STEVE Kean’s Blackburn Rovers future remained a closely guarded secret last night – although he is expected to remain in an influential role at the Ewood Park outfit.

The under-fire Rovers boss has been the subject of mass speculation following two days of talks with Venkys in India but both he and the club owners have remained tight lipped.

Discussions are understood to be continuing between Kean and Desai about how to move the club forward, with changes expected in the coming days.

Ewood staff, players and board members were still in the dark last night, despite Kean having been back in England since Friday, as confusion grew over his managerial future.

The confusion was summed up by two national newspapers yesterday, one reporting he would stay as boss and the other saying he would be removed as manager.

Co owners Venkatesh and Balaji Rao, along with advisers and board members, are understood to have been strongly urging a managerial change for months now and grown increasingly frustrated.

Club matriarch Anuradha Desai retains the final say and fears were growing among the anti Kean lobby last night that he had won the battle.

Venky’s insiders were confident over the weekend that Kean would be removed as manager and offered a new role within the club, after guiding Rovers to Premier League relegation.

Australian cricketer Brett Lee, who had lunch with co-owner Venkatesh Rao on Friday, even tweeted about Kean’s removal as manager.

But, with no word from Kean or Venky’s chiefs, reports are growing that Kean will retain his influence, either as manager or in a slightly different role.

Sources close to the poultry giant bosses remain adamant the initial plan was to remove Kean as manager but admit the delay has surprised them.

Should Kean retain significant influence at Ewood, the Lancashire Telegraph understands several of the current hierarchy would review their own roles at the club.

Kean has his own management team in mind and, if given the nod by Desai, would look to put that into place.

Meanwhile Sir Bill Taylor and Coun Maureen Bateson MBE have been unveiled as honorary patrons of the BRFC Action Group, as Rovers fans continue their efforts to ‘get their club back’.

The Action Group will meet with Sports Minister Hugh Robertson on Wednesday, June 13, in London.

Sir Bill said: “Football has its ups and downs. That’s life. We accept that. 2012 is a down of unprecedented proportions.

“Sam Allardyce sacked, departures of John Williams and Tom Finn (and now Paul Hunt), lack of vision, communication and strategy, both on and off the pitch led me to write to the owners in June 2011 and May 2012, unheeded.

“We know our town, its communities and how Rovers fits into this complex web. I welcome initiatives like BRAG. Let’s work together to get our club back, standing proud, by skill and hard work.”

Bateson said: “I would like to endorse and support the efforts of the Blackburn Rovers Action Group. I have met with members of the group and talked to them about the group’s next steps and offered them any support I can give.

“As fans and people of the town who care about the future of our club, we need to pull together, support the efforts of all those who are trying to bring about influence and change and through their efforts give us back the club we love and can once again be proud of.”