Hughes: Hands off Benni!

The former Porto star has been a revelation since he arrived at Rovers last summer, scoring 13 goals, including five in his last five appearances, which has prompted Hughes to hail him as one of the signings of the season.

Inevitably, that red-hot form has led to speculation concerning a possible bid from one of the big clubs', with the News of the World carrying a story on Sunday which claimed the striker is attracting interest from a host of Premiership rivals.

However, Hughes is adamant his leading scorer is going nowhere and he has issued a firm hands off' warning to anyone thinking of testing his resolve.

The Rovers chief, who snapped up McCarthy for a bargain £2.5 million in the summer, said: "Whenever I have good players and they have good seasons, people automatically assume they want to leave but I take exception to that, to be perfectly honest, because what we offer players here is a great environment, and an opportunity to play in a good team, and I think that counts for something.

"It certainly counted for something for Steven Reid, Morten Pedersen and Ryan Nelsen in the summer (when they signed new deals), and that's the case again."

McCarthy has certainly flourished under Hughes' direction, and he seems eager to repay the Rovers manager for giving him the chance to fulfil his dream of playing in the Premiership.

The South African said: "Big clubs have a lot of economic advantages and if they really want you, they just go and get you.

"If a big club came in and Blackburn wanted the money and said yes, I would be interested.

"But I want to be loyal to the people who finally gave me a chance. Blackburn showed a lot of determination to get me and I have a lot of respect for that.

"So if they want me to stay, I will stay. Blackburn's wish is my command.

"I am no longer 23 or 24, when you still have that ambition and think you could go to an Arsenal, Liverpool or Manchester United."