Blackburn and Kean staring at relegation after meek surrender at Spurs

Steve Kean looks out of his depth as a manager

Steve Kean has taken an incredible amount of stick this season.

It reached a crescendo in late-December during and after a 2-1 home defeat to local rivals Bolton, when the Scot suffered more abuse than anyone deserves.

However, after Blackburn's woeful season reached a laughable new low today with a pathetic 2-0 defeat at Tottenham, supporters have every right to call for his head.

It was a game Rovers simply had to win to stand a realistic chance of staying up, yet they didn't manage a shot in the entire game.

Kean stuck with an extremely defensive 5-3-2 formation throughout and took his only potent threat, Yakubu, off with 20 minutes to play.

It was as if Kean was playing for a narrow defeat, but this was a game Blackburn needed three points from.

They now probably must get at least four points from their remaining two games - against two of the league's form sides, Wigan and Chelsea - and it is hard to see any other outcome but relegation for them.

It's not hard to see why Blackburn fans are so negative about Kean.

First and foremost, of course, they have never warmed to him because of results and performances.

They're 19th in the table and three points from safety, while only rock-bottom Wolves have conceded more.

Think how many more Blackburn would have conceded without the excellent Paul Robinson in goal.

Think of how much worse the season could have been without the goals of Yakubu and talent of Junior Hoilett.

Yakubu has scored 16 league goals for Blackburn so far this season

It is true Kean has had a lot to put up with this season.

The transfer kitty Indian owners Venky's promised to bring in world-class players never materialised, while Kean has had to watch as assets such as Chris Samba and Phil Jones have been sold.

There have also been some brief revivals during the season, most notably the two-game spell after the Bolton defeat where Blackburn drew at Liverpool and won at Old Trafford against Manchester United.

However, Kean turned those results into myths and is still referring to them as "monumental" performances which give him the belief Blackburn can win at Chelsea on the final day.

Lucky is a more apt description of the four points Blackburn picked up in Merseyside and Manchester.

In the game at Anfield which ended 1-1, Liverpool had 28 shots to Blackburn's five while stand-in goalkeeper Mark Bunn had the game of his life to keep the Reds at bay.

At Old Trafford, meanwhile, Blackburn met a Wayne Rooney-less Man United and somehow only conceded twice despite the home side having 26 efforts on goal.

There is no doubt Blackburn's players showed tremendous spirit in those two games - fans have every right to question why the same effort hasn't been displayed by the players throughout the season - but to label them "monumental performances" is typical of Kean.

There seemingly isn't a situation he would perceive as negative and his ridiculously positive post-match interviews are sure to anger supporters who have watched their side suffer all season.

Kean even went through a phase earlier in the season when he embarrassingly  name-dropped managers who had told him Blackburn had been unlucky against their respective sides into interviews.

A section of Blackburn's support deserve criticism for the way they acted during crucial games in the first half of the season and the negative atmosphere they created, as it can't have helped on-pitch performances.

However, it is not hard to understand why they have been so angry with Kean and the club's owners throughout the season.

It seems just five minutes since Venky's came in with talk of Ronaldinho, Beckham and the Champions League, but Blackburn fans have had to put up with signing the likes of Bradley Orr and a slow, painful slip into the Championship.

Kean jumped on the Champions League bandwagon when he suggested the club would qualify for the competition in the next three years, but there is more chance of Blackburn going down to League Two in that time-span.

Venky's seem to have no clue about how to run a football club and it is extremely difficult to see Blackburn bouncing straight back to the Premier League next season should they be relegated.

It is hard to see how Venky's reign at Blackburn could have been more disastrous so far

Kean will probably still be their manager, despite everything, as he appears bullet-proof.

He must be putting his monthly treks to India for board meetings to good use by brain-washing his paymasters into thinking all is rosy at Ewood Park.

Kean should have been gone last summer, and Venky's have had numerous chances to do the right thing since then yet have persevered with him when it has been clear he is out of his depth.

There were even some ridiculous suggestions a few weeks ago that Kean should be manager of the year.

It is hard to fathom what some people see in him.

Yes, he has had to put up with a lot of stick and yes the board aren't exactly clued-up on football.

However, Kean is no manager.

His players seem to like him but that means nothing unless there are results to go with it.

The 2-0 defeat at Spurs was embarrassing and after the game, Kean gave another one of his classic, cringeworthy interviews.

He was typically positive and suggested they still had a great chance of staying up.

However, the obituaries are already being written and Blackburn will soon join Wolves in the Championship.

Kean will probably lead them into that campaign as the owners are likely to be fooled once more by his positivity, and Rovers will suffer as a result.

This season could just be the tip of the iceberg.

Venky's are giving a masterclass in how not to run a football club and the real people who are suffering are those who always suffer in these situations: the fans.

Blackburn supporters have crossed the line on several occasions this season with their antics but their anger merely shows how bad things have got at Ewood Park.

They can see their club meekly surrendering their place in the Premier League and feel the only thing they can do about it is abuse those at fault for their plight.

Today's performance may just have been Blackburn's worst of the season, and that is saying something.

Kean will never win round the fans and all logic points to him not being Blackburn's manager next season, but logic goes out of the window where Venky's are concerned.

The Championship is on the horizon and Blackburn look set to head into it in disarray.