Exciting times are ahead at Ewood Park. Mark Hughes has finally left the club after four years to try to better his managerial CV at a bigger club with more transfer money to spend at Manchester City, while Blackburn have scoured the land for a new, exciting boss to take over.

Chairman John Williams interviewed many candidates and, although the fans' choice would have been Alan Shearer, he wasn't interested. So Paul Ince was chosen only a few weeks ago. Pre-season training is getting under way and it is only then that we will see how good Ince can be in persuading the club's biggest stars to stay and not be tempted by high-priced transfers in the coming weeks.

Blackburn are an ambitious club and Ince has a lot of work ahead of him in gaining the respect of all the players, though from the media in Lancashire, I think many players are happy about Hughes's successor.

So how far can Blackburn go in 2008-2009? I think it will be down to the summer transfer activity. We all know David Bentley is looking to move on, probably to Totteham, and there is speculation that Roque Santa Cruz may follow him, though may I remind everyone that this is pure speculation and the player has made no comment. 

I think Ince should let Bentley go and rake in a good transfer fee of between £10-£15m which would help the club bring in a few new faces before the start of the new season.

Santa Cruz, however, should be persuaded at all costs to stay at Blackburn. Remember he was unhappy at only being a fringe player at Bayern Munich and if he were to join Manchester United or Arsenal he would be unlikely to play every game. But if Santa Cruz does want to leave then Ince should be able to gain a good transfer fee for the Paraguayan and spend the money wisely.

As for the rest of the squad, the brilliant Brad Friedel is still in terrific form in goal and I expect him to remain so in the coming season. And don't forget Benni McCarthy is still a top-class striker, although we didn't see the best of him last season. If he can recapture his first Premier League season form Rovers could again be dangerous up front.

I would like to see more from Morten Gamst Pedersen this season. He disappointed a lot of the fans last year but the Norwegian certainly has a lot of talent and ability.

The Rovers defence, although leaky at times, is quite strong. Christopher Samba will look to improve on last year, but there are rumours that Hughes wants to take him to Manchester City. If he stays he could form a strong link with the now injury-free Ryan Nelsen and the Dutch international Andre Ooijer. Stephen Warnock's versatility in defence and midfield can only add to the range of options available to Ince.

Overall I am very optimistic for Blackburn next season. It is going to be a season of transition and development and I think a top-10 position is more than possible with the top six again achieveable if Rovers keep hold of Santa Cruz and buy a few more continental players to add to the squad.

A decent cup run wouldn't go amiss either. Rovers colud find this the easiest route to a place in European competition once again. Ince will want to impress in his first year and get the fans on his side. He plays a more attacking style of football than Hughes and, once again, I think exciting times are not far away at Ewood Park.