DAVID May believes Venky’s have to ‘put their money where their mouth is’ if they are to start seeing their bold vision for the club coming to fruition.

The former Blackburn Rovers defender insists the club’s owners deserve the chance to prove they can bring success to Ewood Park but warns Steve Kean will need a lot of money to make their dreams a reality.

Kean has already said he expects a bumper kitty this transfer window, after his bosses revealed their ultimate pursuit of European football and silverware, with the £16.5million received from the Phil Jones sale understood to be going straight back to Rovers’ search for new players.

May, who made more than 100 appearances for Rovers between 1988 to 1994, has applauded their ambitions but admits they now have to deliver on their brave words.

He said: “They came in all singing and all dancing and yet nothing they have said has come to fruition yet.

“They must look at themselves, look at what they have said, so that come August Steve Kean has got the squad he needs to make sure they are capable of climbing the table and then achieving what they said they will achieve.

“The problem is new owners come into a football club and they see it as their toy. They want to play with it and why not, after all it is their money.

“Have ambitions, there is nothing wrong with that, but you need to walk before you can run.

"They have been bold enough to predict such great things for Blackburn Rovers that they now have to put their money where their mouth is.

“Football is a strange game and they must realise it is not easy running a football club.

"They must realise Steve Kean needs money to spend in the summer if they are to deliver all their grand promises.”

May came through the youth ranks at Rovers before moving to Manchester United for £1.2million in July 1994, where he won two Premier League titles, two FA Cups and a Champions League winners medal.

He now works as a football pundit and hopes Rovers owners can change people’s perceptions of them in the months ahead.

He said: “They need to realise a lot of people have put so much hard work into getting it where it is today, people like Jack Walker who invested money out of his own pocket and seeing Blackburn Rovers struggling just would not be right.

“When people see it splashed every where that the owners are going after players like Ronaldinho and other names like that, you could see the rest of the Premier League laughing at them.

“Blackburn have been run so well for so long the club and hopefully Venky’s can go about proving everyone wrong and restoring the club’s reputation. ”