"Big miss" - John Eustace reflects on surprise Blackburn Rovers exit | OneFootball

The Rovers boss has been speaking on Blackburn's head of recruitment John Park leaving the club, with the January window fast approaching.

Blackburn Rovers head coach John Eustace has admitted that the departure of Rovers' head of recruitment John Park will be a "big miss" to the club, with the January transfer window on the horizon.

The club announced that he was vacating his role at Ewood Park on Wednesday 20 November, just five months after he made his return to Rovers – following reports of "power struggles" at the top level of the club.

Park has held the position of head of football at Blackburn Rovers on two separate occasions, from 2021-2022, and June 2024-November 2024, and now leaves the club searching for his successor once again with the winter window around the corner.

Appointing former Blackburn striker Rudy Gestede as head of football operations, which saw him take control of the transfer team as a result, subsequently lessened Park's role at the club.

Even so, Eustace recognises the work he's done during his time in East Lancashire, and believes it will be a major loss to the football club.

John Park will be a "big miss" for the Championship club

Despite only working with Park for one transfer window at Blackburn Rovers, Eustace was full of praise for the experienced recruitment expert, and was evidently keen to continue working alongside him for many transfer windows to come.

Speaking via The Lancashire Telegraph, the Rovers boss said: "John is a very experienced guy and excellent at what he does. He will be a big miss to the club but that's out of my hands. He did a great job up to now but he put in a lot of hard work and effort.

"It's between the club and John as to why he's left. The work he did whilst I've been here has been great, he clearly knows his players and he's a very experienced guy.

"My working relationship with him was very good. He was a really nice guy and I got on well with him. The recruitment has been good, we were short of numbers until the last few weeks so players needed time to get up to speed. But they have all played their part.

"It was a group effort and everyone on that side worked together. John has moved on and it will be a loss but we'll move on as well. The club still have Rudy (Gestede) and Adam (Owen) and they will sort it out. They played a big part in the summer so that will carry on."

Speaking at the time of his appointment, Park said: “I’m so delighted to be back. It was a club that was close to my heart when I left and I’ve always kept in touch with the people at the club, so I’m really looking forward to the challenge of trying to put another team together.

“I enjoyed it immensely first time around. I loved the area and I loved the people. The staff were really kind to me and I felt a good affinity with everyone here, and I think that’s what endeared me to come back.

“There’s a fresh start and a fresh impetus going forward, with different people and different ideas and different mentalities on the game, so hopefully by the end of the summer transfer window we can conjure up a few diamonds and see where it takes us.”

Blackburn can't let this impact crucial January window

With Blackburn enduring a drop-off in results across October and November compared to how well they started the season, Eustace's side are facing a vital festive period ahead of them.

Should they enter the new year still sniffing around the play-off places, the January window could well become one of the most important four weeks in recent times for the club.

If they get it right, it could provide the springboard for a real promotion push in the second half of the campaign, but if they get it wrong, it may see a once promising campaign develop into a scrap for survival once again.

Whether or not they will hire Park's successor before the window opens remains to be seen, with pros and cons for making the appointment before as well as leaving it until after the window has closed.

Regardless, they will have to navigate it without Park, who has a wide range of experience and a track record at Ewood Park of making some really smart additions.