it is still going to be a struggle given that it appears that players may have to be sold in the transfer window.