Steve Cooper: Play-off expert should be on Blackburn Rovers radar | OneFootball

Steve Cooper is back on the market following his dismissal from Danish side Brondby

Blackburn Rovers' hunt for a new permanent manager continues following Michael O'Neill's rejection in favour of remaining in his post as the Northern Ireland boss, with the Lancashire-based side currently considering all their options.

Before the summer transfer window can begin for Blackburn, the club must iron out one crucial piece of business first.

Michael O'Neill stepped into the Ewood Park dugout during a difficult period alongside his role with the Northern Ireland national team, as he had previously done some six years ago with Stoke City, and was tasked with keeping the club in the Championship.

Five wins, five draws, and five defeats were enough to secure Rovers' second-tier status for another year, with the 56-year-old subsequently offered a fresh three-year deal to remain with the club, which he would eventually reject after much deliberation.

Former Stockport County boss Dave Challinor is the name most prominently linked with the vacancy at the moment following his departure from the Hatters, after narrowly missing out on promotion to the Championship in the play-off final.

However, should a move for Challinor not materialise, Blackburn should consider a swoop for a former play-off winning manager with Premier League experience under his belt, who is available for free following his own recent dismissal.

Blackburn Rovers should target Steve Cooper for the managerial vacancy

Welsh manager Steve Cooper is a name that will be familiar to a lot of supporters of Championship clubs, with the 46-year-old having previously spent time in charge of both Swansea City and Nottingham Forest in the second tier.

Cooper spent a large portion of his early coaching career with Liverpool's youth sides before moving into the England setup with the men's U16 and U17 sides, before taking the top job at Swansea in June 2019.

Cooper led the Welsh side to back-to-back play-off finishes in his two seasons with the club, losing the second in the play-off final to Brentford, before joining Nottingham Forest in September 2021, with the club bottom of the league.

He would miraculously guide the Midlands outfit into the play-offs despite their lowly position when he arrived, and with the likes of Brennan Johnson, Brice Samba, Djed Spence, and James Garner in their ranks, they defeated Huddersfield Town 1-0 at Wembley to book their place in the Premier League.

However, Cooper was dismissed by December in the top flight, with just one win in 13, and has since spent time with Leicester City and, most recently, Danish side Brondby, with whom he was dismissed after failing to secure European football.

Now back on the market, the 46-year-old will be eyeing up his next challenge during the summer, and Blackburn should approach the Welshman over the possibility of taking over at Ewood Park.

Having proven his excellence in the second tier, with three play-off finishes in a row with two different sides, going one better each time, Blackburn have no reason to believe he couldn't perform the same magic with them.

Whether Cooper would be willing to make the step back down to the English second tier after over three years away remains to be seen, but as far as available options go, the Welshman is among the best on the market, and simply must be considered by Blackburn.

Blackburn Rovers must carefully consider their option ahead of a huge managerial appointment

Blackburn slipped down a mighty 13 places in the table this season in comparison to the campaign prior, and if it weren't for the calmness and pragmatic nature swiftly instilled into the club by O'Neill, they very well could have faced the trapdoor.

This next managerial appointment has the option to go one of two ways, and should they not get it spot on, the ramifications would be catastrophic.

Cooper would likely want to be backed healthily in the summer transfer window if he were to take the step down to Blackburn, though, with the Venky's notoriously unwilling to pump money into the club, the likelihood of that looks glum.

Nevertheless, Blackburn should try to lure Cooper to Ewood Park ahead of a huge summer, as he could well be the right person for the job.