BLACKBURN Rovers need a manager in the mould of their former boss Sam Allardyce.

That is the opinion of ex-Rovers defender Pascal Chimbonda who was signed by Big Sam during his time as the club’s manager.

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Allardyce, who has steered Sunderland to Premier League survival, was sacked as Rovers boss shortly after Venky’s took over the club.

Since then Rovers’ India-based owners have gone through a further five full-time managers.

They are currently searching for a replacement for Paul Lambert after he walked away after six months in the job.

And Chimbonda, whose only goal for Rovers came in the 3-2 derby win at home to Burnley in October 2009, has no doubt about the type of boss they should look for.

“When I came to Blackburn I played under Sam Allardyce, who is a very good manager; it was a pleasure to play under him,” said the former France international to bwin.

“As you can see with what he’s done at Sunderland, the players gave him everything on the pitch and it was similar when I played for him at Ewood Park.

“In my opinion, Rovers are crying out for a manager like Allardyce. They need a robust character who is tactically very good but also shows some grit and determination that players can feed off, especially in the Championship where there’s a lot of passion and hunger to win.

“For whatever reason it didn’t work out for Paul Lambert but they need to go back to the type of football we played when I was at the club, giving absolutely everything for the fans.

“Currently, it’s a relatively new team, with some exciting young players but I think at the moment they’re missing some experienced players to help the youngsters.”

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