Souness tipped for Ewood return as club move to fill hot seat
Graeme Souness is firm favourite to replace Paul Ince as Blackburn Rovers' manager. Photo: Clive Mason, Getty Images
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Blackburn Rovers believe they must appoint for the future rather than hire a short-term successor to Paul Ince and though Graeme Souness had not been contacted by the club yesterday, he would appear to be the firm front-runner.
Rovers chairman John Williams appears to have been inclined to give Ince a last roll of the dice against Stoke but having failed to convince his five fellow board members he now has a clearly identified name at the top of his list, with the man who led Rovers back into the Premier League in 2001 appearing to be the strongest contender.
Souness is known to covet the job though the absence of any initial contact from Rovers has left him uncertain of his prospects. It is understood that Williams will begin the recruitment process this morning.
Williams has put Ince's assistants Archie Knox and Ray Mathias in temporary charge but he does not want them to take Rovers into the first of two critical matches against likely fellow-strugglers, with a trip to Sunderland on St Stephen's Day.
There have been suggestions that Souness would work in tandem with Tugay, who would become a player-coach at the club but his representatives indicated yesterday that he has not been made aware of any such proposition.
The other main contender would appear to be Sam Allardyce and though he is on Sunderland's shortlist to replace Roy Keane, the prospect of him receiving word on that position does not appear to be imminent. Sunderland are determined to take their time to explore every possible avenue at home and abroad.
Delay
But despite the delay in the Wearside situation resolving itself and the fact that Williams' resolve to appoint on a three-year basis would be to the liking of Allardyce, who would not want a short-term contract, the former Bolton manager's reputation is not the greatest within boardrooms and there are doubts about whether he is the man for the Rovers job.
Other possible contenders are Dave Jones, the Cardiff City manager, and Owen Coyle, who has been building a strong reputation for himself at Burnley -- though that kind of switch would clearly be hugely controversial.
Both would appear to represent a risk at a time when Rovers have a huge need for the safest option and experience. Also mentioned for the job has been former Charlton and West Ham boss Alan Curbishley.
As often in such situations, Blackburn have been forced into the least bad option, from a fans' perspective.
The prospect of Allardyce succeeding Mark Hughes was deeply unpopular this summer and Souness has a chequered history at Ewood. He appeared to be reaching the point of dismissal when he moved to Newcastle United in 2004, Rovers earning £3.8m compensation into the bargain.
Fate
Ince's fate was sealed when the Blackburn board met on Monday and Ince met his chairman yesterday morning before time was called on his 17-game reign, which dropped the club to 19th in the Premier League, already five points from safety.
Williams said: "We acknowledge that timelines are tight for we are in a very worrying situation concerning our Premier League status. We will endeavour to have a new manager in place for Saturday's game with Stoke City at Ewood Park, but there are no guarantees and we must ensure that we get the right man."
There was a genuine sense of regret in his explanation of this week's events, which followed a plea by the League Managers Association to spare Ince.
"It was a very difficult decision," Williams said. "It is not something we like to do at all. But we have to think first and foremost about the club, and our predicament was worrying -- and we had to make a decision which was in our best interests.
"In the meantime, the day-to-day training will be carried out by Archie Knox, Ray Mathias and Karl Robinson. Our coaching staff and all of the players fully understand the importance of this weekend's game."
Meanwhile, David Bentley has no doubt that his old club will recover from Ince's sacking and retain their Premier League status.
Having left Ewood Park last summer, the 24-year-old said: "I didn't want to leave them only to see them go down.
"I've spoken to a few of the lads there -- and they all want to get out of it.
"They're a great bunch of lads and they've got a real fighting spirit. I fully expect them to get out of it.''
- Ian Herbert and Michael Walker
