Blackburn Rovers need to create siege mentality against Venky’s in order to turn club around

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Blackburn Rovers’ season keeps on going from bad to worse, and the players have been told there’s only one way they can achieve success in the future.

After a strong start to the campaign under John Eustace, it looked like Blackburn might be able to secure a surprise play-off spot this season.

Since Eustace’s departure in the New Year, things have gone downhill dramatically, and Rovers now sit down in 12th place in the Championship table with their play-off hopes in tatters.

Position	Team	Played MP	Won W	Drawn D	Lost L	For GF	Against GA	Diff GD	Points Pts
9	MillwallMillwall	41	15	12	14	40	41	-1	57
10	WatfordWatford	41	16	8	17	49	53	-4	56
11	NorwichNorwich	41	13	14	14	62	56	6	53
12	BlackburnBlackburn	41	15	8	18	44	45	-1	53
13	Sheffield WednesdaySheffield Wednesday	41	14	11	16	56	63	-7	53
14	SwanseaSwansea	41	14	9	18	44	51	-7	51
15	QPRQPR	41	12	13	16	48	54	-6	49

Fans have already had enough of Valerien Ismael after the early days of his tenure have still yet to produce a victory. But, is it really the manager they should be directing their criticisms towards?

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Blackburn players need to get the fans on their side regardless of ownership issues

One thing is apparent, the current owners at Blackburn are getting it all wrong, and they’re costing the club the chance of success, however modest that success may be.

Now, speaking on Football Daily’s EFL podcast about how things can be fixed at Ewood Park, Lyle Taylor suggested the players, coaching staff, and fans need to form a united stand against the owners, and show the Venky’s group they are going to fight for each other, and against them.

Taylor said: “We had it at Charlton. It’s a very difficult place to be, but you create a siege mentality within the footballing side of things. Lee Bowyer created that, so it was our super strength that between the fanbase and the playing staff we had an understanding of what was going on, being disrupted from outside, and it then became us and them.

“It was us who wanted to see the club do well and have success; the players, the manager, the staff, the people in the building and the people that worked for the club and the fans against the person or the people who own it.

“So the only way to do that is to create that siege mentality of ‘we are going to be successful regardless of how much you put us through.’ Don’t get me wrong, it’s a very difficult place to be, but it’s the only way to have success when you’re in that horrible position.”

Whether the players will even get behind Ismael still remains to be seen, and they certainly don’t look too inspired at the moment. Neither do the fans, so perhaps another solution is required.

Taylor did add that, in an ideal world none of this would be needed, but that would require Venky’s selling up and moving out of town.

“The best thing that can happen is the club is sold to somebody who wants to see it be successful and move forward,” he stated.

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What’s the deal with Venky’s at Blackburn Rovers?

The problem is, the Venky’s ownership group are not actively looking to sell Blackburn right now. Instead, they are seemingly ignoring the growing pressure and standing firm.

Fans believe the club’s chairman, Steve Waggot is enabling Balaji and Venkatesh Rao (the Venky’s executives at the top of the Blackburn hierarchy).

How long this can all continue, though, with reported losses thought to be around £214m for Blackburn, is up for debate. That debate may well be a short one, though, given the financial predicament.

The idea is that Venky’s have been running Blackburn more as a business than a football club, with a lack of ambition harming the Lancashire outfit’s progress. With the numbers the way they are, though, they’re not exactly running that business very well.