BLACKBURN goalkeeper Brad Friedel reckons Mark Hughes is ready to raise the bar even higher next season in his quest to transform Rovers into a major Premier League force.

After guiding Rovers to a top six finish and a place in Europe during his first full season as a Premiership manager, Hughes has now set his sights on doing even better next term, which is a tall order when you consider the extra demands a run in the UEFA Cup would place on his squad.

But if anyone can help Rovers build on the achievements of the last nine months then Friedel believes it's Hughes, because the Ewood chief has never been content with simply standing still.

The former United States international, who is relishing a return to Europe, said: "We had a tough two seasons but now we're back on track again.

"Hopefully we'll go into the transfer market during the off-season and, who knows, maybe we can try to better what we've accomplished this year.

"That's going to be a really tall order, but I know the staff we have here are going to set some high goals for us next season and it's up to us to meet them."

Friedel has mixed memories of his two previous excursions into Europe with Blackburn, having been part of the sides that suffered early round exits to Celtic and then Genclerbirligi in successive seasons under Graeme Souness.

But next season, the big American believes Rovers are geared up to make a real impact in Europe, particularly now that the format of the competition has changed to incorporate a group stage in the second round.

Reflecting on previous campaigns, Friedel said: "I think the first year we had a really good chance to go far, but we drew Celtic and played really well in the first game, then the second leg was disappointing.

"Overall, though, it was a tough draw for the second round of that competition.

"Since then, they've changed the format so hopefully we'll get in a decent group and get some good results."

As for qualifying this season, the 34-year-old added: "You feel a lot of gratitude when you can reach your goals, both as a team and on an individual basis.

"The staff said they wanted to get into Europe and we've gone on to achieve that, which is great."

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