Blackburn Rovers CEO Steve Curwood Addresses Summer Transfer Frustrations

Steve Curwood did not try to sugar-coat it.

“Everyone is frustrated,” the new Blackburn Rovers CEO admitted, as he fronted up to a fanbase still seething over a summer window that promised far more than it delivered.

Four signings arrived. Three more slipped away on deadline day. The mood around Ewood Park has been shaped less by what came in than by what almost did.

‘Deals were on the table’

Curwood, only two months into the job after joining from League Two side Fleetwood Town, insisted Blackburn had not lacked ambition or backing.

“Deals were on the table,” he told BBC Radio Lancashire. “Deals were agreed with players and clubs.”

Then the sting.

“We can talk about morals in football, maybe there aren't too many now and that's what's happened. We were gazumped at the last minute on a couple of deals, and one was a foreign one which took a bit more time than you would anticipate.”

BBC Radio Lancashire understands two of those late collapses involved Reo Hatate, who ended up at Burnley, and Brian De Keersmaecker, who joined Bristol City. Both were targets. Both slipped through Blackburn’s fingers as the clock ticked down.

Curwood’s message was clear: the money was there, the intent was there, but the execution faltered at the crucial moment.

“The investment has been there,” he said. “There hasn't been a reluctance (from the board). There has been collaboration throughout the process. I think at the final hurdle we haven't been able to get them over the line.

“Yes – it’s frustrating, we're frustrated, and Tony (Mowbray) wanted that extra little bit of something which we haven't managed to do.”

Chaos, timing and a late appointment

The CEO did not hide from another uncomfortable truth: the window was “chaotic”.

Much of that, he argued, stemmed from the club’s managerial situation. Michael O’Neill had steered Blackburn to Championship safety last season while juggling his duties as Northern Ireland boss. When he turned down the permanent job in mid-May, Rovers turned back to a familiar face, reappointing Tony Mowbray on 5 June.

By then, the clock on the summer window was already ticking loudly.

“Ideally your manager will be in by the start of May to work out where are we going for next year,” Curwood said. “So that timeline has been constrained somewhat, and then conflated by injuries.”

The dilemma was stark. Move early and secure solid, if unspectacular, options. Or wait for first-choice targets and accept the risk that someone richer, quicker or more persuasive might step in.

“If you want to do your deals early, maybe you can't go after the best players sometimes,” Curwood explained. “You've got to either wait and go for target number one with this risk, or cement one in the building because we know we can get him, like Jayden Fevrier for example.”

Blackburn highlighted three or four options in each position, but Mowbray’s stance was firm: he wanted players who genuinely wanted to play for him, not just anyone to bulk out the squad.

“Was it the wrong thing to do to push for the specific players Tony wanted?” Curwood asked aloud. “These things happen when you try to be specific, but none of us want to just bring in players to add bodies in the building.”

The club chose to be selective. The price was paid on deadline day.

A trimmed squad and big calls

Seven players left Blackburn over the summer. With some of the planned incomings falling through, that decision has come under scrutiny.

Curwood stands by it.

“You've got to allow the manager to make certain decisions,” he said. “The squad list was top-heavy. Certain players needed game-time, like George Pratt going to Bradford.”

Blackburn, BBC Radio Lancashire understands, also rejected offers for Ryoya Morishita, Sean McLoughlin, Balasz Toth, Yuki Ohashi and Ryan Alebiosu. Key pieces, in the club’s view, had to stay. Others needed to move on to play.

The result is a leaner group than many fans expected, and one that will be tested across a long Championship season.

A whirlwind start – and a promise

Curwood’s first weeks at Ewood Park have been anything but gentle.

“It's been a whirlwind since I arrived – with a transfer window, an administrator going to another club, and a senior physiotherapist leaving,” the 54-year-old said.

He knows the scrutiny will not ease quickly. He is also adamant this is only the beginning of his work.

“The first 90 days will give me time to reflect and bring some of the processes this club need to improve where we are,” he added. “We'll be in a very different position moving into the next window, and beyond that.”

Blackburn fans have heard promises before. This time, the test is simple: when the next window opens, will Rovers still be talking about near-misses and late gazumps, or finally about a squad built to match their manager’s demands and the club’s ambitions?