Arsene Wenger has made Blackburn defender Christopher Samba his top transfer target.
Wenger is desperate to strengthen his squad after losing Thomas Vermaelen and Sebastien Squillaci to injury.
Arsenal boss Wenger likes Gary Cahill of Bolton, but his club have made it clear they will not sell during this window and that has prompted the Gunners to go for Samba.
Samba, 26, is unsettled at Blackburn after Sam Allardyce was sacked, was stripped of the captaincy and, despite regaining his place, Rovers are struggling to keep him.
Christopher Samba
Aston Villa are also interested but Arsenal are at the front of the queue and are likely to test Blackburn’s resolve with a bid of around the £6m mark.
Wenger has looked at short-term options such as West Ham’s Matt Upson and have also been offered Bordeaux’s Mikel Ciani but would prefer a longer-term solution, and if they can get Samba at the right price in January then Arsenal will take the plunge.
The Gunners manager wants a big, powerful stopper to partner and compliment the smaller and more mobile Vermaelen and Laurent Koscielny.
Cahill, Per Mertesacker of Werder Bremen and Everton’s Phil Jagielka have all been looked at and remain on Arsenal’s list.
Bolton want in excess of £16m for Cahill, and that means Samba is now a strong option if Arsenal can strike a deal with Blackburn who may want closer to £10m.
Blackburn also know Arsenal are desperate, as Vermaelen has undergone surgery after a long spell out with an Achilles problem, Squillaci has a hamstring injury and Johan Djourou is playing despite a longstanding knee problem.
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THE Ewood Park chants and a triumphant wave of the arm in response to the adulation said it all on Sunday.
From zero to hero, Steve Kean has now been accepted as a Premier League manager in his own right.
A little more than a month ago it was more a case of ‘Steve who?’, as the footballing world united as one in their condemnation of Venky’s new Rovers regime and the replacing of the ‘master Allardyce’ with the ‘novice Kean’.
Now, after a win against West Brom sent them to seventh in the Premier League, Big Sam’s successful reign is already a thing of the past for most Blackburn Rovers fans.
The king is dead long, live the king.
A run of three successive home wins, and four victories from his last six games, have obviously helped Kean’s cause but the manner in which he has carried himself over the past month has perhaps spoken even louder.
Not once has Kean complained about the rough ride he has been given.
Not once has he said ‘I told you so’ and not once has he allowed himself to be drawn into the many controversies surrounding Ewood Park over the past couple of months.
His focus has been entirely on winning football matches, and doing it in style for the most part, with Rovers fans impressed by his honest talking and selfless attitude of their new boss.
Let’s not get carried away. Bigger challenges lie in wait for his fledgling managerial career.
A month and eight games is far too early for anyone to start claiming Rovers have unearthed the ‘next big thing’.
It is not a bad start though, is it?
Especially when you consider the gloomy start to his reign with drab home draws against West Ham United and Stoke.
Many feared Kean had been thrown to the Blackburn public as a sacrificial lamb by new owners the Rao family as they took time to think about their next managerial move.
Wrongly, it would seem now, after they rewarded Kean’s impressive start with a new long-term deal in the hot seat.
The doubters are suddenly decreasing and the plaudits growing.
Kean’s success has bought Venky’s time and allowed them to continue planning for the future without the media spotlight shining so brightly on them.
At the time their managerial gamble – and it was a gamble – made no sense.
You could see little logic in Kean’s promotion and, despite their claims he had been watched closely, things could easily, and quickly, have turned sour.
The 43-year-old Scot is starting to make the decision seem like a masterstroke and, as long as results continue on the pitch, the pressure will drop on Venky’s and allow them to put their plans for the future into place.
Anyone watching Kean closely in Rovers’ FA Cup fourth round tie at Aston Villa tomorrow will see a man at ease on the touchlines. A decent coaching career would suggest he should be as well.
The tracksuit has been replaced by a sharp suit though and, wearing the emotions only a boss can during a game, there is no doubt who is now the main man at Ewood Park.
Being multi-lingual is another string in Kean’s bow, especially with Venky’s revolution looking like bringing in more overseas talent to Ewood than ever before.
The cynics still remain, and rightly so. Rome wasn’t built in a day and there have been many false dawns in football.
What Kean has done over the last few weeks is bring a sense of calm to the picture at Ewood Park.
It has allowed everyone to concentrate on the football once more.
The jokes still remain at Rovers’ expense, with some of our national media opting to stick Kean’s head on a chicken’s body. Looks like he is having the last laugh at the moment – and long may it continue.
MORTEN Gamst Pedersen is gearing himself up for a ‘scrap for places’ at Ewood Park and insists the extra competition can only help take Rovers to another level.
Roque Santa Cruz and Jermaine Jones have already been brought in by Steve Kean this month and, with the search still ongoing with five days left of the transfer window, the boss looks set to have a selection dilemma on his hands.
Steven Nzonzi made his long-awaited return from injury during the win over West Bromwich Albion on Sunday and, with Keith Andrews and Vince Grella also close to full fitness, Kean will soon be spoilt for choice.
Rovers travel to Aston Villa for an FA Cup fourth round tie on Saturday with an almost fully-fit squad available and Pedersen believes that can only be good for the future.
Pedersen said: “If you perform well you will play.
“The most important thing is to bring a player in that will be better.
“If a player that is better comes in then I will say I have to raise my level to play.
“It will make me better and make him better.
“Players like Roque Santa Cruz can come in and strengthen us.
“There is no reason to go out and buy players who won’t do that but the players we have brought in look very good.
“If you can get players in then great. My thought would be to show I can be better than him and can keep him out of the team.
“That is the mentality you need. Maybe not every footballer in the world thinks like that, but I do.”
Discussions are understood to be ongoing with team skipper Chris Samba about signing a bumper new deal, after club captain Ryan Nelsen pledged the rest of his career to the club last week.
Kean has also admitted he is hoping to get the likes of Michel Salgado, Jason Roberts, Paul Robinson and Mark Bunn to extend their contracts with the club.
Pedersen himself is already tied to Rovers long term as the club look to mix the club’s proud past with an exciting future.
Pedersen said: “We don’t have any Messis in the team but we have a good bunch of people working hard and that is a part of the club.
“It is a family club, people help each other and that us why we have been doing well.
“I think having some players sign long-term deals to stay at the club means the club will keep its traditions.”
MICHEL Salgado is the latest Blackburn Rovers player to pledge his future to Steve Kean’s revolution after finalising a new deal that will keep him at Ewood until at least the summer of 2012.
Ahead of Saturday’s FA Cup fourth round tie at Aston Villa, the 35-year-old Spaniard has followed in the footsteps of club skipper Ryan Nelsen by agreeing a one-year extension to his current deal after being impressed by the ambitious vision of the club’s new owners.
Discussions remain ongoing with the likes of Chris Samba, Jason Roberts and Mark Bunn about new deals, with the club also hopeful goalkeeper Paul Robinson will commit the rest of his career to Rovers.
Salgado has emerged as an Ewood Park cult hero since signing for the club on a free transfer in August 2009 from Spanish and world giants Real Madrid.
After a slow start, which saw him struggle to adapt to the pace of the Premier League, his tough tackling no nonsense style has seen him establish himself a first team regular and a crowd darling.
Prior to joining Rovers he enjoyed a decade at Real Madrid, making more than 250 league appearances and winning two Champions League finals and four Spanish League titles.
Only a fortnight ago, Salgado expressed his desire to remain at Rovers for another season and, with his contract due to expire this summer, has now been granted his wish by being given a one-year extension.
The right back would not have been short of options had he opted to quit Ewood this summer, with a number of clubs from abroad understood to be monitoring his situation closely.
But Salgado has talked about his excitement for the future at Rovers and said he wants to be a part of something big at Ewood Park over the next 18 months.
Securing the long term future of a second senior player in less than a week is further evidence that early doubts surrounding Venky’s regime among the squad have been eased.
Nelsen was vocal in his concerns about last month’s sacking of Sam Allardyce but, after his questions were answered, has shown he is fully behind boss Kean by signing a new contract.
Kean will consider keeping his squad together just as important as the new signings he has made this month as he looks to prove to Rovers fans the club can now keep hold of their prized assets.
Kean said: “I am absolutely delighted about this. Michel’s experience is invaluable and his enthusiasm is totally infectious around the place.
“He is a winner and you can’t have too many of them.”
STEVE Kean is hopeful Blackburn Rovers skipper Chris Samba will sign a new contract later today.
Having already secured Ryan Nelsen and Michel Salgado on new deals, the Rovers boss admitted Samba is now “very, very close” to signing.
Kean also confirmed there was new hope about signing Argentine midfielder Mauro Formica.
Kean said: “We are close to agreeing with Chris Samba. It would be a great signing because for us to get the team captain, as well as the club captain and someone like Michel Salgado on board is fantastic.
“We had a few enquiries that we tried to put away for Chris and we tried to convince him this was the placve to be.
“It is very, very close and hopefully that will get done today.”
STEVE Kean is closing in on making his first permanent signing as Blackburn Rovers boss after hijacking Monaco’s move for Argentine starlet Mauro Formica.
Rovers looked set to miss out on the 22-year-old attacking midfielder, with Formica passing a medical at Monaco earlier this week, but financial wranglings over the deal in France have re-opened the door at the 11th hour.
Formica’s Argentinian representatives have told the Lancashire Telegraph they arrived in Blackburn for talks yesterday and are hopeful the player will sign a three-and-a-half year deal in the next few days, after a medical.
The Lancashire Telegraph understands there were still some complications surrounding the deal to be ironed out but his potential switch would now be a permanent move, rather than a loan deal via Red Star Belgrade that was initially mooted.
Formica, who has been described as a young Gabriel Batistuta by Kean, is understood to have always favoured a move to the Premier League and Blackburn Rovers but initially opted for Monaco after complications delayed Rovers’ move for him.
The player had already been pictured in a Monaco shirt after passing his medical.
However, a hold-up over finances allowed Rovers to step in again and make a firm offer for his services, believed to be in the region of £3.5million euros.
Meanwhile Rovers target Sebastian Larsson is understood not to be keen on a move to Aston Villa as part of a swap deal with Curtis Davies.
Blackburn boss Steve Kean is ready to sign Barcelona starlet Ruben Rochina – and make it a transfer double by snapping up Brazilian youngster Ronieli dos Santos.
Striker Rochina will join Rovers for a fee that could top £1million after telling Barca he would go to England anyway when his contract runs out in the summer.
Meanwhile, Rovers’ Indian owners are trying to tie up a deal for Sao Paolo striker Ronieli, who is viewed as a key long-term capture.
Blackburn Rovers boss Steve Kean wants to silence the snipers today by signing Chris Samba – after sealing a lifetime deal for Ryan Nelsen.
Kean had to live with talk of dressing room discontent when he took over from Sam Allardyce, but giant Samba will turn down the chance to leave by sorting out terms.
Nelsen has already committed to a new contract and Samba is to discuss his new deal today, with Kean hoping it ends the whispering campaign that has dogged the club.
Kean said: “We have put a contract together for Chris. He spoke to the owners and we will hopefully have some positive information in the next 24 hours.
“There were rumours of players being unsettled but he and Ryan want to commit themselves to the club. There was confusion early on but to tie these two down would be fantastic.
“I think all of the players are enjoying their football. There is no negative stuff about this group – the lads are very tight.”
Kean’s sights are now on three wins to make sure Rovers are safe before pressing onwards and upwards, but West Brom chief Roberto Di Matteo is now looking over his shoulder.
The Italian was fuming that his side were not given a penalty when Peter Odemwingie was fouled by Jermaine Jones but Mark Clattenburg awarded a free kick outside the box.
Di Matteo said: “It is quite clearly inside. We don’t seem to be getting decisions like that. It is not the first time. We could have got back into the game.
“We have got to keep going and trying to work on our mistakes. We gave ourselves a mountain to climb after losing the second goal”
BLACKBURN Rovers fans must be wondering what has hit them over the past couple of months after seeing world stars like Ronaldinho, David Beckham and Juan Roman Riquelme linked with possible moves to Ewood Park.
Manager Steve Kean believes it is something the supporters should start getting used to as well after his latest flying visit to meet the club’s owners in India reinforced his belief even further in their ambitious plans for the future.
Rovers’ squad will boast high-profile loan arrivals Roque Santa Cruz and Jermaine Jones for tomorrow’s visit of West Bromwich Albion, but Kean insists this is just the start of things to come.
He admitted Argentine playmaker Riquelme is just one of a long list of big-name signings being considered by the club, but was adamant there was no rush to bring in that ‘marquee’ arrival.
He said: “When you go to clubs the size of Manchester City and Schalke and sign players like Roque and Jermaine, who could go to any number of other clubs – and know paying their wages is no problem – it shows this club is going forward.
“When we went for Beckham and Ronaldinho it was a genuine move, even though it didn’t happen.
“We still want to bring in someone who will be a landmark signing, a marquee name, but it will probably be in the summer.
“And we will make sure it is someone who can fit in here, not expect the guys to fit around them. Riquelme is on a list with a number of other players, but I don’t think it will happen in this window.
“The market at this time can be inflated.
“So if you are going to bring a permanent signing then it’s better waiting until the summer to get the best value for money.”
Eyebrows have been raised in some quarters about the illustrious names suddenly being linked with Rovers, with the doubters claiming it is all an elaborate publicity stunt.
Other people have questioned whether they would be ‘Kean signings’ or ‘Venky’s signings’, but the Rovers boss was quick to stress any new arrival would have to convince him that he was good for the club.
Kean said: “The owners will give me a list of players that we could get because they are paying the wage bill. But no player will come to the club unless I want them to come to the club.
“Unless they have got something to offer – and I said this about Ronaldinho – the funding was in place and we could have got him if he had decided he wanted to come to the UK.
“But I would have certainly have had to meet him and find out his thoughts about work and how often he wanted to train, and make sure it was every day alongside the rest of the squad.
“If there’s going to be a marquee signing then it’s not that they are coming out to graze.
“There will be a number of (marquee) players of that stature that will be available in the summer.
“In the summer the price might be less so we will take our time over that. It’s not going to be that the team fits in with the way that he wants to play.”
Kean himself has experienced something of a whirlwind last month having been thrust into Premier League management for the first time from being a first team coach.
Not that the challenge has daunted him and, having signed a new two-and-a-half year deal on Thursday, is looking forward to an exciting ride at Ewood Park.
“I put pen to paper on Thursday, and I was delighted to be given that deal, and to commit myself to the club,” he said.
“It’s great because at first I didn’t know how long it would last – a week, a month – and then I was given until the end of the season.
“And now it’s two more seasons after that.
“It means that when I speak to the players, and to the ones we’re trying to bring in, I can give them a positive answer when they ask how long I’m going to be here.
“The players like the atmosphere and what we are trying to do in training, and now I can tell them I’m going to be around as long as you are.
“And it’s great for me to be backed in the transfer market.
“This time there was no negotiation about the contract for myself.
“I spoke to the owner and they said they would be putting together a contract I would hopefully consider and sign, which I have.”
Blackburn have terminated the contract of defender Pascal Chimbonda with immediate effect, according to Sky Sports.
The versatile 31-year-old has found first-team opportunities increasingly hard to come by after falling down the pecking order at Ewood Park this season.
He does not figure in the long-term plans of Steve Kean, who has signed a new long-term deal to remain as manager until 2013.
A decision has therefore been taken by mutual consent to let Chimbonda start searching for another club straight away.
The news is sure to alert a host of potential new employers, with Ipswich among those to have been linked with the former Tottenham and Wigan man.
Paul Jewell, who worked with Chimbonda at Wigan and is now in charge of Ipswich, has admitted making an enquiry.
Agent Willie McKay admits it is a disappointing situation but feels Chimbonda would be a good signing for anybody.
“Pascal is looking for a new club and he has a number of options he is considering,” Mckay told skyspots.com.
“Pascal is disappointed at how things have ended up at Blackburn as he could have signed a long-term deal at West Ham in the last transfer window.
“Pascal is ready for a new challenge and he is prepared to sign a short-term deal until June to get back playing again.
“Pascal is a great free transfer as he can play anywhere across the back and has a wealth of experience having played in the Premier League for five seasons.”
Speaking to Sky Sports News, Blackburn captain Ryan Nelsen also backed the Frenchman to get his career back on track elsewhere.
Nelsen said: “I know that he was looking at other options from Blackburn so obviously this now frees him to potentially look at other clubs.
“He is a very good player and he will do a very good job somewhere.”
ARGENTINIAN playmaker Juan Riquelme has been offered to Blackburn Rovers as an answer to Venky’s dream of bringing a big-name signing to Ewood Park.
Barry McIntosh, the man who helped bring Jermaine Jones to Ewood, has started dialogue with club advisors about the possibility of making the Boca Juniors midfield ace the ‘marquee signing’ the club have been searching for.
Rovers’ owners have so far failed in attempts to sign Ronaldinho and David Beckham but are now understood to be considering the viability of signing the 32-year-old former Barcelona man as they look to make a Premier League impact.
They have already said money is no object in the pursuit of a major name, and three-time Argentinian player of the year Riquelme would be of the status they are looking for.
Manager Steve Kean would have the final say over any transfer but it is understood Venky’s ambitions could lure Riquelme away from Argentina if they opted to make a definite move for him.
Agent McIntosh said: “I have spoken with Jerome Anderson, who is doing a lot of work for Blackburn Rovers, about Riquelme and it is being thought about. He could prove a great alternative to Ronaldinho, but there is nothing definite yet.”
McIntosh is also playing a role in Rovers’ potential signing of exciting Argentine midfielder Mauro Formica, with the 22-year-old reported to be ready to travel to England for talks.
Formica, who plays for Newell’s Old Boys, has turned down a potential loan move to West Ham and now Rovers are being touted as his most likely destination.
While we understand his Rovers switch is still far from a done deal, with the move shrouded in uncertainty, Argentinian top flight side Newell’s Old Boys believe Formica will move to Ewood Park.
Newell’s general manager Gustavo Dezotti has claimed a deal is close and even told the local media he would sign for Red Star Belgrade, before being loaned to Rovers.
“Agreements are in place,” he said when asked about Rovers. “Of course verbal agreements must be finalised and until that happens we cannot say the deal is done.”
With a big presence in South America, poultry giants Venky’s are believed to have been scouring the continent in search for exciting young talent to help spread Rovers’ name.
Manager Steve Kean has already spoken about wanting to bring ‘development players to the club’, as well as more solid domestic signings, and Formica would fit that mould.
McIntosh, who helped Rovers sign Chilean Carlos Villanueva back in 2008, said: “I did offer this player to Jerome Anderson for Blackburn Rovers also.
“I understand he and his South American representatives are on their way to England to talk. It would have to be a permanent move as West Ham tried to sign him on loan before and that was flatly refused.
“He is one of the hottest players on the scene in South America at the moment. Maybe he would not make an immediate impact but Blackburn Rovers would be getting a phenomenal talent.
“Remember, he would be coming from a club who had had great players like Lionel Messi and Diego Maradona.”
Meanwhile Barcelona youngster Ruben Rochina is understood to still be on Rovers’ radar as they look to secure the signing of the 19-year-old striker.
Sources close to Barcelona also insist Rovers are trying to sign Barcelona midfielder Victor Vazquez on loan, although his agent claims there has been no contact.
Blackburn are signing Argentine Mauro Formica from Newell’s Old Boys in a £3million deal.
Steve Kean is handing the 22-year-old a four-and-a-half year deal at Ewood Park.
Formica was being lined up for a move to Galatasaray before Rovers hijacked the deal.
The midfielder is known for his adventurous attacking play in Argentina and he is being brought in by Rovers owners Venky’s to help them keep their promise of playing exciting football.
Formica will be Blackburn’s third signing of the transfer window following the arrival of Roque Santa Cruz and Jermaine Jones.
ONE of the owners who tried to bring former world player of the year Ronaldinho and the planet’s most famous footballer David Beckham to Blackburn has finally revealed the reason Sam Allardyce was sacked – he was “too big for the club”.
Allardyce has never received a full explanation about why he was unceremoniously shown the door by the Venky’s group shortly after their takeover of the club in November – something of a shock after he led Blackburn from deep in the relegation zone to mid-table with outside hopes of a European place during less than two years in charge.
Now, in an interview conducted in India, one of the controlling brothers Balaji Rao has let slip that it was Allardyce’s profile at the club that made the new owners uncomfortable.
Rao said: “Why was Sam Allardyce sacked? No one can be bigger than the club, be it owner, fan or player. The club is the biggest no matter who the owner is.” Having failed spectacularly to persuade two of the world’s biggest names even to talk to manager Steve Kean, the owners have not given up on their bid to bring in what Kean describes as a “marquee signing”.
Blackburn Rovers were last night being linked with a move for Argentine Mauro Formica by reports coming out of South America.
The 22-year-old attacking midfielder currently plays for Argentine top flight outfit Newell’s Old Boys but media reports in Argentina claimed Rovers were set to seal a 4m euro deal.
Rovers were unavailable for comment last night but Formica has been linked with moves to West Ham United, Genoa and Galatasaray in recent weeks.
You’ve really got to smile at the latest pronouncement from Venky’s chief Anuradha Desai.
Reacting to speculation that Blackburn’s owners are looking at replacing Steve Kean as boss, she insisted that his job would be safe for the duration of his new two-and-a-half year contract because: “Without stability, you cannot have success. It’s the way we work.”
The way they work?
I don’t think Sam Allardyce will agree with that and Venky’s have brought anything but stability to Ewood Park during their short reign.
Their brutal axing of Allardyce sent such shockwaves through the club that their highly-respected chairman John Williams, one of the best administrators in the game, considered his position.
Skipper Chris Samba claimed he wanted to leave and despite Kean’s attempts to paper over the cracks, there are still problems at Rovers.
Venky’s pursuit of Ronaldinho also opened the club to ridicule and as Manchester City found out with their doomed bid for Kaka two years ago, sometimes it’s better to be more modest with your targets.
Kean’s strained relationship with El-Hadji Diouf also isn’t helping generate stability in the dressing room.
Dioufy was very much a Big Sam fan and has not reacted well to his former mentor’s sacking.
Kean clearly doesn’t subscribe to the theory that Diouf is a wayward genius whose indiscretions should be tolerated because he is an important player.
He wasn’t impressed by his taunting of QPR’s Jamie Mackie as he lay on the ground with a broken leg in the recent FA Cup game and says he doesn’t understand why he revels in being so disliked.
Robbie Savage was the same on a football pitch and Diouf and him use the boos from the opposition fans to inspire them.
Diouf is one of those players who opposing fans love to hate, but would secretly like to have in their team.
He energises the Rovers players and fans and it is sad that Kean is ready to let him go after the Senegalese had been playing as well as ever again under Allardyce this season.
However Diouf does not appear to fit in with the vision for a new “stable” Blackburn.
Blackburn boss Steve Kean has made a bargain £500,000 bid for Birmingham’s contract-rebel winger Sebastian Larsson.
Kean slapped in his offer yesterday as he tries to tie up the Swede as his first cash buy – rather than wait to take him in the summer window when he is a free agent.
Larsson has already turned down Newcastle and Sunderland and was left out of Alex McLeish’s side last weekend as loan signing David Bentley came in to replace him.
Blues wanted more money for Larsson but are now in a poor position to negotiate and Kean may be able to land former Arsenal prospect Larsson in time to make his debut against West Brom on Sunday.