Kean: Blackburn can be top five

Blackburn Rovers caretaker boss Steve Kean believes a fit squad and five million pounds are all he needs for a top five finish this season.

Kean, who is expected to remain in charge of Rovers until the season’s end after the sacking of former boss Sam Allardyce, has been promised five million pounds to spend in the January transfer window by Blackburn’s new owners, the Venky’s Group.

The transfer kitty will allow Kean to stake his claim for the job on a full-time basis, and the caretaker boss has wasted no time in insisting he can lead the Premier League club to a better result than last term’s 10th-place finish under Allardyce.

“If we have a full squad and five million (pounds), I am confident we could finish above 10th,” Kean told The Times.

“But we need to sit down and see how the five million breaks down. I do not know if it is just five million on salaries and fees or just fees.”

“First and foremost we need to know what the budget is for January.”

“Hopefully I can give input because I’ve been working with (the players) very closely and we know the academy group under that. I know everybody at the club.”

“Can we finish in the top five only spending five million? It is fair comment if everyone is fit. That has slightly changed because we have a few injuries.”

However, it appears likely Kean will have a larger sum at his disposal than originally thought, with Venky’s chairwoman Anuradha Desai claiming the caretaker would have even more funds to work with and would have full control over any transfers.

“Steve will still be doing the job in January,” Desai told the Lancashire Evening Telegraph.

“He will have control over the signings in January and, although he will have to discuss things with the board, he will have the final say.”

“There is more than five million available to him. I would rather not say how much, I will say that when the time is right, but I can say there will be a lot more than five million.”

Blackburn are 12th on the league table with 22 points, the same amount as Newcastle United in eighth.