Kean promises exciting times ahead at crisis hit Blackburn
BLACKBURN’S season sank deeper into farce yesterday when under-fire manager Steve Kean insisted “exciting times” lay ahead for the club, whose relegation has been compounded by internal fighting.
Kean also insisted his future at Ewood Park was safe, despite failing to safeguard their Premier League status, and issued a robust defence of Venky’s, saying the Indian poultry company was “100 per cent” the right owner.
His words followed the sacking of deputy chief executive Paul Hunt, hours after a leaked letter emerged in which he urged Venky’s to inject more cash and sack Kean, whom he said had lost the dressing room.
Monday’s 1-0 defeat at home to Wigan confirmed the end of Blackburn’s 11-year stay in the top flight, with one game remaining, fuelling long-standing supporter unrest at the Lancashire outfit’s decline.
“Moving forwards it is going to be an exciting time for the club,” said Kean, who was promoted to manager in December 2010, just weeks after Venky’s took over in a £23m deal.
“We have taken a massive backward step but we have to look forward and make sure we can get back at the first time of asking. The owners are not going anywhere, I’m not going anywhere.
“It is very simple. The owners are here for the long term, I am here for the long term. I said a number of weeks ago, it is a changing time for the club. We have new owners and I still think I am new into the job.”
Hunt’s leaked letter to Venky’s, written six months ago, alleged that Kean had lost his squad’s faith, but the manager said: “I think the way the team has performed in every game has shown the dressing room is very tight.”
Former Leicester and Wigan director Hunt, the club’s most senior official since chairman John Williams departed a year ago, raised concerns about Kean and the threat of administration in December.
He wrote: “We are losing fans/customers at an alarming rate. I am very concerned that fans are voting with their feet and not attending, not purchasing and not engaging with the club.”
Of Kean he added: “He has lost the crowd and the dressing room. The players no longer want to play for him. It is a shame and disappointing but we must act now to save the club.”
Relegation is set to cost Blackburn an estimated £25m and is expected to prompt the departure of several key players, with forward Junior Hoilett among those tipped to depart in the summer.
Rovers lie 19th, six points from safety, and visit Chelsea in their final fixture on Sunday.