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2009-10 Influenza Season Advisory buffalomedicalgroup.com | Quick Survey (February 10, 2009 - March 24, 2009) ichelp.org | StemCells: September 10, 2009 stemcellsinc.com | Wilderness Advanced First Aid Course - Wilderness Outings 10/10/2009-... wildmed.com |
The 2009–10 season is Blackburn Rovers 122nd season as a professional club. The 2009–10 season is Blackburn Rovers' 16th season in the Premier League, and their 9th consecutive season in the top division of English football.
[edit] Pre-season[edit] Ins and outsThe end of the 2008–09 season saw the departure of first team squad players Andre Ooijer[1], Aaron Mokoena[2] and Tugay[3] on free transfers. With this information in his mind Sam Allardyce wasted no time in his first Summer in charge bringing new additions into the club with the signing of the South African international winger Elrio Van Heerden[4] from Club Brugge on the 2nd June 2009 on a free transfer. A few weeks later Roque Santa Cruz[5] signed for Manchester City ending 12 months of speculation and 2 days later Matt Derbyshire[6] completed a move to Olympiacos, where he had been on loan since January 2009. With the incoming cash Blackburn quickly move to secure Gael Givet[7] to a permanent contract following his successful loan spell from Marseille in the second half of the prior season. He was swiftly followed into Ewood Park by another free transfer right back Lars Jacobsen[8] who had been released from Everton following two years plagued by injury and Steven Nzonzi[9], a central midfielder who joined from French club Amiens for an undisclosed fee. With the departure of two strikers and the lack of depth shown upfont the prior season by being forced to play Christopher Samba as a striker for the most part, the attention was then shifted to strengthening the frontline. After being linked to numerous big name strikers such as Bojan[10], Ruud van Nistelrooy[11] and Christian Vieri[12] throughout the summer, Blackburn finally secured the signings of Franco Di Santo[13] on loan and the permanent signing of Croatian Striker Nikola Kalinic[14], in early August. Due to the arrival of two new strikers Paul Gallagher was allowed to leave the club and joined Championship side Leicester in order to play first team football[15]. In mid August Michel Salgado[16] became available on a free transfer after being released by Real Madrid and given Sam Allardyces previous experience of prolonging older players careers opted to join Blackburn. This would seemingly signal the end of any summer transfer activity as the board had requested that the wage bill be reduced and that a large amount of the transfer fees received from the sales of Santa Cruz and Derbyshire go towards paying off existing debt and supporting the upcoming seasons wage bill[17]. However after the season had begun Aston Villa began to pursue the 2008–2009 Blackburn player of the season Stephen Warnock[18]. Unable to resist the money on offer Blackburn accepted the bid and allowed the player to leave. A reason behind allowing the move to go through was that a ready replacement was already lined up, in the form of Pascal Chimbonda[19] who joined on the same day as Warnock departed. Barring loan deals to lower league teams this would mark the end of Blackburns summer transfer market activities. [edit] Friendlies
[edit] Premier League[edit] August
Blackburn got their Premier League campaign underway with a home fixture against the summers big spenders Manchester City. The starting line up included new signings Gael Givet, Lars Jacobsen and Steven Nzonzi. It did not take long for the deadlock to be broken as Emmanuel Adebayor scored from 18 yards in the third minute to give City the lead. Both sides continued to create chances however another goal wasn't scored until time added on at the end of the game when Stephen Ireland slid the ball past Paul Robinson to ensure Man City left with all three points.
Due to Fulham participation in the Europa League the game between the two sides scheduled for Wednesday the 19th August was postponed to a later date. Therefore Blackburns next fixture was away to Sunderland. Blackburn took the lead in the 21st minute when Gael Givet stroked home from the edge of the area following a Blackburn corner. The lead however turned out to be short lived as Kenwyne Jones levelled 11 minutes later. After half time things turned from bad to worse for Blackburn as another Jones goal in the 53rd minute gave Sunderland the lead. Despite creating numerous chances Blackburn were unable to find the net again and thus slumped to their second consecutive defeat of the season.
The following weekend saw Blackburn host West Ham United looking for their first points of the season. The match ended in a disappointing 0–0 draw with very little clear cut opportunities. Arguably the best chance of the game fell to substitute David Hoilett but his effort just went over the bar. At the end of August Blackburn were sitting 18th in the table taking only 1 point from a possible 9.
Pld = Matches played; W = Matches won; D = Matches drawn; L = Matches lost; F = Goals for; A = Goals against; GD = Goal difference; Pts = Points [edit] September
Due to an International break the first week in September the next fixture did no take place until 12 September. This match saw Wolves visit Ewood Park with Blackburn still looking for their first win. After a cagey start Blackburn took the lead through El Hadji Diouf in the 19th minute after he capitalised on a mistake by Michael Mancienne before putting the ball through Wayne Hennessey's legs. Soon after the break Jason Roberts doubled the lead when he used his body to deflect Gael Givets goalbound header past the wolves keeper in the 56th minute. In the 64th minute Blackburn added a third when a through ball from Morten Gamst Pedersen split the Wolves defence, leaving Roberts one on one with the keeper. Hennessey got his body in the way of Roberts effort but the ball still seemed to be heading into the goal. Nonetheless a chasing David Dunn knocked in from a yard just to make sure. With the game seemingly won Sam Allardyce decided to bring on a returning Brett Emerton (who had been out of action since January) and a debuting Michel Salgado. In the 88th minute Wolves grabbed an 88th minute consolation when Stefan Maierhofer pounced to knock in from a corner.
The next fixture was away to Everton in a match that was moved from Saturday 19 September to Sunday 20th due to Evertons Europa league commitments. With Blackburns first attack El-Hadji Diouf had a chance to give the visitors the lead, but his header struck the crossbar. Minutes later Everton took the lead when Louis Saha found space in the Blackburn box and side-foot volleyed the home side ahead from a Leighton Baines free-kick. Blackburn came close early in the second half when Tim Howard palmed Diouf's initial cross out to David Dunn who controlled the ball in the box before setting up Keith Andrews for a shot that the Everton keeper parried to safety. In the 54th minute Marouane Fellaini swung over a cross from the right which Saha rose to head into the right-hand bottom corner of the net for his, and Everton's second. Barely three minutes later, Baines delivered a corner from the right, which Saha nodded on, Dunn failed to clear and Joseph Yobo was on hand to poke past Paul Robinson from within the six-yard box. Blackburn had one last chance to get back in the game when substitute David Hoilett found Diouf on the edge of the box but with Howard made a fine save from his strike and the visitors fight was extinguished.
Looking to bounce back from that defeat Blackburn welcomed Aston Villa the following weekend. They could not however have asked for a worse start when 3 minutes into the game Gabriel Agbonlahor latched onto a long ball before hitting a scuffed shot past Paul Robinson into the bottom corner of the goal. Blackburn were back in the game when a long ball up field by Ryan Nelsen was misheaded by Villa defender Richard Dunne into the path of Christopher Samba who volleyed intao the left hand corner. In the 68th minute Blackburn were reduced to ten men when Vince Grella made a rash challenge on James Milner which resulted in his second yellow card. Villa could not make the advantage count and in the 88th minute an overhead kick from Franco Di Santo struck Dunne on hand which was above his head. A penalty was awarded and David Dunn coolly hit the penalty to the left hand side sending Brad Friedel the wrong way. There was still time for Villa to have a couple of long range efforts but Paul Robinson saved these and Blackburn held on for the win. From the September fixtures Blackburn had taken 6 points from a possible 9 and moved up to 13th in the table.
Pld = Matches played; W = Matches won; D = Matches drawn; L = Matches lost; F = Goals for; A = Goals against; GD = Goal difference; Pts = Points [edit] October
Blackburns first match in October was away to Arsenal. Quite unexpectedly Blackburn took the lead in the 4th minute when a long free kick from Paul Robinson was met by Steven Nzonzi and looped over Arsenal keeper Vito Mannone. Arsenal came back strong and after Cesc Fabregas and Andrei Arshavin had both gone close Thomas Vermaelen struck a fierce left foot volley from the edge of the box leaving Paul Robinson with no chance. Blackburn again managed to get ahead when a quick break allowed David Dunn to get in the Arsenal box and his effort deflected of William Gallas past a helpless Mannone. This lead only lasted 2 minutes when Fabregas slide a ball through Blackburns defence which Robin Van Persie latched onto before striking a left footed effort low and hard into the bottom corner. 4 minutes later a long kick up forward was headed on by Van Persie and Arshavin produced a similar finish to the second goal to put Arsenal 3–2 ahead, which it stayed until half time. In the 48th minute Blackburn were denied a penalty by the referee which TV replays showed to be an incorrect decision and Martin Olsson forced a good save from Mannone with a left footed volley of his own. Arsenal were soon back on top and extended their lead in 57th minute when Fabregas looped a half volley into the corner. Substitute David Hoilett went close for Blackburn but Arsenal substitutes Theo Walcott and Nicklas Bendtner added a goal a piece to complete the rout.
Yet another international break meant that Blackburn would have to wait two weeks for a chance to bounce back from the defeat to Arsenal. They had this opportunity at home to Burnley in the first East Lancashire derby in top flight football since 1966. Blackburn once again suffered from, conceding an early goal like they had already done at Ewood Park against Man City and Aston Villa. In the 4th minute a quick break from Burnley left Blackburn exposed and when the ball was played out wide to Robbie Blake he cut inside onto his right foot before blasting a thunderous effort from 25 yards. It did not take long for Blackburn to get back on level terms. In the 8th minute a Morten Gamst Pedersen cross was cleverly flicked by Franco Di Santo straight into the path of an on coming David Dunn who coolly slide the ball into the bottom corner. El-Hadji Diouf dragged a chance wide before Blackburn took the lead when Di Santo scored his first premier league goal when Burnley failed to deal with a header across goal from Christopher Samba. Samba himself went close when he headed just over when unmarked at a corner. But it was Pascal Chimbonda who doubled Blackburns advantage when he took Pedersens knock down cut inside Steven Fletcher and clipped the ball into the far corner in the 43rd minute. The second half was a more sombre affair as Blackburn believed they had already done enough to win the game. However two minutes into added time substitute Chris Eagles slotted in a second for Burnley but Blackburn held on for the win and the bragging rights for at least another 5 months.
The match that followed the derby win was away to 2nd placed Chelsea. Franco Di Santo was ineligible for this game due to him being on loan from Chelsea and Christopher Samba and David Dunn were both sidelined by a virus. Things did not start well for Blackburn as after just 30 seconds Joe Cole headed just wide when unmarked in the box. After further pressure Chelsea eventually went ahead when Gael Givet diverted Nicolas Anelka's cross into his own net in the 20th minute. Blackburn only created a couple of half chances and had Paul Robinson to thank for going in at the interval only one goal behind, after he made a string of good saves from Anelka, Didier Drogba and John Terry. Chelsea begun the second half the way they finished the first and doubled the advantage in the 48th minute when Frank Lampard slotted in from ten yards. Five minutes later it was 3-0 when Michael Essien struck a 35 yard curling effort past Robinson who may feel like he could have done better. Chelsea kept on pressing and in the 58th minute Ryan Nelsen brought down Drogba and Lampard coolly sent Robinson the wrong way from the penalty spot. The agony was compounded when Drogba headed in Lampards corner in the 64th minute. Blackburn were denied a consolation goal when Terry cleared Martin Olsson's goal bound effort off the line, but in reality were lucky to escape with only five goals against them.
After the Chelsea match it emerged that Blackburn had had an outbreak of swine flu within the squad[20] which may have contributed to a low key start to the game which saw the only chance in the first half fall to Antonio Valencia who mistimed his volley. Manchester United pushed on for the rest of the first half and Dimitar Berbatov had a couple of efforts saved by Paul Robinson, a shot blocked by Gael Givet and a goal ruled out for offside. 9 Minutes into the second half Berbatov got his goal when he controlled a mishit cross from Patrice Evra and volleyed the ball low into the net. Blackburn never really looked like getting into the match and conceded a second in the 87 minute when Wayne Rooney clipped in an Anderson cross. Blackburn were denied a consolation when Nikola Kalinic’s goal was incorrectly disallowed for offside and left Old Trafford with nothing. From the October fixtures Blackburn had taken 3 points from a possible 12 and moved down to 17th in the table.
Pld = Matches played; W = Matches won; D = Matches drawn; L = Matches lost; F = Goals for; A = Goals against; GD = Goal difference; Pts = Points [edit] November
Blackburns first match in November was a home clash against bottom of the table Portsmouth. As was the case in their previous 2 home games Blackburn conceded the first goal. On this occasion it was Jamie O'Hara who put the visitors ahead when he struck a low effort in from 30 yards in the 16th minute. After an inept first half Sam Allardyce took the decision to replace ineffective wingers El-Hadji Diouf and Morten Gamst Pedersen in favour of strikers Benni McCarthy and Jason Roberts, and switched to a 4-3-3 formation. His decision was justified when Roberts stroked in Ryan Nelsens knockdown from a David Dunn corner 8 minutes after the break. Blackburn continued to dominate and took the lead 20 minutes later when an unmarked Nelsen headed Dunn’s corner past David James. The game was put out of Portsmouths reach in the 86th minute when the two half time substitutes combined when Roberts side footed McCarthys cross into the bottom corner.
Due to another International break it was the 22 November when Blackburn played their next game. Sam Allardyce was missing from the match after being informed he would require an operation on his coronary artery, therefore it was down to Assistant manager Neil McDonald to take charge from the touchline.[21] Blackburn went into the game aiming to end a run of 10 consecutive losses away from home. After a quiet opening David Dunn went closest but his goalbound header was cleared of the line by Bolton defender Gary Cahill. At the other end a Matthew Taylor free kick deflected off Ryan Nelsen and onto the crossbar. Immediately Blackburn broke down the pitch and Dunn’s curling effort just crept past Jussi Jaaskelainen’s fingertips. Just before half time Taylor headed wide from a Bolton corner when unmarked. After the break El-Hadji Diouf went close but saw his volley cleared of the line by Gavin McCann. Both goalkeepers made good saves and McCann again cleared off the line before Blackburn doubled their lead in bizzare circumstances. A cross field ball from Brett Emerton was headed back towards his own goal by Sam Ricketts however Jaaskelainen had come out to collect the ball and the header rolled into an unguarded Bolton net. Bolton nearly got a late goal when Ivan Klasnic’s effort was hooked off the line by Lars Jacobsen, but Blackburn saw the game out and ended their away day blues.
[edit] League Cup[edit] Second Round
As one of the 13 Premier League teams not involved in European competitions Blackburn entered at this stage, along with the winners from the First Round plus Newcastle United and Middlesbrough, who also received a First Round bye. The draw for the Second Round took place on 12 August 2009, after the First Round games had been completed,[22] Blackburn were drawn away to Gillingham and the match was played on 25 August 2009.[23] Blackburn started the game brightly and within 5 minutes were 1–0 up when David Dunn slotted home Nikola Kalinics through ball. Gillingham pressed for an equaliser and went closest when Mark McCammon headed just wide. Two minutes after the break Rovers doubled their lead when Keith Andrews crossed the ball for David Hoilett to score his first goal for the club with a diving header. In the 70th minute Zurab Khizanishvili brought down Simeon Jackson in the box and Jackson himself got back up and scored from the spot to bring Gillingham back into the game. It proved not to be for Gillingham as Blackburns progress into the next round was sealed 4 minutes later when Morten Gamst Pedersen scored direct from a corner on the right hand side. [edit] Third Round
The draw for the Third Round took place on 29 August 2009, after the Second Round games had been played. The seven Premier League teams involved in European competition enter at this stage, joined the winners from the Second Round. Blackburn were drawn away to Nottingham Forest and the tie was played on the 22 September 2009.[23] Both teams created a few chances in an opening period where Forest looked more than a match for their Premiership Rivals. Although It was Blackburn who took the lead in the 37th minute when Benni McCarthys cross come shot free kick by passed everyone in the box and nestled in the far corner. Forest were nearly level soon after when Robert Earnshaw's freekick struck the corner of the goal frame with Jason Brown beaten. Forest continued to press after the break and were awarded a penalty on 70 minutes when Steven Reid handled in the box. Dexter Blackstock stepped up to take the penalty but it was saved by Jason Brown. In the 90th minute Earnshaw had an even better chance to draw his team level but managed to blast over from a yard out. [edit] Fourth Round
Sam Allardyce opted to make seven changes from the team beaten at Chelsea and swiftly rewarded when Morten Gamst Pedersen rifled home a free kick in the fourth minute. Peterborough fought back and after a dangerous free kick of their own equalised when Chris Whelpdale headed Chris Rowe's cross back across Jason Brown and into the back of the net. Just before half time Peterborough were reduced to ten men when goalkeeper Joe Lewis was sent off when he brought down Pedersen after a defensive header had fallen short. Steven Reid stepped up to take the penalty and despite slipping whilst taking the kick still scored. 5 minutes after the restart Peterborough once again got themselves on level terms when George Boyd hit a fierce left foot effort past Brown. The game was effectively ended as a contest in the 57th minute when Michel Salgado collected Brett Emertons pass and blasted in his first goal in English football. In the 72nd minute Benni McCarthy calmly slid the ball past substitue keeper James McKeown after being put through by Nikola Kalinic and when Blackburn were awarded a penalty two minutes later, this time for handball, Kalinic stepped up to the spot and converted for his first goal for the club and Blackburn were successfully through to the fifth round for the third successive season.. [edit] Fifth Round
The Fifth Round draw took place on 31 October, with Blackburn being handed a home tie against Chelsea. The match will be played on 1 December 2009.[23] [edit] First–team squad
[edit] Starting 11
[edit] Squad statistics[edit] Appearances and goals[edit] Current squad
[edit] Former players
[edit] Discipline[edit] Current squadAs of 22 November 2009
[edit] Former players
[edit] Transfers[edit] In
[edit] Out
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