[Archived] Steve Kean

[chris]

could end up costing the rao's more money.. without a top name manager.. we'll need to entice PLAYERS with other things.. MONEY.. AND LOTS OF IT!

Well when we appointed Hodgson from Inter Milan look at all the big names he brought in Batistuta, Crespo.... I think not... Valery, Blake and Dailly more like.

A spanish/Italian player wouldn't know the difference between Moyles, Pulis or Kean.

Good managers will find good players somehow and once the team get higher up the league attract bigger stars.

If any club that finishes 15th wants a big star, its going to cost a load of money whoever is in charge.

[chaddyrovers]

could end up costing the rao's more money.. without a top name manager.. we'll need to entice PLAYERS with other things.. MONEY.. AND LOTS OF IT!

I would agree but it's their owners choice.

I am willing to give Kean a chance next season. Like I say he wouldn't be my choice but many fans will have different views who should be manager. Some fans will give him a chance next season and some fans won't but we have to support the team.

[A cup of beans]

I remember Sam saying he would like to sign him, but I'm pretty certain he was never close to signing for us. He was yet another player we chased under Sam who we never had a chance with, ala Jones, Bent, Crouch et al as we just couldn't afford them at the time.

My link

he was in with a chance.. he wouldve come to england instead of hamburg.

we didnt have a chance cos the board wouldnt sanction it.. too risky.. and expensive for half a season.

[BuckyRover]

It's highly unlikely, seeing as he's never got a team relegated, and apart from two seasons after he got Bolton promoted (and the Ince season with us), has never even been involved in a relegation fight.

And Sam picked and chose the games he went out to win? What was he doing in the others? Maybe he was playing for a draw against some of the big teams, but that's fair enough. It's not like he did a Holloway/McCarthy and put out a B team at any point, is it?

Seriously, get over it. Sam is gone and no team with aspirations is going to pick him up.

We've now got a manager who can set up a team to go 3-0 up away from home.

Enjoy it. It's going to be a fun ride. It can't any worse than our worst run ever. He can only improve.

Say it together: "things can only get better".

[A cup of beans]

Well when we appointed Hodgson from Inter Milan look at all the big names he brought in Batistuta, Crespo.... I think not... Valery, Blake and Dailly more like.

A spanish/Italian player wouldn't know the difference between Moyles, Pulis or Kean.

Good managers will find good players somehow and once the team get higher up the league attract bigger stars.

If any club that finishes 15th wants a big star, its going to cost a load of money whoever is in charge.

italian football is different. hodgson had no say in who came in. deals are done with sporting director and the president.

id also like us to look for some hungry young players in the championship etc..

[Majiball]

he was in with a chance.. he wouldve come to england instead of hamburg.

we didnt have a chance cos the board wouldnt sanction it.. too risky.. and expensive for half a season.

but that was always one of my issues under Sam, he always wanted players we couldn't and would never have paid out for. Since we couldn't afford him for me we were never even at the races.

Anyway Kean's been harping on about bringing him here anyway, so we may see him yet although I'd rather we went younger.

[davulsukur]

It's highly unlikely, seeing as he's never got a team relegated, and apart from two seasons after he got Bolton promoted (and the Ince season with us), has never even been involved in a relegation fight.

And Sam picked and chose the games he went out to win? What was he doing in the others? Maybe he was playing for a draw against some of the big teams, but that's fair enough. It's not like he did a Holloway/McCarthy and put out a B team at any point, is it?

Is it? I don't think so, maybe if the game progresses to the point where a draw would be a decent result, but no one should go to a game in order to play for a draw, its a middle finger to the fans. We should be out to try and win every game.

He was trying to "not lose the game"

Yes it was unlikely based on his previous record, but it still could have happened.

[ElTwis]

I am afraid we should wait and see here, maybe there is money, can he attract the right players, do players such as Hoillet, Phil Jones and Samba want to move on if the right opportunity came up? these are the problems Kean faces and I feel that should SAF, Wenger or Kenny came in for any of those players, we would I am sure lose them.

So the money part is easy, its how its spent and without losing the good young players we need to build the team around.

Thats my point, we don't have the manager who can attract players simply because of who he is. Equally, as much as I hate to admit it, playing for Blackburn Rovers will never have the lure of Manchester Utd or Liverpool. As such, all we can do is show the youngsters that regular first team football at our level is better for their career than occasional first team football at a top 4 club. Thats a hard sell but working in our advantage is the way the players appear to be very much a team at Rovers. If thats something Kean has managed to foster (and not being involved with the club, I can't say if that is or isn't directly attributable to him) then he may yet turn out to be successful.

Money wise, the Rao's may not be Abramovich or Mansour rich but they do have money, thats shown by the massive wages they have paid to Santa Cruz. Like it or not, the ability to pay £80,000 a week is essential to get the player of a level capable of pushing us up the table. Thats something that we did not have under the Walker Trust.

[gumboots]

One thing I don't understand in this Allardyce would have done better debate is the frequent assertion that he would have made better use of the transfer funds available in January. The same people often assert that Kean had little choice about the players he brought in and most was done by agents. So presumably Allardyce would have had largely the same restraints placed on him and if he wasn't allowed to sign who he wanted could well have walked halfway through the window leaving us in an even more unstable situation. I didn't want Kean and, if we could be guaranteed a more experienced and previously successful manager I'd gladly let him go, but it looks like we are keeping him, so can we please at least wait and see how he does in the close season, before getting on his back. I know it doesn't suit everyone's ideas to say again that the players think he's a good manager, but apparently they do and are prepared to give him a chance. And there is a big difference between hit and hope ball that we often played under Allardyce and the long ball game which lots of teams play where the ball goes forward early but to some purpose because the runners come from midfield to support forwards.

[Steve Moss]

I'm feeling much better now that the season is over. The worry has been a bit distracting.

Good post as I agree, I am not a kean fan but some credit where it's due

Kean managed 21 games and obtained 22 points. That is all the credit he is due. Not good enough.

Ask yourself these questions before being happy to continue with Kean next season..

Are you confident we will stay up next season with Kean? No.

Do you think Kean has the confidence and respect of the majority of the current squad? I'm not sure.

Are you happy with Keans relationship with the owners? No. From my perspective, it appears far too much like kissing b#tt for my taste.

Do you think Kean will attract or select players that are quality players or have commitment to the club? No.

Has he made a substitution that has affected the game yet? Yes, in a negative sense.

Have our tactics been much different than Allardyces? Not really.

If you were a fan of a club in a simialar position as us would you want us to continue with Kean or employ a more experienced better quality man? If I were a rival? I would want the Rovers to keep Kean.

Can we afford the chauffeur? Yes.

The match was a game of two halves.

As usual.

Whoever it is though there are certain things I think are imperative

1) New Hoillet contract

2) Keep P Jones and Samba

3) Sign J Jones

4) Sign a QUALITY striker

5) Give Rochina and Formica a proper pre-season chance

I agree with each of the above. I would also:

6) Sign a left back

7) Sign a right back

8) Get rid of some of the waste, Grella, etc...

[rovers_rob]

I voted stay because the performances definitely improved recently and the players looked like they were fighting for him. If they didn't respect him I’m sure we would be in the championship now.

No excuses next season though, Kean will have money to spend (hopefully) and a pre season to mould the team into his style of play.

[Guest roverite1991]

I too voted stay on the basis of the last few games. The team seem far more committed to him than they did even to Allardyce. A team that WANTS to play for it's manager is all-important imo. Just have to hope that Kean has learned from his mistakes quickly. One fault he still lacks (even evidenced yesterday) is a planB when his starting tactics are found out.

Other than that, he's (or his results have) actually improved imo.

[grizfoot]

I've gone from Don't Care to Stay, although I'm sure the ending poll will still have "Go" as the winner but not by as big as a majority.

We have improved these last few months after the intial settling in period and I think he's worth keeping on for the new season and see if he can build on our good end to the season.

[ben_the_beast]

I have been coming round to Kean in the last month or so however his statement that we are looking to tie Santa Cruz down to a permanent deal just to me suggests he really doesn't have his head completely screwed on.

Was this form a backs to wall siege mentality or form which will carry on into next season. We are desperate for a proper striker. Roberts has been keeping Cruz out the side of late and rightly so. However much Santa Cruz wants to come back here he is not going to take such a massive pay cut. He will be one of our top earners and using him as one of the focal points for our attack next year will cause us as many problems as an incompetent manager.

Therefore I voted undecided as I literally cannot decide.

[BuckyRover]

I'm very concerned that we might be chasing Roque. He would have to come super cheap with Man City paying a lot of his wages and him being a rotation player for me to happy with it.

He's done nothing. If he's carrying an injury that's understandable but he has to show that he's at least capable of performing.

It's a strange one. I was convinced we would drop our interest in him when the season ended.

[imy9]

I voted "dont care" purely because I think if Venkys fire him for someone better then fine but otherwise there are the usual suspects out there and I think Kean has potential.

Just a side note, our Hughes now has a 32% win record after 43 games at Fulham and Kean has 28% after 25 games, the biggest issue with Kean's record at the moment is not the losses but the number of draws, if we can convert a couple of those into wins then his record will stand up to most decent managers.

Martinez has 26% after 87 games!

[ada2020]

I voted "dont care" purely because I think if Venkys fire him for someone better then fine but otherwise there are the usual suspects out there and I think Kean has potential.

Just a side note, our Hughes now has a 32% win record after 43 games at Fulham and Kean has 28% after 25 games, the biggest issue with Kean's record at the moment is not the losses but the number of draws, if we can convert a couple of those into wins then his record will stand up to most decent managers.

Martinez has 26% after 87 games!

With some decent options from the bench I believe he might do too, the team looks on the up and with a little more strength in depth in the squad we could have a very good season next year.

Then again maybe it was down to the players alone that saw us steer clear of trouble eventually.

I don't think the manager is changing anytime soon either way, like it or lump it.

[thenodrog]

italian football is different. hodgson had no say in who came in. deals are done with sporting director and the president.

Let the scales fall from your eyes. What makes you think it's any different behind the scenes at BRFC these days?

[booth]

I've voted "go" simply because he's not good enough and statistics are against him. I can't be swayed by the fuzzy feeling of staying up as it was his poor management that put us in that position in the first place. I wasn't a Sam fan, but I do believe we wouldn't have gotten into a relegation battle with him in charge.

His naivety in saying he wants to sign Santa Cruz is simply stunning. I can only gather that he's saying that as a backup plan, should his higher profile targets not want to come here for any price. The fact he's said it at all sets alarm bells ringing about his mindset.

Someone mentioned Martinez having a worse record. Big difference. Venky's want to do more than simply stay in the league, which is Wigan's main priority. If we want to have another season struggling along with the likes of Wigan and Wolves then stick with Kean. If we want to move higher up the league we need someone bigger, with a pull in the transfer market.

As I've said all along, Venky's have gotten it arse-upwards. If you aren't one of the super-clubs, you must first get the marquee manager and then you will have a chance of getting the marquee players.

[DavidMailsTightPerm]

As I've said all along, Venky's have gotten it arse-upwards. If you aren't one of the super-clubs, you must first get the marquee manager and then you will have a chance of getting the marquee players.

Though I would have liked to see a bigger name manager - they have always said they want to invest in youth and build a team (to be honest not many have the finances to match City or Chelsea). They have taken a punt on a promising coach who obviously made all the right noises about bringing through youth. To be honest in this otherwise worrying season - the continued development of the youth team players - and emergence of Hoilett as a first team player - has been the main bright spot.

[CaliRoverNYC]

I say stay until there is a good choice to replace him. No reason to do what we did with BFS and fire another manager before his replacement is settled. Especially since most of the players seem to get stuck in for him.

[John]

Considering their collective lack of experience, it would be some story for Kean, Jensen and Brunskill to elevate us to anywhere near the higher reaches of the league table.

Being their ex coach, I do believe most of the players like Kean - however we are also very lucky to have some top, experienced senior professionals which IMO have helped us turn things around (namely: Robinson, Salgado and Nelsen's presence would have been positive even though injured recently).

[Kelbo]

Though I would have liked to see a bigger name manager - they have always said they want to invest in youth and build a team (to be honest not many have the finances to match City or Chelsea). They have taken a punt on a promising coach who obviously made all the right noises about bringing through youth. To be honest in this otherwise worrying season - the continued development of the youth team players - and emergence of Hoilett as a first team player - has been the main bright spot.

Dont give Kean the credit for Youth Development, Phil Cannon is doing just what he did at Everton, producing first team players,

one each season for 15 years at Everton and its no coincidence its happened at Rovers since he joined us!!

[den]

Voted sack for the following reasons.

First and foremost, results plainly not good enough.

He talks absolute garbage. Either he doesn't know what he's talking about, or he tries to kid the fans. I hate that. There are a thousand examples of this

Lack of nous in the transfer market. I doubt that he has the contacts within the game to pick out a target, that's why we saw a January transfer window that was managed by JA - and that's why Kean was appointed in the first place. He was appointed as a yes man and that's what he still is. In my opinion, he had no idea who Formica [the new Batistuta] was, probably didn't know who JJ or Rochina were. He would undoubtedly know about RSC, injuries and all, yet still brought him back, no doubt at a massive cost to the club in wages. He's already said he would like to bring RSC back permanently next season, along with Myles Anderson. That's a great start.

Poor man management. Failing to back EHD against Neil Warnock. A good manager should back his players in public. Failing to have Givet mentally ready for a vital relegation game. Bringing Samba's alleged restlessness into the public eye, as a diversion from the squad's public shock at Kean replacing Big Sam.

Tactically unaware. True, he's got one or two game plans right, but overall his tactics and substitutions have been confusing to say the least. Diamond formations, no-one on the right side against Newcastle and substitutions that have weakened the team, rather than consolidated it - on a regular basis.

I would like to see someone who by reputation alone can attract good players to the club. Ideally, a manager who is respected for what he's achieved in the game, either as a player or as a manager. Dalglish, Hughes and Souness are past examples of how a managers name alone can be a big draw to potential signings.

The fans are against him. All the polls and comments on here or on the LT have said that the guy is very unpopular with rovers fans. One or two might have changed their mind, but he doesn't have anywhere near the support that he needs to take the fans with him. If he's still here, then he's going to need a really good start to the campaign, or the season could be very difficult.

I see no reasons why Kean should be kept on.

How's that for controversial? BTW, rather than attacking me for that, convince me why Steve Kean should be kept on.

[Rover & Out]

The only way we will truly get better as a club and more competitive long-term is if we start from the bottom.

Essentially, it looks like that is what Venkys want to do.

I like Kean in that he is not afraid to put his faith in the younger players (Rochina starting away at Everton, Lowe at Stamford Bridge).

I can potentially see another few developing under him next season.

This excites me more than another one of Big Sam's ageing foreign imports.