Blackburn ready to offer manager job to 4-2-3-1 boss

Blackburn Rovers have been on the lookout for a new head coach since they decided to part ways with Valerien Ismael at the start of February.

A 1-0 loss to Hull City at Ewood Park was the last straw for the board as that result made it nine matches without a win in all competitions for the ex-Barnsley boss.

One of the most intriguing links since the job became available has been Forest Green Rovers manager Robbie Savage, who was reported to be the club’s top target earlier this month.

That rumour has since gone quiet, though, and they do not appear to be progressing with a deal to appoint the former Macclesfield tactician.

The 51-year-old has never managed above the National League, which is where he is currently managing, and would have been an incredibly risky appointment for a team that are attempting to avoid relegation from the Championship.

Blackburn Rovers set to offer job to candidate

Alongside Savage, Blackburn have been linked with interest in former Wales and Sunderland boss Chris Coleman, ex-Aston Villa manager Dean Smith, and experienced tactician Slaven Bilic.

However, the club have seemingly decided to swerve away from all of those reported candidates, as they are closing in on a move for their preferred target.

According to journalist Alan Nixon, via his Patreon, Blackburn Rovers are ready to offer personal terms to free agent manager Gary Rowett to finally replace Ismael.

The reporter claims that they want a quick decision from the former Oxford United head coach, who left their Championship rivals in December and has been out of work since then.

Nixon adds that the club are attempting to do a deal that would see the experienced English boss arrive at Ewood Park on a contract until the summer of 2028.

Lancashire Telegraph’s Elliott Jackson has added weight to this claim by reporting that Rovers are in talks with Rowett over a deal to bring him to the club.

Why Gary Rowett could be Blackburn’s new Tony Mowbray

It is fair to say that Rovers are still looking for a manager who can provide them with stability in the way that Tony Mowbray did during his spell at the club.

Jon Dahl Tomasson had a seventh-placed finish at Ewood Park in the Championship, but he did not last two full seasons before his exit, whilst Mowbray managed the club for five full campaigns, after joining near the end of the 2016/17 term.

In those five full seasons, the English boss took Rovers from League One to consistent midtable or higher finishes in the Championship, never finishing lower than 15th.

Since Mowbray moved on from Ewood Park, no permanent Blackburn manager has completed two full seasons. Tomasson managed the team for around 18 months and both John Eustace and Ismael lasted 12 months each.

Rowett, though, has shown that he can bring stability to a Championship side in the past. He managed Birmingham for two-and-a-half seasons and managed Millwall for four years before his exit in 2023.

The 4-2-3-1 manager was sacked by Oxford this season, having lost 11 of the opening 23 matches, but he also kept them up after joining midseason in the 2024/25 campaign, leading them to 17th place.

Rowett has managed 418 games in the Championship in his career, averaging 1.46 points per game, and that points per game rate would take Blackburn to 54 points over the last 15 games of the season, which should be enough to keep Rovers in the league.

Whilst that is not an exact science, as it is composed of different highs and lows at several clubs, it shows that he knows how to get consistent results to keep a team in this league.

Rowett’s spell with Millwall in the Championship is not too dissimilar to what Mowbray achieved in the league with Blackburn during his time at Ewood Park, never finishing below 15th and providing stability across several years.

Blackburn are currently in a relegation scrap, sitting in the bottom three at the moment, and appointing a manager with so much experience in the second tier could be a shrewd move.

It is not the most exciting appointment ever. Rowett is not an up-and-coming coach with an exciting style and he is not a highly-regarded manager who has coached at a higher level.

What he is, though, is exactly what Rovers need at this moment in time because of the position that they have found themselves in, due to his experience.