Brad Friedel hopes Blackburn Rovers can get back to the Premier League one day – but admits they will have to punch above their weight up against the financial muscle in the Championship.
Friedel spent eight years at Ewood Park and also had spells with Liverpool, Aston Villa and Tottenham Hotspur among others.
The 55-year-old only has positive memories from his time in Lancashire, where he shared a dressing room with some talented players.
Rovers have been knocking on the door for a play-off spot in two of the last four seasons, but they have also had a couple of close calls at the other end of the table.
They currently sit 16th in the table under Tony Mowbray, who returned for a second spell in charge over the summer, and Friedel hopes the experienced head coach can produce some magic.
“It breaks my heart to see Blackburn Rovers struggling,” he told Jackpot City Casino.
“During my eight-and-a-half years there, under the Walker Trust and great executives like John Williams, we qualified for Europe six times and had incredible players like Andy Cole, Dwight Yorke, Matt Jansen, Damien Duff, David Dunn, Roque Santa Cruz, Benni McCarthy, Craig Bellamy, Tugay, Ryan Nelsen, Chris Samba and Morten Gamst Pedersen.
“We had really good teams, André Ooijer, Lucas Neill, tonnes of players that did a great job there. It was a real shame that after the sale of the club, it just didn't seem to click and right now they are forever fighting against it.
“The more years that go on, the more detached they become from the top clubs when it comes to finances.
“Then it all becomes about recruitment, and you have to get that just absolutely categorically spot on and have everything go right for you in the season to be able to fight to try to get in the play-offs.
“I think a couple of times they have been knocking on that door, but they have been doing it just without having the top budgets, which is fine.
“Coventry got promoted, having the 20th largest budget. It is not all about that, but recruiting into Blackburn is a lot more difficult than recruiting into Birmingham and London. I hope Tony Mowbray can pull some magic out of his hat.”
Friedel remains involved in the game and was recently given the green light to become a director at League Two club Shrewsbury Town.
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