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After a month of searching, Blackburn Rovers have finally found a new manager in Valerien Ismael, but is the Frenchman the right man for the job?
Blackburn Rovers have had a tricky start to 2025, with lots of ups and downs already. The Lancashire outfit were flying high in the play-off places, but still managed to lose their manager, John Eustace, who opted to join relegation-threatened Derby County instead.
The club’s owners were criticised for a lack of ambition, with very little investment into the squad over the years.
In the meantime, Blackburn gave the keys to caretaker manager David Lowe, who produced two wins in his first two games to keep Rovers in contention in the top six. Lowe was even tipped to get the job full-time, but that plan fell apart after defeat to Swansea at the weekend.
Now, with Ismael at the helm, Blackburn will be hoping to keep up their pursuit of promotion, but they may struggle to do so if popular opinion is anything to go by.
Watford and West Brom fans have bad memories about Valerien Ismael
Upon announcing their new manager on Twitter/X, Blackburn Rovers were overwhelmed in the replies with Watford and West Brom fans recalling what Ismael did (or didn’t do) for them, and it seems the Frenchman might not be the best fit for his new role.
One Watford fan replied, “I am so so sorry for what you’re about to go through,” while another added, “He stalled the development of one our young lads a lot and had no plan B when plan A didn’t work. You’ll pick up results to begin with until teams clock what you’re about.”
Meanwhile, one West Brom fan had a dismal prediction for the rest of the season, posting: “Well that’s Blackburn out the play-off race.”
Another added: “Shocking appointment. Blackburn were so good and great going forward a few weeks back so an utterly bizarre appointment. Likely to mean they will drop out the play-offs now, though.”
One Baggies fan went deeper in their assessment, writing: “Get ready for some dour football, plenty of XG waffle and a raft of substitutions on the 60-minute mark. Seems a nice guy but not sure how he has snaffled this role when he’s had such limited success since his brief spell at Barnsley.”
It wasn’t all bad, though. One West Brom supporter said: “Let’s hope he’s got rid of his stubborness to change formation, if so he’s a very fun exciting manager who goes gung ho.”
Blackburn Rovers will fall out of the play-offs
You always have to take what rival fans say with a pinch of salt, especially when they’ve perhaps had a bad experience with a manager. But, things don’t look particularly promising for Blackburn right now.
Ismael’s past spells with Watford and West Brom were plagued by inconsistency and things quickly turned sour at both clubs. The same is very likely to happen at Blackburn, especially considering the fractious nature of things behind the scenes at the Championship club already.
| Position | Team | Played MP | Won W | Drawn D | Lost L | For GF | Against GA | Diff GD | Points Pts |
| 3 |  BurnleyBurnley | 34 | 18 | 14 | 2 | 43 | 9 | 34 | 68 |
| 4 |  SunderlandSunderland | 34 | 17 | 11 | 6 | 50 | 31 | 19 | 62 |
| 5 |  West BromWest Brom | 34 | 12 | 15 | 7 | 44 | 31 | 13 | 51 |
| 6 |  BlackburnBlackburn | 34 | 15 | 6 | 13 | 39 | 34 | 5 | 51 |
| 7 |  CoventryCoventry | 34 | 14 | 8 | 12 | 46 | 42 | 4 | 50 |
| 8 |  Bristol CityBristol City | 34 | 12 | 13 | 9 | 43 | 38 | 5 | 49 |
This could prove to be a costly decision for Blackburn, in more ways than one. With the financial situation at Ewood Park fragile as it is, the club cannot really afford to cut ties with Ismael, especially considering the big contract they have offered him.
But, with just 12 games left this season, Blackburn will need to find some momentum from somewhere, while also adapting to the system and approach of a new manager, which is never easy even at the best of times.
If any club is slipping out of the top six this season, it’s Blackburn Rovers, sadly.