Hamstring set to keep Hoilett on sidelines

Blackburn manager Steve Kean insists he has listened to his medical staff and will not take the ‘massive risk’ of rushing back Junior Hoilett from injury.

The young forward picked up a hamstring strain last weekend and Kean will not risk him at Everton on Saturday if he has not recuperated fully.

“We’ve got to make sure that he’s 100 percent fit. If he was going to risk pulling his hamstring even more then we would take the advice of the medical team and protect him, bearing in mind we’ve got another couple of extra days leading up to the next game,” Kean said.

“We did the same with Roque Santa Cruz, he had fluid on his hamstring and we listened to the experts. They said that he’s had 60 minutes without risk, so we took him off after an hour and now he’s available for the next game.”

“If they tell me that Junior is not available and if we played him it would be a massive risk, then we leave that so he’d be fully fit for our next game against Manchester City.”

Blackburn may be just three points clear of the drop zone and without a win in the league since January, but Kean is keeping his cool.

The 43-year-old has adopted a back-to-basics approach since taking charge at Ewood Park and highlighted the importance of sorting things out on the training ground.

“The place where you cope with things is on the training ground. You can work on the players and get things across you want them to understand,” he said.

“We have shown togetherness as a club and as a team. We have come from behind in games and we are in a good place as a group. You deal with the pressure when you’re out on the training ground and that is when we can put changes in place.”

Blackburn will be without defender Ryan Nelsen, and midfielders Keith Andrews and the suspended Steven Nzonzi.