Uploaded March 2025 | Updated September 2026, 1 week ago

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Blackburn signed midfielder, Barry Ferguson, from Glasgow Rangers for a fee of £7.5m in August 2003.

Having lost Damien Duff and David Dunn weeks earlier to Chelsea and Birmingham City respectively, Rovers suddenly found themselves short of quality in the midfield. Resultingly, the Rovers' manager, Graeme Souness, decided to spend a chunk of the £17m received for Damien Duff on the Scottish International, hoping to utilise his ball playing skills from the centre of the park.

Ferguson arrived at Blackburn with a solid reputation, having performed admirably in a Rangers shirt for many years and his transfer fee helped to increase fan expectation. On paper, Ferguson looked to be an impressive signing. A player who would play along side the likes of Tugay and Garry Flitcroft. Unfortunately, the signing of Ferguson did not turn out to be as successful as both the club and player would have liked.

The Scotsman made his Rovers debut in a 3-1 home defeat against Liverpool in September 2003 and scored his first Rovers goal against the same opponent in a League Cup tie in October 2003. He scored his first Premier League goal for Rovers in a thumping 4-0 win at St Andrews and also picked up an assist in the same game.

Barry Ferguson struggled to adapt to Premier League football and rarely showed the type of quality he displayed in a Rangers shirt whilst at Blackburn Rovers. He had made 16 appearances in the 2003/04 season and had started to pick up form when he suffered a serious injury, a broken kneecap, in a game away at Newcastle in December 2003. This, sadly, ended his first season prematurely.

Ferguson returned to full fitness in time for the 2004/05 season and made 21 starts that campaign up until January 2005. He scored two goals during that time, with one of those coming in the second game of the season away at Southampton. Although he was a regular starter in the Rovers side, Ferguson became disillusioned with life at Blackburn and missed being away from home in Scotland and playing for Rangers.

Ferguson, later revealed his disappointment at there not being enough pressure to win games at Blackburn and also talked about not being enthused by the Bolton v Blackburn derby. Towards the end of January 2005, Rovers allowed Ferguson to re-sign for Rangers for a fee of £4.5m.

Barry Ferguson will be remembered as being a 'what might have been' signing by the Blackburn Rovers fans. An expensive signing that didn't work out with injury being a factor, but nevertheless, a quality player overall that the Rovers fans can look back on and remember putting in some decent performances in a Rovers shirt.

Ferguson made 38 appearances for Rovers in the space of 18 months and scored four goals. Here are those goals.