Sam Allardyce's return to football is certainly overdue.

I know Sam well and I've a lot of time for him as a man and as a manager. He didn't just jump at the first job going following a tough time at Newcastle and I'm happy to see him back.

I know Blackburn supporters were a bit indifferent when Sam was in the running for the job in the summer and - on top of the connection with their local rivals Bolton - I guess that's in part down to the style of football his Wanderers team played.

Allardyce: Hasn't sat idle

Even though there was method in it, they were very much a long-ball side.

Blackburn are a club who have won the Premier League title, and their fans are used to teams put out by Kenny Dalglish, Graeme Souness and Mark Hughes - teams who play an attractive brand of football.

Perhaps the Ewood Park faithful are a tad worried that Sam might change things around and get his centre-halves smashing the ball up the park week-in, week-out.

But I think Sam knows himself that with the difference in expectation he might perhaps need to modify his style as a manager a little.

And make no mistake, if he offered the Rovers fans successive finishes of eighth, sixth, eighth and seventh - as he achieved in his final four years at Bolton - they would bite his hand off.

There's no escaping the fact he has a job on his hands, but Sam will not have sat idle during his 11 months out of the game: he'll have been looking at players and I've no doubt he'll have a dossier ready to present to the chairman John WIlliams on day one.

Top of that list might be a centre-half - as a former defender himself Sam's priority will be to shore up a back line which has conceded 34 league goals - and it wouldn't surprise me if he went for a central midfielder too.

If he can keep hold of Roque Santa Cruz there might be enough striking talent at the club already: Benni McCarthy, Jason Roberts and young Matt Derbyshire are all decent.

They're a bit detached at the minute - a five-point gap to safety looks big in such a tight league - and Sam must deliver a win quickly. Saturday's visit of Stoke is a perfect opportunity. It won't be easy, but it's the type of game Blackburn need to win between now and May if they are going to stay up.

Decision time

We'll have to wait and see what happens to Paul Ince now, and it's up to him to decide whether he wants to stay in the game. He wouldn't be the first big-name player to turn his back on management having had his fingers burned.

But Paul will know he's in a results business, and there are managers with far more experience who have been treated far more ruthlessly - Peter Reid was sacked after nine games of the 2002/2003 season having taken Sunderland to unbelievable heights.

I'd like to think he's made of strong stuff, and I'd be surprised if he walked away altogether, especially if he does want to make a point as the first really successful black manager in England.

He may have to drop down to the Championship to rebuild his career, and I'm sure he'd be in demand further down the league after what he achieved with Macclesfield and MK Dons. Whether he'd want to return to quite that level having sampled life at the top, I don't know.

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