Blackburn Rovers today looked down on the rest of the Premiership after Saturday's thrilling 5-1 victory over Wolves took them to the top of the table.

Lorenzo Amoruso and Brett Emerton both marked their Premiership debuts with a goal apiece in what was a breathtaking start to the new season.

And further strikes from David Thompson and Andy Cole (2) completed the rout, much to the delight of a triumphant Souness.

However, the ambitious Rovers boss has still not finished spending yet and he's poised to strengthen his hand still further with the capture of Liverpool defender Markus Babbel after opening talks with the player's agent over the weekend.

"Markus is someone who I admire greatly," said Souness.

"I think he would be an outstanding signing for us and I would love to have him at Blackburn Rovers.

"But there's still a lot of negotiating to do before a deal can be done."

Talks are already thought to be at an advanced stage as Souness looks to bolster his defensive resources.

Babbel is available on a free transfer after being told by Liverpool boss Gerard Houllier that he no longer figures in his plans.

And his move to Ewood now hinges on the 30-year-old sorting out a severance payment with his current employers.

However, Saturday's stunning performance certainly helped Souness's cause in selling the idea of a move to Rovers were quite simply irresistible as they tore Wolves apart but Souness did his best to keep his side's performance in perspective.

"It was a very good start for us," said the Rovers boss.

"But I'm not getting carried away because we were playing a side who had just come up from the First Division and it's going to take them time to adjust.

"Dave Jones and Wolves will learn a lot from that. The Premiership is a cruel place. There is no respite. They are going to have to learn quickly.

"As for our performance, I thought we were excellent for 35 minutes in the first half but then we maybe took our foot off the gas for 10 minutes before half-time.

"However, we then scored a third goal early in the second half which settled us down again and I thought we looked really good going forward."

Souness was full of praise in his assessment of the performances of his debutants, Amoruso and Emerton.

"I think Brett is a top player," said Souness.

"If that is the level of performance we are going to get from him then I'll be happy.

"I also thought Amoruso played well, too, and I'm delighted for Andy Cole.

"He had been struggling with an Achilles injury so I decided to stick with Matt Jansen and Dwight Yorke up front because I had to be fair to them.

"I explained to Andy why he wasn't starting and he came back with the perfect response.

"He put down a marker with his two goals which says 'Hey, manager! Don't forget about me."

Meanwhile, injured Blackburn new boy Steven Reid has withdrawn from the Republic of Ireland squad for tomorrow's friendly international against Australia at Lansdowne Road.