BLACKBURN Rovers manager Mark Hughes has urged his players to become ghostbusters against Red Bull Salzburg tonight.

Rovers are haunted by a European record that reads one win from their previous 17 games in the UEFA Cup and Champions League, and that was a meaningless affair against Rosenborg 11 years ago.

However, Hughes and his squad can exorcise some of those ghosts of the past this evening by gaining the positive result they require to qualify for the group stages of the UEFA Cup.

A 2-2 draw in Austria a fortnight ago means Rovers will start the second leg of their first round tie as the favourites to go through.

And Hughes is desperate to see his players finish the job off at Ewood in emphatic style, knowing they have the opportunity to write a new chapter in the club's history.

"Our record in Europe is very poor, to FROM BACK PAGE say the least," admitted the Rovers chief.

"Whether that's because it wasn't given enough priority in the past or not, I don't know.

"But we're desperate to do well in the competition this season. You don't battle for 38 games to get into Europe and then once you're there, try not to go as far as you can.

"Our performance against Salzburg in the first leg was very good, against one of the strongest sides in the draw.

"We've now put ourselves in a great position.

"We've got two away goals and, although we were disappointed not to win the first game, the fact we've got those two away goals should be enough (to see us through)."

While some managers might view European football as an unwanted distraction from the nitty gritty of the Premiership, Hughes takes the opposite viewpoint, believing a successful run in the UEFA Cup would only be of benefit to his players, and the club in general.

"This competition is very important to us," stressed the Welshman.

"There's a big demand playing on Thursday and then again on Sunday, and if we make progress in it, that will happen, so we'll have to cope with it.

"But that's something we want to be involved in.

"It's important for the development of the team that we stay in this competition for as long as we can, then we can reap the benefits of the experience that playing in Europe will give us."

Rovers gave an excellent account of themselves in the first leg in Austria, recovering from the loss of an early goal to take the lead through strikes by Robbie Savage and Benni McCarthy.

But just when it looked as though they were about to take a priceless 2-1 advantage back to England, Salzburg substitute Marc Janko popped up with an injury time equaliser which leaves the tie delicately balanced.

"Our performance in Salzburg was as good as any by a British side on the night, but we didn't get the credit we deserved. In fact, I've still to see the goals on TV," said Hughes.

"Now we need to replicate that in the second leg at Ewood, and if we do that then maybe more people will say we're a decent side."

With two precious away goals already in the bank, a 0-0 draw would be good enough to see Rovers through this evening.

But Hughes also knows one lapse of concentration could spell the end of the club's European dreams for another season, a point he has hammered home in training this week.

"That's been the main theme of what we've been working on in the build up to the game.

"The players need to understand the job isn't done yet.

"We have to be positive and not try and protect what we've got, so concentration will be vital.

"One slip could see us lose a goal, then it becomes a difficult evening."