Conspiracy theories and Rovers
With Blackburn Rovers’ non-display against Spurs, has anyone considered the possibility that Steve Kean was sending out an obvious two-fingered message that we have all amazingly ignored? Was he stating his intention of going down with the ship in the hope of remuneration for staying as Venky’s fall guy when the club eventually leaves the Premier League? Has he weighed his chances of another managerial post against a golden P45?
With the crazy “spend now, pay later” ethos of football clubs taking ever bigger financial risks to leapfrog each other, we must eventually come to the fine tipping point of stay and fight or cash-in and flight. Bigger clubs with enormous debts such as Rangers, Leeds, Liverpool and Manchester United, all with a large fan base, will always have a chance of attracting an oligarch in search of a new toy.
However, Portsmouth and now Blackburn are perhaps being identified and stripped by overseas concerns promising much but offering nothing. Meanwhile, Venky’s have made a combined £30 million by selling Phil Jones and Christopher Samba and will hive off a few more after the drop. Add to this a nice little earner in the shape of a four-year £48 million relegation parachute from the Premier; all that is left to find out is if Tesco is interested in redeveloping the ground as a new shop.
Any other club in Blackburn’s situation would long ago have played the manager-go-round card in an attempt to appease the fans but Venky’s have kept Kean in the job, despite the fans’ obvious disapproval, while sacrificing CEO Paul Hunt. They will state Kean’s generous contract as an incentive for keeping him on but, like all conspiracy theories, it is another piece of the jigsaw that makes for an interesting whole picture. Let’s hope it is wide of the mark.
When Kean does leave the Rovers his career in football is dead. He will never manage a club at any senior level again. Scots Div 3 at best. ( And I don’t mean Rangers).
I can see Blackburn struggling next season as Aston Villa have done this season. If you continue to ignore the fans as they continue to do, then the attendances will dwindle, income will dwindle and the wins against Manchester United and co will become a distant memory.
I dont know much about Indian businesses but i do know this. Blackburn wont be back in the Premier League anytime soon.
I understand the comments about something being not quiet right , however you have to take into consideration the “Indian Culture” , where 100% loyalty is paramount, because each employee in key roles is considered as an extension to the family.
So whilst everyone has wanted Kean’s head on a platter, because he has unequivocally backed them and zero criticism, they will back him no matter what!
Also the bottom line is that, in terms of a return on their investment, having sold already a number of players ( it would interesting to find out exactly how much they have received to date outside Jones and Samba, it must be close to £40m+), with the balloon payment coming through , more sale of future young talent, they feel is perfect harmony, a manager who is part of inner family circle plus a business (Blackburn being viewed as such) making money!
Also they are convinced that Kean will bring them right back, beating teams like Man United and Liverpool as well as Arsenal carries huge weight in India, since those are the teams Indian Fans treat like Gods!
That’s an interesting comment. I have never thought of it from a cultural perspective. But are you saying that absolutely no Indian businessman would not be pursuaded into a Western stance and sack the manager? After all, loyalty is one thing and results another.
Also, I am not a great believer in the manager-go-round ethos of British football and greatly admire a club that gives a manager time to balance his team etc. Man Utd, Everton, Arsenal spring to mind. This is all very well if the man is GOOD at his job.
With Keane, well ok, he is hardworking etc etc but has proved to be not very good at the job! Also, he will have to be loyal to B Rovers as no other clubs will now touch him with a bargepole.
I have to agree with that, something doesnt add up at Rovers. I dont think it is the case that we have all missed it, I think people in football and probably the Rovers fans now realise that their club is under siege. They are playing a few youngsters in the hope of blooding another Phil Jones which they may very well do. It could take Rovers years to recover from this if something isnt done now but as TSF Pundit says, he signed a 4 year deal while in the process of getting relegated and has survived the most intense calls for his sacking from the fans that I have ever seen, its difficult to see what he has to do in order to lose his job, all of which points to a collaboration of some kind with the owners.
There is definitely something that doesn’t look right. At any other club he would have been gone a long time ago but instead he recently signed a new contract. He takes everything on his shoulders and never deflects to the owners.
He is basically a manager who is getting paid to do as he is told behind the scenes, to mention nothing negative about the Venkys and basically be a spy in the camp for them. For that he gets paid handsomely.