Jordan Rhodes - The Blackburn Hero

It was in the closing stages  of deadline day hours  of August 2012 that Blackburn Signed Jordan Rhodes from Huddersfield for 8 Million Euros.It was easy for the critics to write off as just another mistake from the Rovers much maligned Owners , Venky's . It was more so when it was supplemented by the fact that he was recruited on the guidance of the Manager Steve Kean , another criticized figure  equally. However one describes the criticism and  the amount of humiliation the both has received , it will always be an understatement. Whether the criticism and the quantum of it is justified or not , is for another time and day to decide . But , shall we say, they are not popular around Lancashire. 

So with all the limelight surrounding the Management , Rhodes joins the team without much fanfare and  attention . With the talent he has and the goals &  the record he had , the fans should welcomed as the singing of an emerging Ronaldinho , whom the Venky's promised to the blues fans. But it is not so. Partly due to the displeasure on the Management and the prospect of starting life in the Championship after more than a Decade. There's nothing more painful than coming down from EPL to Championship, i presume it must be like a student failing a class and starts it with new students, Shame and  Disgust.

But is Rhodes worth that kind of Money ? 8 million for a League One player , totally inexperienced in Championship and for 8m even Premier League strikers can be bargained at that amount . So its really a gamble, no two ways about that .  But when you look at his track , its worth a gamble. For Huddersfield Town he has scored 70+ goals in 120+ appearances which says about his consistency . He has scored back to back hat trick for them which is itself something and out of it he has made the hat trick only by header which makes it super special. He is also one of their record goal scorer of all times in just four seasons . And he was deservedly named the '' Player of the Year '' in League One for 2011-12

So he starts his life at Championship as a newbee , Can he continue his goal scoring form or will be just a League One Cameo. He does scores and he does so in style. He scores not just ten or fifteen but 28 goals in first season for Rovers in all competition and repeats again with 25 goals. So his performance is simply '' Sublime '' and his talent is Purely Class. Just imagine coming from League One and Finishing in the Championship goal charts ( Came second in two seasons missing the Top spot by a whisker on both occasions ) is an achievement or what.

But talents always attracts attention as it has always. So the Premier League clubs come calling . Hull City makes an official move believed to be in the range of  8m which is rejected outright .  But the Venky's resolve is tested again with the second offer which is believed to be in the range of 10-12 million with player add-on. But this is the deciding point .
 It comes at a time when the owners are trying to build up their reputation by staying low and supporting the team from behind the screen . It is more than evident  when they came all the way from Pune to London to Host  the Queen of England in Lancashire  but chose not to attend the match at Ewood Park in the closing stages of the season. They knew well not to affect the tempo of the Team with their presence . All could come crashing down if they have to cash-in Rhodes but it's not just that .
 The downfall from PL has taken its toll on the Clubs financials which brought down the losses believed to be 36 million ( Like many other Football Clubs  , Ownership is held private and so Financials are not public to confirm the figure ). The Financial Fair Play rules restrict the clubs transfer activity if loss exceeds 8 million along with other conditions. So its just not a Cashing-In option , they are compelled to sell Rhodes over FFP and its benefits of selling  can ease the loss  and can help to broaden the player recruitment with the funds. So if they sell him it will erase all the good work done and if they retain him they will still face the effects of FFP. So it is a huge decision and a Lose-Lose one  .

But the Management decides to take a logical decision . They hold him .  Why its logical is simply because not of the past of what he has done for the team  but also the Future of what he can do . So its only Logical to bear the brunt of FFP now,  to reap the rewards later . This is truly a futuristic decision but it can be justified only with the performance from  the whole team . The belief of the Management and the Manager is now well documented and is reflected below

‘’ ….the owners feel it would be a detrimental step to lose our top goalscorer and such an icon of this football club.

We made our intentions clear this summer when we rewarded Jordan with a new and improved contract and we stand by that.

We want to give Gary Bowyer and the team the best possible opportunity to get back to the top flight and Jordan has been and remains a significant part of that aim.

Beginning of Many ?

It is also important to acknowledge that Jordan has acted, unsurprisingly, in a totally professional manner during this period of speculation. ‘’                         

                         
   By no means , the statement is overstated when they name Rhodes as the ICON of the club and is equally important to reflect on the Rhodes behavior through out the transfer saga.
 It is not very hard to raise a transfer request when a Premier League comes calling . That too when a club like Hull City who on their promotion instantly secures a Europa League place . So the prospects are brighter for Rhodes if he chose to change his shirt colors . But what he does , he chose not to, which is simply put up on the official statement as '' unsurprisingly professional '' . And how he does that by scoring his 53rd goal in his 100th appearance at home in Ewood Park, how cool is that . This is what makes Jordan Rhodes , the Blackburn Hero in his short spell in Ewood Park and it shall blossom to be  Legendary status in the likes of Shearer ,  Simon Garner and the EPL winning Team

It is not a long shot or too early to say though. If Blackburn rovers promotes to EPL with Rhodes , the Future will sure be more than a Legendary Miracle. But for now we can in all likelihood say,
The  Best of Rhodes is yet to come