After three weeks of searching for a replacement for David Bentley, Paul Ince looks to have identified his target, and plans to submit a cheeky £9.5m bid for a Spanish winger. [Read the rest of this entry »]

Paul Ince has signalled his intention to retain the services of the best players in the Blackburn squad, despite [Read the rest of this entry »]

Have Blackburn taken a risk by deciding to appoint Paul Ince as their new manager? [Read the rest of this entry »]

Will Steve McClaren, Paul Ince and Sam Allardyce be overtaken on the line by this dark horse, finishing fast on the rails? [Read the rest of this entry »]

Blackburn chairman John Williams reckons a new managerial appointment should be made at the end of the week, and it’s looking like one of two candidates at the moment. [Read the rest of this entry »]

First Mark Hughes walked out of the door to join Manchester City, and now Rovers will have to brace themselves for another significant departure. [Read the rest of this entry »]

Who will replace Mark Hughes as Blackburn manager? [Read the rest of this entry »]

Will Steve McClaren be making a return to Premier League management? He’s well and truly thrown his hat into the ring as far as the vacant Blackburn manager’s role is concerned, with Mark Hughes having recently jumped ship to Manchester City.

The BBC report that the man chiefly responsible for England’s failure to make Euro 2008 could well be on the Blackburn shortlist, although will Rovers take a chance on the man that fared reasonably well with Middlesbrough, but flopped badly with the national team?

“Of course that would interest me,” McClaren told BBC Radio 5 Live when asked about the vacancy at Ewood Park.

“Unfortunately what happened with England was a huge failure but I want to get back into management.”

McClaren was recently linked with FC Twente, a Dutch club who have qualified for the Champions League. It’s questionable whether the powers-that-be at Ewood Park are prepared to take a punt on this guy, especially as it could be a tough season after the departure of Hughes and potentially the likes of Santa Cruz and Bentley also leaving.

The Daily Mirror report that Mark Hughes is looking forward to the challenge of making Manchester City a force to be reckoned with. However, the former Blackburn Rovers manager has hinted that he could instead have been in the hotseat at Old Trafford, if Sir Alex Ferguson hadn’t decided to take longer than Tony Blair to step down from office.

The Welshman was a Man United hero during his playing days, winning a stack of silverware with the Red Devils. He’s regularly been linked with potentially replacing Fergie at Old Trafford, although Sparky knows that time waits for no man.

“I can’t wait around for opportunities which may be one, two, five, 10 years down the line,” said Hughes.

“When opportunities present themselves, you have to take them. If you don’t, you then regret them for the rest of your life.

“This opportunity is perfect for me. It’s the right club at the right stage in their development to go forward.

“People will inevitably talk about my United connections, but I have played at other clubs. I’ve got Chelsea connections and connections at all the clubs I’ve played at.

Even if Hughes had badly wanted to manage United, there was no guarantee that he would have become Ferguson’s replacement. Indeed, it’s perfectly natural to assume that he got wind that Carlos Queiroz was being lined up as the new Red Devils manager, thus forcing Hughes’ hand and nudging him into the direction of Man City instead.

The problem with losing Cristiano Ronaldo is that he’s impossible to replace. Nobody is going to score 41 goals for Manchester United next season, not even 31 and maybe not even 21. More firepower will almost certainly be needed if the Red Devils are going to win even the Carling Cup and that’s where Roque Santa Cruz might come in.

The Daily Telegraph report that the Red Devils have declared an interest in last season’s Premier League best bargain, although they may face some stiff competition from Man City, especially as money appears to be no object at Eastlands these days. The Blackburn striker reveals that United are keen for him to strut some of his goalscoring stuff at Old Trafford, could this go some way to making up for their bad news this week?

The 26-year-old said: “The interest from United is real. But I’m busy now so my representatives will handle anything if there is a concrete offer.”

And what about Blackburn Rovers? Losing Mark Hughes is a bad thing and losing their star striker would be pretty shocking too. David Bentley is rumoured to want a move after shunning a new contract, while you can imagine Benni McCarthy is taking one look at this situation and thinking that he also wants out.

However, surely Man United fans would be delighted to see RSC in a United shirt?

It’s clear that 9th-place won’t be good enough for Thaksin Shinawatra next season – Sven-Goran Eriksson found that to his cost. Quite simply, Mark Hughes knows he’s under pressure from the loveable ex-Thai prime minister, despite the latter speaking so highly of the Welshman after his appointment. Will Sparky deliver the goods? According to the BBC website, he’s certainly in a determined mood after taking over the reigns at Eastlands:

“The ambition of the club is to challenge at the top table – not only in this country but in Europe,” said ex-Manchester United striker Hughes.

“If we get the right players in right positions it is more than realistic.”

“If I’m successful here I don’t need any stepping stones,” said the 44-year-old.

Although Hughes has previously managed Wales in addition to Blackburn, he’s inexperienced as far as European club management is concerned, faring pretty poorly with Rovers on the occasions they have made it into the UEFA Cup. It will be interesting to see which new faces he brings in, and whether he can persuade the likes of Richard Dunne to stay.

Surely City can’t break into the top four anytime soon can they?

There’s a pattern emerging here. Jose Mourinho leaves Chelsea, waits in the wilderness for a bit, then signs up for Inter. All of a sudden, speculation is rife that Lampard, Drogba, Essien, Cole, Terry and Cech (but not Sheva) could all be joining the arrogant loudmouth at his new club. Next thing, Mark Hughes is given permission to speak with Manchester City and, wait for it, the Daily Mirror put 2 + 2 together to come up with the below:

Once Hughes is installed as City boss, one of his first acts will be to try to persuade England midfielder Bentley and prolific goal-scorer Santa Cruz to move with him.

City tried to sign Santa Cruz last summer but were beaten to his capture by Blackburn, while £10m-rated Bentley has emerged as one of the country’s most impressive midfield talents.

Ten out of ten for predictability guys. Although it would be ironic if Hughes was to snare Bentley, especially as he has made recent utterances regarding the winger needing to honour his contract and be loyal to the club! If I were a Blackburn fan, I would be concerned by the news that Hughes is leaving and even more so if Rovers’ two best players jump off a potentially sinking ship.

As Arsene Wenger continues to be linked with all and sundry, another name has been added to the growing list of players who may well smash the Gunners’ transfer record. Here is the latest…

£15m rated Blackburn striker Roque Santa Cruz has emerged as a potential target for Arsene Wenger should Arsenal lose Emmanuel Adebayor to Barcelona during the summer transfer window. (Telegraph)

I think it would be fair to say that the Paraguayan could lay claim to being the bargain buy of last season and, whilst Mark Hughes will be desperate to hold on to his man, will he be able to convince the former Bayern Munich forward that Blackburn Rovers are the best bet? Santa Cruz has appeared to try and distance himself from these Rumours, which runs contrary to the behaviour of some of his Ewood Park colleagues (naming no names….David Bentley).

Do Rovers fans think they will be able to keep Roque? Do Arsenal fans rate him highly?