Not sure how much of this plan to bring in player by the truckload on massive money is Cooper’s over the owner…

Well yes, but that refers to the whole ‘Professional’ league, not a ‘Premier’ league that you were talking about. They’ve gone back to the old one league format - I.e like we had in the Football League pre 1992.

Neither of those exist. The SPL was scrapped about a decade ago and the top flight was re-integrated with the rest of the Scottish league system.

Thought you said last week that the problems there only started last season?

10 games? 15? 46? Does it include cups, sub appearances? Typical half a story, maybe the full one is on his grifter site.

So another 4K buying match tickets and a c15k crowd. About double the number that ‘walked up’ when we played WBA last August. (11,900 crowd).

Another interesting insight, some real attention to detail. https://www.lancashiretelegraph.co.uk/sport/20639777.jon-dahl-tomassons-blackburn-rovers-pitch-requirements/ (oh and it confirms there was no new pitch despite the continual claims to the otherwise all summer from one poster).

‘Get on yer bike!’

Totally agree, which is why the club can’t just focus its engagement on BwD when more and more of the fanbase lives across Lancashire.

BBD (plain old BB in those days) was the last one I remember…

Hans Segers, Wimbledon. Think it is Hillier. David Buust for Coventry? Ian Butterworth, Norwich? Can’t remember what I had for my tea last night, but 90s football!

Can tell there’s a lot of new members (which is a good thing, of course) as most threads of any decent size have always gone off on tangents - puns, completely irrelevant discussions, memory lane, you name it! Just what football message boards do. Especially transfer threads when there’s not been a sniff of a transfer for over a week. Nature abhors a vacuum and all that…

Henry Winter, Chief Football Writer, The Times At 18, Jon Dahl Tomasson told his parents he was quitting his maths studies in Copenhagen to follow his dream to play football in the Netherlands. “My parents said, ‘You need to be brave, look forward, make good decisions and take all the possibilities in the world. You can make mistakes, no problem, we will stand behind you,’ ” Tomasson recalls. With that backing, the gifted striker set off on an adventure of 27 years and counting that has taken him through five countries, Champions League glory and heartache, into management and now top of the Sky Bet Championship as head coach with Blackburn Rovers. He also believes in empowering youth. So it was fitting to find him at Rovers’ Brockhall Village training ground on Thursday afternoon about to listen to tactical presentations from the teenagers who had done so well in the previous night’s 4-0 win over Hartlepool United in the Carabao Cup. The Dane expects them to take responsibility, to understand the game, to question, find solutions and grow. As he did. “Two of the players made analysis of the first half, two of the second half,” he says. “We’ve done it a couple of times before. The first time they were nervous. It was like they were playing in the biggest stadium in the world, with all the supporters against them, instead of sitting in a room giving the presentation, but slowly we get that brain going regarding football. It makes them more mature and gives them confidence. That’s also part of their development.” While Tony Mowbray’s selfless work at such a financially challenged club will never be forgotten, fans are taking to Tomasson. They like the attacking football, the excellent results so far (three games, three wins, eight goals scored, none conceded), the desire to develop players and that he calls the team “Rovers”. “When you’re coming as a player, also a manager, to a club you need to create a connection with the fans, because the fans are the soul of football,” Tomasson says. “They love the football, they love the club. One of my tasks, and the players’, is to show passion, team spirit and always be a team who work hard and fight for each other. The fans need to see those things. “When you look at the amount that fans are paying for tickets, travel, merchandise — they need the shirts — then you have a responsibility to give something back. Football’s a way of life here in England. Even if you went to a lower league, there’s passion. “Some of the players understand the fans’ passion. Those who don’t understand need to be taught. Fans are the soul of football. We can’t play football without fans. We saw that in Covid. It was a nightmare playing those games [behind closed doors].” Tomasson has always taken responsibility. “Life is about making decisions and one of the first decisions I made as an 18-year-old boy was I want to go abroad,” he says. “I wanted to chase my dream of being a footballer.” With his parents’ blessing, he packed his boots and headed off. So began a playing journey in 1994, taking in Heerenveen, Newcastle United, Feyenoord, AC Milan, Stuttgart, Villarreal and finally back at Feyenoord. “I have a Danish heart but I got my education in Europe in how to survive.” He learnt Dutch, English, Italian, German and Spanish. He acquired people skills, as well as constantly inquiring about tactics that serve him well in management. “The last 27 years I’ve been in six different countries,” he says. “I get rich as a human being travelling around getting used to coping with different cultures, different mentalities, different clubs.” At Heerenveen he was coached by Foppe de Haan, who took the teenager off to analyse opponents. “Those scouting trips and learning about the game was a great education,” Tomasson says. “He took care of people. Foppe is a legend in Holland. “In Denmark you need to have an opinion about everything but not as much as in Holland! So I learnt from an early age to explain my views, communicate with people and have knowledge of the game.” In 1997, Newcastle came calling with a £2.2 million bid. Kenny Dalglish’s plan was to partner Tomasson, such a clever No 10, with Alan Shearer. “It’s a great club and of course I should have played behind Shearer but he got injured,” Tomasson continues. With Les Ferdinand sold, Dalglish had no choice but to play Tomasson as a lone striker. “I played out of position. At that time I was not good enough to play alone. Four years later I could have. It was a very difficult time for a young boy but I learnt a lot. Newcastle are a massive club. I always look at how Newcastle have been doing. Dalglish, of course, is a legend here at Rovers.” After three goals in 34 appearances, Tomasson was sold for £2.5 million to Feyenoord. He loved it there. “I had a great time at Feyenoord, playing for Leo Beenhakker, who’s extremely good in the press as well, and Bert van Marwijk. Getting opportunities to pick a little piece from each was positive. I had the luck to play under a lot of great managers.” Not luck, I argue, it’s ability that lifted him into their orbit. “Yes, yes,” he agrees. You don’t go to Milan with luck. “True, spot on.” He had a gift, timing and finishing, such as scoring what proved the winner for Feyenoord in the 2002 Uefa Cup final against Borussia Dortmund at De Kuip. “A memory I look back on is scoring the goal in 2002, my last game for Feyenoord [in his first spell], man of the match, a fairytale, just before signing that contract with Milan.” He actually rejected Barcelona. “Exactly. At that time Milan were the best in the world.” The competition at San Siro was fierce: Filippo Inzaghi, Rivaldo, Andriy Shevchenko and Hernán Crespo. “I was fighting for a spot every game, and there’s pressure. In Italy, football is the No 1 [obsession] for fans, then religion, then wife. I had three excellent years, two Champions League finals [winning in 2003], one losing — and we all know which. Against Liverpool so we are not talking about that.” But what of Istanbul 2005? Tomasson came on for Crespo at 3-3, the game heading into extra time and beyond. “I was in that penalty shoot-out,” he recalls. “I needed to score, otherwise we would have lost at that time [had John Arne Riise converted Liverpool’s third]. Shoot-outs at that level could be quite stressful. Luckily I scored.” Famously, Milan still lost 3-2 on penalties. Tomasson still cannot believe what unfolded in Istanbul. “Leading 3-0 and then losing in that way . . . it should never happen but it happened,” he reflects. “Liverpool did a great job. I haven’t watched the game back and I will never.” Too painful? “Yes. I hate losing, and losing like that’s not nice.” Did he swap shirts with anyone? “No idea. Can’t remember. “The moments I look back on are the moments when you’re winning, scoring that [final] goal for Feyenoord, becoming champion at Feyenoord, and scoring for Denmark — 52 goals [a national record for the modern era]. That Liverpool game hurt a lot. I hate to lose.” It was even more shocking for Tomasson because of the amount of leaders Milan had. “A lot of those players became managers afterwards,” he says of Andrea Pirlo, Jaap Stam, Alessandro Nesta, Shevchenko, Clarence Seedorf, Gennaro Gattuso and himself. “It was a thinking team.” His own well of thoughts was deepened watching Carlo Ancelotti calmly dealing with egos, and ensuring the reserves felt a part. “It was the way he worked with the group, he did a tremendous job and with the way he managed above well with the board [and Silvio Berlusconi].” He also learnt while representing Denmark. “Having Morten Olsen as coach, being captain, getting responsibility, and getting closer to the decision-making.” In a way, a player who always thought deeply about tactics was preparing for management, including starting to assist the Danish national side in 2016. “That was beautiful to be part of,” he says, smiling. “If you’re a small country — only six million people — you need to do things a bit better than other countries. We’re proud people. We had a great spell, we qualified for the [2018] World Cup, for [Euro] 2020.” He left but Denmark’s good form continues. “It’s tremendous to see. They’re even better now because of the foundations built.” These are good people as well as good people. The world saw that when Simon Kjaer, Kasper Schmeichel and the team rallied around the stricken Christian Eriksen in Copenhagen during their Euro 2020 game against Finland. “I was not surprised at all because I knew those players,” Tomasson says of their support network. “They have that leadership, friendship and togetherness. “Eriksen has been one of the best players in the Premier League and Italy for years, and for the Danish side, and he’s very likeable as well. He’s a great boy who loves the game. If you give him a ball he’ll smile all day.” Tomasson was managing Malmo at the time. “The club hadn’t won anything for two or three years, so winning two titles and taking them into the Champions League [in 2021] made me very proud,” he recalls. “If you play four qualification rounds, where you are not seeded in two of them, [and reach the group stage] is Mission Impossible, it shouldn’t happen. But it happened.” Malmo promptly got drawn against Chelsea, Juventus and Zenit St Petersburg. “It was like being that young boy playing around in the schoolyard and you want to join in with the big boys and you’re trying and trying but it’s tough,” he recalls. Malmo still made €30 million from the campaign. “We built foundations for the club financially,” he says. Tomasson stood down as head coach after the final game of the group stage, in Turin in December. “It was a surprise for many people when I left. I was searching for a new project. The club respected my decision, and of course [were] not happy with it. It was nice to go out of the front door. It doesn’t happen that many times that the manager goes out the front door.” He had a break. “I spent time with family, and with Covid I haven’t seen that much of them. I took a break but I never really took a break! I went around different clubs, just travelling around to get inspiration.” So why Rovers with their financial constraints? “I had a lovely chat with Suhail [Shaikh, head of international business at Venky’s, the owners]. I only spoke with the owners through emails and telephone calls. When Gregg [Broughton, director of football] and the owners wanted me in as a manager I was very pleased with the idea behind it. “We want to build a sustainable Premier League club over time and when you build that it is not just about getting there but staying there. That’s the challenge. Football is always about winning but combining winning and building is the most difficult to do. I see the ambition here but I also see the patience. “Eight players left the club from last season. We have three players in so far. Tyler Morton is a loan player [from Liverpool], did well [against Hartlepool] as well as being a good boy.” Callum Brittain and Sammie Szmodics have been recruited on permanent deals from Barnsley and Peterborough United respectively. Can Rovers hold on to Ben Brereton Díaz? “Yes, hopefully,” Tomasson replies. “But if Ben is going then we need to get money in as well and then we need to spend some of the money. Every player’s for sale, as always, you just need the right amount but I see Ben work hard every day. I see him perform every day.” He wants Rovers performing on the front foot, attacking and pressing. “We need to play a game that people enjoy,” Tomasson says. “We should never play ‘the Dutch disease’, which I call it, where they just play it around, around, around. We want to play a possession game which is speedy towards goal, an intense game with and without the ball.” Two youngsters left on Thursday proudly carrying Rovers shirts. Tomasson’s sons, Luca and Liam, and his wife, Line Dahl Kongeskov Tomasson, were over from Rotterdam. “They were here for 14 days, we stayed in a small cottage here in Whalley, very nice,” Tomasson says. Typically, Tomasson turned up at Brockhall Village on Thursday with a thank-you gift for Lesley Fielding, the manager’s popular PA, who helped to sort his accommodation. “When you’re coming from abroad to another club, you need all the help you can get!” Tomasson says, smiling. His sons flew back to resume training and schooling. Luca is at Excelsior and Liam at Feyenoord. He found it difficult to say goodbye to them. “Of course. I’m very lucky to have a strong wife. She does a tremendous job regarding the family, keeping every part together, because it’s tough, and I’m sitting here chasing a dream.” Just as Tomasson has since he was 18.

double

“But ‘oo we gonna get?”

Regular on brfcs, I reckon, so he knows the score - and we have had an influx of newbies recently…

You have to roll the dice from time to time. Fresh people, fresh ideas. A new voice is needed every now and then, especially in the modern game. He may crash and burn, but that’s football, you have to be ready to accept that, or else we may have just given TM a new ten year deal and left him to it.

Interesting amount of PR being done as well. Football Focus, NW Tonight, The Times. When was the last time we had anything like this amount of exposure? The build up to the FA Cup QF with Liverpool, maybe? Been a while that’s for sure.

A ‘journo’ with a gmail address…

Carrying on my HBO binge, watching ‘Big Love’, about Mormons in Utah who engage in polygamy. Obviously a drama so of course liberties will be being taken with the reality of their lifestyles, but still a great insight into a batshit world…

Can just see him knocking an ale back in De Lacy’s. I imagine Mogga would be skriking in his flat looking at old paintings of Ayresome Park.

It also perhaps shows the difference in structure. TM was running the whole place, very 80s/90s, but if that main man is someone of fairly average competency, then it’s a sense of Jack of all trades, master of none. The modern game now expects the Head Coach to be exactly that - someone to improve the performances of the first team squad and to find ways to win matches, the other stuff is looked after elsewhere…

Crowds can only go so high with just 8,500 ST holders as you need large numbers of match day buyers turning up every week to take up the slack to turn it into a decent gate - something you obviously don’t need to the same extent if you have 12/13k. But if on Sunday and onwards we can pull in 4/5k walk ons at £25 -£30 (so not exactly give away prices) then that’s a good base to build on. Last season we then supplemented that with good numbers of half STs… alas that will be a struggle this time however well we could end up doing when the energy bills start coming through the letterboxes…

Of course if you win it works, that’s the whole point. TM’s tinkering rarely did, as for me he didn’t have the tactical nous to pull it off - a prime example being wasting a year trying to play like Swansea are now (i.e without the players to do it) in the lockdown season No surprises that when he stumbled across a settled personnel and formation last season is when he got results.

In the present day, most Rovers fans I come across, hope, not even expect, that in a good season we will be ‘in the mix’ for the second tier play offs positions… something we spent the majority of the pre-Jack 1980s doing. Doesn’t seem a particularly ‘spoilt’ fanbase that has such an outlook, and it certainly shouldn't lend itself to barbs of ‘too high expectations’, ‘it’s not 1995 anymore’.