BLACKBURN boss Mark Hughes believes Roque Santa Cruz and Benni McCarthy are BOTH capable of scoring 20 goals this season.

Hughes saw encouraging signs in the way his new-look strikeforce dovetailed at Goodison Park on Saturday, and, providing both stay injury free, he is convinced he now has two strikers with the potential to hit the magical 20 goals mark.

Last term, McCarthy set the Premiership alight, scoring 24 goals in his debut season in English football, a stunning return which was only bettered by Chelsea's Didier Drogba.

Now Santa Cruz is threatening to make a similar impression after helping himself to three goals in his first four appearances, and with Jason Roberts and Matt Derbyshire also keen to get in on the act, too, Hughes believes his Fab Four' are all capable of hitting double figures if they are rotated wisely.

Reflecting on the possibility of McCarthy and Santa Cruz both hitting the magical 20 goals mark, Hughes said: "Ideally, that's what you look for, but it's very difficult to score goals at Premier League level.

"In saying that, I've made the point before that all strikers who play for Blackburn Rovers will, more often than not, score goals because of the quality of balls we can produce from wide areas, and from midfield areas.

"So I think all strikers like playing for us.

"I think all the strikers I have have the potential to get into double figures.

"They will all get a decent number of games this season and it's really just making sure that I pick the right combination against the right opposition.

"If I do that on a regular basis then they will all score goals."

Hughes got his first glimpse of the McCarthy-Santa Cruz partnership during the 1-1 draw against Everton and he saw enough, particularly in the first half, to believe the pair will be a real threat to Premiership defences over the next nine months.

"I thought they did very well and caused Everton a problem because Benni was dropping into those little pockets of space behind their midfield and linking the play," said the Rovers boss "Benni and Roque complement each other because Benni is a natural goalscorer who likes to link the play and drop off deep, whereas Roque likes to get on the shoulders of defenders and he gives us an aerial threat, so the combinations of their qualities will cause teams problems."

Santa Cruz is also happy with the way he has adapted to the English game since his arrival from Bayern Munich, and he was on target again at Goodison Park, hungrily devouring a rebound for his third goal in a fortnight.

However, the 26-year-old Paraguayan insists he is not setting himself any personal targets for the season, other than to stay injury-free.

"What is important for me is to continue playing the way I'm doing now and to stay healthy," he said.

"It's always been my dream to play in England. In South America, everybody watches it.

"Being in the Premier League is like a dream and I'm enjoying every moment. I'm very happy to be here."

Meanwhile, Hughes is likely to make several changes for Thursday night's UEFA Cup tie with MyPa-47 at Ewood (kick off 8.05pm).

He added: "We've got a couple of bookings which may come into my thinking because obviously if any of those players get booked again then they will miss the next round.

"If they don't get booked then the slate is wiped clean and they are clear for the rest of the competition.

"But first and foremost, I want to make sure we get through."

Rovers lead 1-0 from the first leg, courtesy of Santa Cruz's fifth minute strike.