Zurab - Rovers won't go down

Catch Sam Allardyce's unveiling, live on Sky Sports News at 4pm

Last updated: 18th December 2008

Zurab - Rovers won't go down

Khizanishvili: Sorry for Ince

We won't get relegated. We aren't even thinking about going down.

Zurab Khizanishvili.
Quotes of the week

Related links

Teams

Players

Also see

Blackburn defender Zurab Khizanishvili is confident the club will avoid relegation from the Premier League.

Rovers replaced Paul Ince with Sam Allardyce on Wednesday as they look to climb away from trouble at the wrong end of the table.

Ince paid the price for Rovers' slump in form which saw them drop to second from bottom of the table after only winning three of his 17 Premier league games in charge of the Ewood Park outfit.

Georgia international Khizanishvili admits he feels sympathy for Ince, but he believes the club had no other choice but to dispense with his services.

"I feel sorry for Paul Ince," Khizanishvili told The Sun.

"But when you look that we have just three wins in 17 games you have to say that the club made the right decision in changing the manager.

"When Ince came in the summer nobody expected us to be in this position.

Confident

"We won't get relegated. We aren't even thinking about going down.

"We have 21 games still to play. We are all thinking of forward and we have some good professionals at this club."

Khizanishvili also gave his backing for Turkish star Tugay to be given a coaching role in Allardyce's new-look backroom team.

"I would like to see Tugay in any role with this club. He's a fantastic player, he's the maestro," added Khizanishvili.

"Every football club needs a Tugay. Not only is he a great player, he is a great person too."