Blackburn future bright, says Kean

Steve Kean has returned from a 12,000-mile round trip to India hoping to mastermind his first win since taking charge of Blackburn Rovers.

Kean, who has been handed the managerial reins until the end of the season by Venky’s, the club’s new owners, could only manage a point in his first game against West Ham last weekend.But he hopes to go one better when Stoke City visit Ewood Park on Boxing Day.

“The chance to go out and meet the new owners was excellent and I was very impressed with their plans for the club,” said the new boss. “They have said there will be money available in the transfer window and we hope to bring in some new faces during the next couple of weeks.

“These are exciting times for the club and the owners are very committed to making this work.”

Kean’s preparations for Sunday are being hampered by injury concerns.Young England defender Phil Jones will be out for at least three months after undergoing a knee operation while a hamstring injury could sideline striker Jason Roberts for up to a month.Want-away defender Chris Samba, who Kean said he hopes to sit down with and persuade to stay at Ewood Park, is an outside chance of playing, while Vince Grella, Steven Nzonzi and Keith Andrews are long term absentees.

“We are thin on the ground, there is no getting away from that,” added Kean. “But we still have a strong pool to pick from and I am confident that we can get a result against Stoke.”