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Steve Keane: big game tonight. Getty images
Premier League

Kean hoping Blackburn can catch Liverpool on the hop

Blackburn boss hopes to find the visitors already focusing on their trip to Wembley next Saturday.

BLACKBURN MANAGER STEVE Kean hopes Liverpool will be distracted by their FA Cup semi-final with Everton when they travel to Ewood Park tonight.

Kean’s team are inside the Premier League relegation zone following a run of three successive league defeats. They are preparing to host an out-of-form Liverpool, who have managed just one win in their last nine fixtures, and Kean hopes to find the visitors already focusing on their trip to Wembley next Saturday.

“There is no reason why we can’t go out and beat Liverpool,” Kean said. ”Liverpool will have an eye on the FA Cup so us playing them now is a good time.

“It will be difficult for them not to think about the semi-final, so we will try to use that to our advantage. But they have got a very good squad, I have seen them live a number of times this season and they normally start the games very well and have had spells where they just haven’t scored.

“Then their opponents have managed to get themselves in front and it has been difficult for them. But it hasn’t been the case where they have played poorly.”

Kean remains hopeful Blackburn can beat the drop once more this season, but knows they will need a vastly improved performance against Liverpool than in a 3-0 defeat to West Brom last Saturday.

“We might have got away with having a bad result from this round of games because we’ve not lost any ground” he said. ”We have got a very good dressing room with characters in it that want to win and stand up for each other and themselves.

“But we know we can play better than in the first half at West Brom. We need to make sure we analyse the reasons for that poor display and get back on song against Liverpool. But there are going to be a lot of twists and turns in this relegation battle before anything is sorted.”

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