BLACKBURN boss Mark Hughes last night pulled off a three-card trick which he hopes will lead the club back into Europe.

Hughes was one of the busiest managers in the Premiership on transfer deadline day, managing to negotiate three separate deals which he believes could deliver UEFA Cup football at the end of the season - and possibly even a place in the Champions League!

Strike 1 - Hughes kicked off a busy day by agreeing a permanent deal with Arsenal to sign David Bentley for an undisclosed fee on a three and half year contract.

Strike 2 - With Bentley safely in the bag, that then allowed Hughes to bring in another player on loan so he swooped for Liverpool's Florent Sinama Pongolle, who has joined the club until the end of the season.

Strike 3 - Hughes also found time to plan for the future by swooping for teenage defender Martin Ollson, who has joined Rovers from Swedish club Hogaborgs for a small fee.

The Blackburn boss then completed an excellent day's work by renegotiating the terms of Paul Gallagher's loan with Stoke, which means the striker can now be recalled at any time should Rovers need him in the run-in.

It was a remarkable day's work from Hughes, who has given the squad the major boost it needed before they take on Manchester United in a Premiership grudge match at Ewood tonight.

Expressing his delight at the deadline day business, the Rovers chief said: "We are very pleased with the business we have been able to conclude.

"We were keen to add to our striking options and welcome the opportunity to bring Florent here.

"David has done well during his loan spell and is a young player with clear ability and a big future in the game.

"Martin is another young player who impressed us during a recent trial and we feel he will go on to prove to be a big asset for Rovers for many years to come."

Hughes now has a top six finish firmly in his sights and he believes he has the ammunition to mount a charge for Europe over the next three months.

"We are at where we wanted to be at this stage in the season," said Hughes.

"The important thing now is to make sure we give ourselves the best opportunity in the latter stages of the campaign.

"If we can get Craig Bellamy back then, together with the other players we have here, we can have a real go at a European place.

"I think that's a realistic target for us this season, if we continue to accumulate points and play as well as we have done up to this point.

"The players' belief has grown as the season has gone on. When we set that out for them in a presentation at the beginning of the season, I think a few sat back in their chairs and thought the manager had lost it.

"But our targets are still there for everyone and, as we speak, we are still on track."

Bellamy will again be missing tonight due to a persistent hamstring problem and he's unlikely to figure against West Brom at the weekend, either.

Pongolle is also ineligible to face United as he wasn't registered in time.