FORMER Blackburn favourite Colin Hendry today said Graeme Souness is on the verge of pulling off a managerial masterstroke by signing Lorenzo Amoruso.

Hendry knows all about Amoruso's qualities as a player after the pair formed a defensive partnership at Rangers four years ago.

The two centre backs only ended up playing a season together but that still coincided with the Glasgow giants winning the domestic treble north of the border.

And a big part of that success was the form of Amoruso who Hendry is tipping to become a cult figure at Ewood.

"When I was at Rangers, me and Lorenzo played together in the same defence, I had a great time with him, and I hope he has a great time at Blackburn," said Hendry.

"If you look around there are not many big, committed, experienced centre halves readily available so if Graeme does get him then he's managed to get a player who a lot of clubs would have loved to have.

"I remember when he first came to Rangers it took him a bit of time to settle in because he picked up a bad injury early on.

"But once he got over that, he soon settled down and adjusted and went on to became a very popular player with the fans."

Souness hopes to complete the signing of the 32-year-old early next week when chief executive John Williams returns from a two-week break.

A fee in the region of £1.25 million has already been agreed with Rangers and the player seems happy with the personal terms on offer.

However, Hendry has warned the Italian that life in the Premiership will be totally different to anything he has known in the past and he may need time to adjust.

"Playing in England is completely different to playing in Scotland," said Hendry.

"In the Premiership, it's in your face all the time but it's also a chance to pit yourself against the best in the world.

"Every week he'll know he's been in a game whereas in Scotland he was playing for a team who were expected to win all the time.

"In England, you can expect to lose about 30 per cent of your games but at Rangers that figure was more like one per cent."

Nevertheless, Hendry insists Amoruso has what it takes to make a success of his move, assuming it goes through of course.

"It's a good move for him because he's joining a great club in Blackburn," said the Ewood legend.

"He's at a good age, he's still a big, strong lad and he's one of those people who is naturally fit.

"He likes to speak his mind, as most players do who come from his part of the world.

"But if any criticism comes his way, he's big enough to take it on the chin."

Meanwhile, Hendry believes Rovers are in for another successful season on the back of their top six finish last term.

"Blackburn did brilliantly to pip Everton for that last European spot," added the former Scotland skipper, who has yet to fix himself up with a new club for next season.

"Everyone talked about what a great season Everton had but Blackburn ended up finishing above them and they didn't really get the credit they deserved.

"I'm sure the fans were overjoyed by that success and that's what it's all about - trying to keep the fans happy."