Legal battles, absentee owners, budget cuts, prized assets sacrificed, and a manager abandoning ship.
It has been a turbulent few weeks at Blackburn Rovers, with the former Premier League winners now fighting to avoid another relegation to League One.
Under the huge investment of Jack Walker, Kenny Dalglish’s team reached the top flight in 1992 and were English champions three years later. The contrast with the current owners, Venky, could not be greater.
Rovers languish five points above the Championship relegation zone, with boss Jon Dahl Tomasson recently leaving and local star Adam Wharton sold to Crystal Palace.
This against a backdrop of financial problems with Venky’s (the poultry giants that bought Blackburn in 2010) embroiled in a legal battle over an alleged foreign exchange law violation.
New Blackburn manager John Eustace faces a difficult task to improve the club’s fortunes
Sam Gallagher scored for Blackburn in a 2-2 draw against Coventry on Saturday.
However, in November, a Delhi High Court ruling allowed £11.5 million to be transferred to help fund the club. Venky’s had hoped to provide another cash injection in January, but the High Court adjourned the hearing until March 12. More than 5,500 Blackburn fans packed the away stadium in Preston on Saturday and familiar chants of “we want Venky’s out” were raised.
Ian Herbert, of Rovers fansite BRFCS.com and 4,000 Holes podcast, told Mail Sport: “Last summer, Jon Dahl Tomasson suddenly saw his budget reduced. This came as Indian tax laws changed and Venky They were told they could not send money to the UK without a court order.
‘The court hearing scheduled for January meant that Rovers has not received the usual injection of working capital from Venky’s. Adam Wharton went to Crystal Palace for £22 million and the fear is that the money will simply be used to top up the club’s bank account and not be reinvested in the team.
“Thomas Kaminski went to Luton last summer so the quality of the team seems like a death by a thousand cuts.
‘The Venkys have rarely contacted us, they have no connection to the city and there was no obvious reason for them to buy Blackburn Rovers. I’m worried that if Wharton’s money runs out in the summer, then Rovers could eventually go into administration. The judicial process of March 12 is absolutely vital.”
Venky has invested almost £200m in a club that was in the Premier League when they took control and promised to bring the Champions League back to Ewood Park. But Rovers were dropped from the top flight in 2012 and into League One in 2017. There has been little progress but plenty of chaos, a far cry from the halcyon days with the team Jack built.
Mark Atkins was part of the Dalglish team that spectacularly rose from the second division to win the Premier League title. The former midfielder, who was covering Saturday’s game for local radio, told Mail Sport: “If you did a poll on Venky, the majority of fans would want them gone.” The problem then is that someone would have to buy a football club that is so in debt, so you have to be careful what you wish for.
Many Blackburn fans expressed their frustration with the club’s owner, Venky.
Club owners Venkatesh Rao (left) and Balaji Rao (centre) of Venky’s have pumped almost £200m into a club that was in the Premier League when they took control.
There is a lot of concern at Blackburn given the debt the club is in
The Venkys are pouring money into the club just to keep it afloat: £20m a year, I think. “If Venky stopped funding it, I don’t think Blackburn Rovers would be around for much longer.”
Herbert responded to that point by arguing, “I have no idea who would buy my house, but until it’s on the market, that remains an unknown.”
‘The examples of Wigan, Bolton, Birmingham and West Brom show there are options.
“The Venkys were willing to keep the club afloat, but now they can’t because of the court order.”
John Eustace recently replaced Jon Dahl Tomasson (pictured), who was sacked two weeks ago by the club after Rovers fell to 18th in the Championship.
Blackburn have only had one in their last five league games and are five points clear of the relegation zone.
Former Birmingham manager John Eustace recently succeeded Tomasson and in this Lancashire derby he picked up his first point since taking over.
Rovers took a 2-0 lead with clinical strikes from Sammie Szmodics and Sam Gallagher, but Preston hit back through Robbie Brady and Emil Riis before the break.
There have been complaints about ticket prices and transactions in the transfer market, with Rovers twice failing to make a deadline day move for highly-rated US international Duncan McGuire. With the desire for change growing ever stronger, Herbert adds: “Right now, at best, we are treading water.”