Manager of 6 months axed after a winless run of 11 matches
BLACKBURN: Paul Ince's short-lived career as Blackburn manager ended yesterday when he was fired, after a run of 11 Premier League matches without a win left the club in the relegation zone.
Although he started with three wins in his first five league games, Rovers are now five points from safety and facing another costly demotion to the second tier.
They are now second from the bottom in the standings. Blackburn have 13 points, one more than West Bromwich Albion in last spot, and five points behind Sunderland and Manchester City.
The bottom three teams will be relegated at the end of the season.
Ince was just six months into a three-year contract that made him the first black Briton to coach a Premier League team, but his fate seemed decided after chairman John Williams criticised the team's dismal performance in last Saturday's 0-3 loss at Wigan.
Blackburn are the sixth Premier League club to lose their coach this season, following Newcastle, West Ham, Tottenham, Portsmouth and Sunderland.
'Three wins in 17 games have seen a squad, which finished seventh last season, fall to 19th position,' Williams said in a statement yesterday.
'We are currently in real danger of becoming detached from the pack.
'The survival of the club in the Premier League is paramount and our focus now is on finding a replacement who will be able to maintain our top-division status.
'It is with great sadness the board announce that Paul Ince is to leave the club. After a board meeting yesterday, it was decided to relieve Paul of his duties.
'The board, having selected Paul back in June, were desperate for him to succeed and wanted to give him as much time as possible in the unforgiving environment of Premier League management, where time is such a precious commodity.
'Unfortunately, time is what Ince pleaded for and what the board could not grant him. Paul is a fighter. He will bounce back and we wish him well.'
Former Bolton and Newcastle manager Sam Allardyce and Graeme Souness, who guided Rovers to the Premier League title in 2001 and won the League Cup with the club a year later, have been mentioned as potential candidates to succeed Ince.
Ince, who was also the first black player to captain England, had won plaudits for choosing to start his managerial career with lower-league Swindon rather than following the likes of Bryan Robson and Gareth Southgate into the Premier League.
He impressed sufficiently with Swindon, Macclesfield and MK Dons to be appointed by Blackburn in June, following Mark Hughes' departure to Manchester City.
But the sale of midfielder David Bentley to Tottenham and goalkeeper Brad Friedel to Aston Villa depleted the squad and contributed to Ince's failure to prevent the slide.
Many fans and commentators had questioned the former Manchester United and Inter Milan midfielder's appointment, even though it was heralded as a watershed for black players, who often leave football when they retire because of a perceived lack of opportunities in top-flight coaching.
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Ince's record at Blackburn
Took over as manager on June 22 on a three-year contract.
Started on a winning note when Blackburn beat Everton 3-2 on the first day of the season.
He went on to win three of his first five matches in charge.
It went downhill thereafter. He was sacked after a horrific run of six successive losses.
He had been in charge for only 21 matches and six months.
In 17 Premier League matches under him, his side won three, drew four and lost 10.
That statistic gives him a win percentage of only 17.65, meaning Ince has the lowest win percentage of the past six managers.
His predecessor, Mark Hughes, has the highest in the group of 39.46 after 147 matches in charge.
Blackburn have 13 points, one more than last-placed West Bromwich, and five points behind Sunderland and Manchester City.
