Anuradha J Desai (Mrs Rovers) in a fresh attack on Big Sam
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Sam Allardyce has left Blackburn Rovers with immediate effect, along with assistant manager Neil McDonald.
Allardyce leaves the club, who have just been taken over by Indian chicken company Venky's, in 13th position in the Premier League.
A statement on the Blackburn website read: ''The Venky's Group, owners of Blackburn Rovers Football Club, has today [Monday] confirmed the departure of manager Sam Allardyce and assistant manager Neil McDonald with immediate effect.
''First team coaching duties will be taken on by Steve Kean [currently 1st team coach] for the immediate future.
''We have taken this decision as part of our wider plans and ambitions for the club. We would like to put on record our thanks to Mr. Allardyce for his contribution to Blackburn Rovers Football Club.''
Poultry firm Venky's finalised their purchase of the 99.9% shareholding of the Jack Walker Trust for £43 million (taking into account club debts which will be paid off) a month ago and owners, the Rao family, initially spoke of setting only modest, realistic targets for Rovers.
One bookmaker did reveal a flurry of sizeable bets on Allardyce to be the next top-flight manager to vacate his post and slashed odds from 33/1 to 3/1 on Monday.
Rovers lost 2-1 to ten-man Bolton at the weekend, with Allardyce accusing his players of ''defending like a bunch of old women.". However, that defeat still left them five points clear of the bottom three and in no obvious danger.
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I am wondering who is be taking over from big sam. maybe O Neil will
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Originally posted by Rooney9:
I am wondering who is be taking over from big sam. maybe O Neil will
Highly doubt so, unless the owners have ambition, which I think they do not.
Ian Darke or Steve Mcmanaman, the commentator, was saying that new owners come in, tries to show who's the boss around by firing the manager when they do not even have enough time to learn how the club operates.
I've a feeling Blackburn will be fighting a relegation battle as the team is bonded together by Allardyce with seasoned campaigners Nelson, Emerton, Salgado, Benjani and Roberts all nearing the end of their playing careers and there's still a problem kid on the block in the form of El-Hadji Diouf. Not sure how they can cope with his departure and Nelson was reportedly devastated with his gaffer's departure.
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oh dear .....
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Get V Sundram to be their Manager /
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圆的�能拿
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this allardyce was boasting not too long ago about how he could make his team play like arsenal if given the players.....now he's sacked. Football's volatile.
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SNUBBED ... GeovanniSAM ALLARDYCE'S two-year Blackburn reign came to an end due to a bitter feud over January transfer targets.
New owners Venky's indicated there would be around £5million to spend to bolster Rovers' survival push.
But their targets could not have been more different to those eyed by Big Sam. He was keen on Tottenham's ex-Ewood Park favourite David Bentley - but the Indians fancied Brazilian crock Geovanni, who had just left San Jose Earthquakes.
Allardyce wanted to bring back Roque Santa Cruz from Manchester City or even make a move for Spurs' Robbie Keane - but the new owners had their eye on Middlesbrough misfit Kris Boyd.
SunSport revealed last week how tensions were simmering between the manager and the poultry firm who bought the club for £46m last month. Venky's held a meeting in India 10 days ago with their football advisors - sports agency Kentaro - and neither Big Sam nor chairman John Williams were invited.
Allardyce was alarmed to hear the kind of names being mentioned and made it clear they would not be players he wanted in his squad.
The 56-year-old indicated he would walk away rather than have meddling owners forcing them on him. But yesterday Venky's took the decision out of his hands.
He was called to Ewood in the afternoon where chairman Williams, who appointed Allardyce in December, 2008, delivered the shock news. There was anger among senior club figures that the well-respected Williams had been forced to wield the axe.
Despite the 7-1 hammering at Manchester United last month and the disappointing 2-1 defeat against 10-man Bolton on Sunday, there was no major crisis at Rovers.
Victory over Wolves the previous weekend had put Blackburn temporarily eighth and they are now 13th. But alarm bells began to ring soon after the family of late benefactor Jack Walker sold out to little-known Indian firm Venky's.
Company chairwoman Anuradha Desai made some bizarre claims. She said she wanted to see entertaining football as well as wins - something which clearly angered Big Sam. Tellingly, she stopped short of saying Allardyce and his management team would be staying for the long-term, adding it would come 'under review'. The idea of taking the squad to India to play exhibition matches also did not sit comfortably with the manager.
Allardyce felt his initial meetings with Bilaji and Venkatesh Rao - the brothers of Mrs Desai - had gone well. But senior Ewood sources had indicated over the past couple of weeks they feared there was 'trouble brewing'. Big Sam lasted just six months after Mike Ashley bought Newcastle. Here, he managed just 24 days after Venky's took control.
They issued a brief statement which said: "We have taken this decision as part of our wider plans and ambitions for the club."
Martin Jol is the bookies' favourite to take over after leaving Ajax last week. But axed Newcastle chief Chris Hughton appeared to rule himself out on Twitter. Allardyce took over from Paul Ince almost exactly two years ago.
He dragged them off the foot of the table and went on to clinch a respectable 10th place last term.
Allardyce, who had a heart scare last year, is expected to find a new job quickly, with Sheffield United and West Ham already mentioned.
Rovers club captain Ryan Nelsen said: "Sam did an incredible job to keep the team from relegation and then got a top-10 position.
"He wasn't given the credit he deserved, to tell the truth. This has come completely out of the blue.
"Once we got bought out you thought we were moving in a direction and Sam might be given a certain amount of financial resources to work with. But obviously he wasn't even given that, which is devastating for the man."
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Nelsen 'devastated' by Allardyce exit
By ESPNsoccernet staff
GettyImagesRyan Nelsen was a key player under Sam AllardyceBlackburn Rovers captain Ryan Nelsen says he was "devastated" to learn of the club's decision to sack manager Sam Allardyce on Monday.
Rovers confirmed on Monday afternoon that they had ended Allardyce's two-year reign at Ewood Park and that the decision had been taken as part of owners Venky's "wider plans and ambitions".But with Rovers sitting in 13th place in the table and with the club enjoying stability under Allardyce, Nelsen says he was taken aback by the decision taken by Venky's, who took charge of the club a month ago.
"I am devastated for Sam," Nelsen told Sky Sports News. "He had an absolutely fantastic relationship with all of the players. Everyone respected him. He took the club out of the doldrums really.
"We were in massive trouble with no money. He solidified us and put us into a top-ten position, and again he did it on a shoe-string.
"I'm just getting over the shock of it. We've got to get over it, but at the moment I want to say, and I can speak for nearly all the players I'm sure, that they will be devastated. He was a very likeable character."
Striker Jason Roberts, who had a difficult relationship with the former manager, says he was also surprised to hear of Allardyce's exit.
"I certainly didn't see this coming but we've got new owners and you're never 100% sure of what's going to happen. I'm shocked by the decision but this is football,'' Roberts told TalkSPORT. "We've got new owners and there's a transfer window coming up and you never know what's going on behind the scenes, but I'm shocked.
"When he came into the club we looked like we were going to get relegated and he took us to tenth, so you can't level too much criticism at him. Maybe at times it wasn't pleasing on the eye, but we're in the results business and we want to win football matches, that's the most important thing.
"Everyone has their own views on how the game should be played and it may not have been for the purists but we did okay doing it."
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West Ham Preparing To Sack Avram Grant And Appoint Sam Allardyce As Manager
Former Blackburn boss regarded as man to drag Hammers to safety
West Ham are preparing to sack Avram Grant and have lined up Sam Allardyce to be their next manager, Goal can reveal.
The Hammers board have lost faith with Grant and are ready to become the next Premier League club to pull the trigger by bringing an immediate end to his six-month Upton Park reign.
The hierarchy believe Allardyce - who was only sacked by Blackburn earlier on Monday - is better qualified than Grant to arrest a decline that has yielded just 12 points from 17 Premier League games and leaves West Ham three points adrift at the bottom of the table.
Goal understands that they will make a move for Allardyce when his lawyers have negotiated his pay-off with the Lancashire club.
The 56-year-old, who was on a 12-month rolling contract at Ewood Park, was on a heavily incentivised deal worth up to £1.5 million-a-year.
Allardyce is highly regarded by West Ham co-owners David Sullivan and David Gold, who have publicly backed Grant and, although he has taken the club to the Carling Cup semi-finals, they have become increasingly concerned about his ability to drag them out of the relegation abyss.
It is believed that the option of sacking Grant is not as prohibitive as previously thought. Although the Israeli signed a four-year contract last June worth £1.3m-a-year supplmented by a six-figure bonus if West Ham maintain their Premier League status, there is understood to be a severance clause in his contract which means he will be paid £650,000 – six months salary – if he is sacked.
Frozen out? | West Ham have lost patience with Avram Grant and are ready to sack himSurvival specialist Allardyce took over at Rovers in December 2008 when they were 19th in the League and led them to safety.
He also established Bolton Wanderers as a top-half Premier League club during eight years at the Reebok Stadium and has a strong track record of moulding teams on shoestring budgets who punch above their weight.
He is also an attractive proposition because he is now available and there will be no compensation to pay.
Allardyce’s departure at Rovers comes just days after the club’s new owners, the Venky’s Group from India, sat down with him to discuss transfer strategy in the January window.
The Rao family, who completed their £43m takeover of Rovers through their newly formed company on October 19, have sub-contracted the club’s transfer operations to the Kentaro sports agency, which was also used by Manchester City following the takeover by the Thaksin Shinawatra consortium in the summer of 2007.
It is understood that Kentaro, who are headed by the super-agent Jerome Anderson and are tied up to the SEM stable that manages a famous client list including Thierry Henry, will play a major role in sourcing Allardyce’s successor.
There are strong rumours that the Rovers hierarchy already have the new man lined up, although this has been denied by the club.
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I think it's just another way of saying : We wont spend alot on players but you still have to make it a premiership team.
Good luck to the next Blackburn Manager.
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i think its the right decision for west ham to get allardyce. though o neil would be even better.
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blackburn sack alladyrce and is giving the new manager a grand 5m to spend? That's real cool!
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hope alladyrce is appointed this week as west ham manager in time for the match against his old club. Show the indians what a stupid decision they have made.
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Come on...this is an even more ridiculous decision than ashley's.....i guess they just don't like sam's ego...
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Blackburn stun fans by claiming Allardyce was sacked over their ambitious plans for the Champions League
Gone: Sam Allardyce was ruthlessly discarded by Blackburn's new owners
Blackburn's under-fire owners have sensationally claimed that Sam Allardyce was sacked because they want a top-four finish - and that they may not appoint a replacement for 'a couple of months'.
Venky’s Group chairman Anuradha Desai has also insisted they want entertaining football at Ewood Park in the aftermath of Allardyce's shock departure on Monday.
'We want good football and Blackburn to be fourth or fifth in the league or even better,' Desai told the Lancashire Telegraph. 'The fans should trust us because this is in the best interests of the club.'
Coach Steve Kean has taken over the reins following Allardyce's exit and he may now be in charge for a lot longer than first thought.
Desai added: 'It could now be a couple of months before a new manager is put in place. Right now Steve Kean will take over while we are looking for someone to take over on a permanent basis. Steve is a hard worker and he is doing a very good job as a coach.
'We have been studying him and have been very impressed. He works long hours and is talented at his job. He also works well with our very skilful young players and that is important.'
The Indian owners have also outlined plans to bring in a British manager if they can find the right man.
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the owner is a disaster for Blackburn. Blackburn will be relegation candidates. if they are not relegated, I will be very very surprised.
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haha clowns. They spare 5m for the jan transfer window and talk about sacking him becos of a desire for top 4 finish. 5m can get you a good league one striker :)
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Originally posted by Rock^Star:
blackburn sack alladyrce and is giving the new manager a grand 5m to spend? That's real cool!
typo error? 5 billion lah.
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aiyah...........typical Ah Neh.............Ah Neh always like that one.............
buy cheap cheap.............then expect miracles to happen...........
i say Sam kana fired becoz the Ah Nehs want to get cheaper manager lah................
maybe they wanna hire PN Sivaji..................another ah neh plus super cheap.................
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Originally posted by dragg:
typo error? 5 billion lah.
5 billion rupees.................
looks like Blackburn really kana burned by blacks this time round.................prepare for life in League 2
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I dun think they can do much. They bought the club for 43m pounds and they expect miracles. The head is a chairwoman? I have never seen women in charge of EPL clubs and she's really getting a reputation as a moron.
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43million pounds for an Ah Neh..............is like how much you know............???
to an ah neh...........they expect the moon for that money..............
maybe they'll destroy Blackburn 1st............then Blackpool...............
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ah neh selling chickens...what you expect