Paul Ince has signalled his intention to retain the services of the best players in the Blackburn squad, despite David Bentley insisting that he wants to play in Europe next season. Sky Sports report that the new Rovers boss is dead set against any player leaving Ewood Park, especially the duo who were shining lights for the Lancashire club last term.
“We are a top 10 side, (former boss) Mark Hughes has done an absolutely fantastic job and it’s up to me now to continue that and improve that and I want to keep my best players and keep pushing forward,” he said.
“We’ve got a bit of money in the kitty and one to two targets that we’re looking at, but we don’t start until 7th July so I’m looking forward to assessing the squad and going from there.
“I want to keep my best player – Bentley, Santa Cruz, all of them, and I will speak to the players you are talking about and the rest of the squad and go from there.”
One thing is clear – Paul Ince is going to ‘go from there’ this season! Quite whether he manages to persuade David Bentley to stay is another matter. The winger has made it abundantly clear that he wants out of Blackburn this summer. In addition, Ince’s former club Manchester United have been reportedly been sniffing around Santa Cruz and the Red Devils might be especially keen to land the Paraguayan, considering Cristiano Ronaldo is likely to leave Old Trafford.