Blackburn eye audacious Maradona move

El Diego, who has been out of football since leaving his post as Argentina manager in July, is believed to be the marquee signing that the board desire following the sacking of Sam Allardyce.

The chairwoman of Venky's, the Indian-based firm that gained control of Rovers last month, admitted on Tuesday night: “We thought about Maradona as a coach after we took over. Talks were at the initial stage then, but there is no development on that front yet."

Despite initially appearing to favour a British manager to replace Allardyce, reports suggest that Venky's are ready to approach Maradona as they attempt to put their own stamp on the club.

The Argentina legend, who turned 50 in October, has made no secret of his desire to land a job in England's top flight, admitting in the current issue of FourFourTwo magazine that he would "like to manage in the Premier League."

In the meantime, first team coach Steve Kean is in caretaker charge, with Venky's chief Anuradha Desai admitting that it may be some time before a permanent replacement is appointed.

"Right now we are going to have a study and put a lot of thought in to who the next manager of Blackburn Rovers will be.

"We don't want to make a hasty decision and we are in a good position to take our time because Steve is quite capable. It could now be a couple of months before a new manager is put in place."

By Greg Lea