IT would have been easy for Steve Kean to have felt like the world was against him as fans, media and pundits questioned whether he was capable of saving Blackburn Rovers from relegation.

Rovers travelled to Old Trafford on New Year’s Eve rock bottom of the Premier League, in freefall ever since his surprise appointment as boss more than 12 months previous, and it appeared only a matter of time before Kean was sacked.

The odds for a Rovers victory at Old Trafford were the biggest in Premier League history yet Kean retained belief he was the man to turn things around.

The criticism had reached a crescendo just a couple of games earlier as Rovers crashed to a dismal defeat at home to Bolton and it was then a phone call from a rival helped him get through the toughest time of his career.

Alex Ferguson rang Kean, expressing support and belief in him, and just a few days later was repaid with a stunning 3-2 defeat at the hands of Rovers.

Now, as United prepare for Monday’s Ewood Park visit, Rovers sit three points clear of the drop zone and expected to survive relegation with Kean insisting he will never forget Ferguson’s help.

He said: “It made a massive difference. He took the time to call me, I had a number of calls, a number of positive messages. It was headlines when David Moyes and many managers thought the treatment was harsh and they said that publicly which was very nice.

“During that period I spoke to Sir Alex on the phone and had a really good conversation with him. So I take my hat off to him for that.

“It means an awful lot because you know how busy these people are and the amount of strain there must have been on his time, so it is really appreciated.

“When any manager that has won what he has won in his lifetime tries to find your number and speak to you is fantastic for anyone.

“He was saying the way I had dealt with things had been good and to keep being positive and that was very nice to hear from a man who has done everything in the game. Of course it helped my confidence and belief.”

Grant Hanley’s Old Trafford winner could be seen as something of a turning point for Rovers, with an upturn in results since giving Kean’s men the edge on their relegation rivals.

There remains work to do to retain their top flight status, but Kean is adamant they will achieve safety in the coming weeks.

“Since the turn of the year we are back on a run of form,” he said. “We found it difficult to pick up points before that because we never really had an established back unit.

“Since then we have lost Chris Samba but we have put together a back four that has played consistently and I don’t think there is any coincidence that we have been consistently picking up points.

“We can take massive confidence from where we were at Christmas time.

“It was a tough time but I always believed we would come through it, and it wasn’t just positive self talk.

“We have a very young team and I thought we would see it out and be better for it. We are not all the way there yet but we have made big strides in the last few months and I think we will get the required points.

“It is a good bit of experience in a perverse way for the young guys to come through. Some hostile times as well.

“We can see it is working, we can see there is progress being made. But we know there is a little bit to go to push us over the line and I am sure we will.”

So what sort of atmosphere can United expect on Monday night?

Ewood may yet be entirely convinced by their manager but they will continue getting behind their side.

Kean also believes there has been a thawing in attitudes towards him since the turn of the year as Rovers continue their bid for survival.

“I think the atmosphere has changed,” he said. “It has been very positive home and away. I said the thing that would improve that would be results and we have managed to get results. Since the turn of the year the fans have been fantastic.

“We get positive feedback, we get mail and emails – yes me personally – day in, day out. I get support from Blackburn fans and supporters from all over.

“But a hell of a lot of Blackburn fans send messages of an admission they were a bit negative. It is great we are going in the right direction and that is always nice to read.

“I never thought it would be impossible. I always believed in the team and that we would progress.

“I never doubted my own ability and we have come through it.

“We are close. We know we are not there yet but we have to keep picking up points.”