Ex-Man Utd coach wants to become Blackburn Rovers manager | OneFootball

A Rovers legend wants to become the club's manager - could it happen this summer?

Blackburn Rovers' manager role has been plunged into uncertainty this summer following Michael O'Neill's decision to stick with Northern Ireland's national team.

In a unique job share between club and country, O'Neill took on the Rovers job back in February for the remaidner of the 2025-26 season after Valerien Ismael's sacking, whilst at the same time gearing up for the Green And White Army's FIFA World Cup qualifying play-off with Italy, which ended up in defeat.

O'Neill kept Blackburn in the Championship after five wins and five draws from his 15 matches in charge, and the signs were positive that he was going to leave international management behind and sign on the dotted line permanently at Ewood Park.

And whilst he had a self-confessed 'great offer' from the powers-that-be at Blackburn, O'Neill ultimately took the offer of a contract until 2032 with Northern Ireland, leaving Rovers back to square one in their manager search.

Blackburn Rovers icon wants to become manager of Ewood Park club

A number of names have been linked to the vacancy, including Russell Martin, Tom Cleverley, Slaven Bilic and Belgian coach Wouter Vrancken, but one individual has seemingly thrown his name into the hat - and he's well-known to the Rovers faithful.

South African striker Benni McCarthy joined the Lancashire outfit in 2006 from FC Porto, and his three-and-a-half year stint at Ewood Park was a successful one in terms of goals scored, finding the back of the net 52 times in 140 appearances, including netting 24 times in his debut campaign.

Having moved into coaching following his playing career, including having a stint on Man United's coaching staff under Erik ten Hag, McCarthy has now expressed his wish to become Rovers boss at some point in the future - just when there's a vacancy up for grabs.

"I love Blackburn Rovers. I would put my life down that I want that club to succeed so bad that you want to get them in the Premier League, and maybe that's what they need, instead of always going for the tried and tested," McCarthy told BBC Radio Lancashire.

"It is what it is, the decision makers, they're always there to make those kind of hard decisions, and one day if that call comes, I'd be there in a heartbeat.

"Like I said, there's a few special places in my heart, Porto always has that special place because of my achievements as an individual and as a team what we achieved, Ajax is a special place because it was my first club that pulled me from Africa and gave me the platform to be in Europe, but Blackburn Rovers is where I was at home. That is where my family is - there's nothing greater than that."

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Despite going into coaching when his playing days were over, McCarthy's actual managerial experience is quite slim.

The 48-year-old has managed two clubs in his native South Africa - 89 matches in charge of Cape Town City between 2017 and 2019 as well as a 15-month stint with AmaZulu, and his 40.27 per cent win record isn't all that bad on the face of it.

He's also currently in charge of Kenya's national team and has been since March 2025, winning seven of his 17 matches in charge, including taking the scalps of DR Congo and Morocco in the group stage of the African Nations Championship, so there may be some potential there.

However, McCarthy would very much be thrown in at the deep end at Blackburn if he were to be handed the head coach role, and now is perhaps not the right time for that after a relegation battle in 2025-26.