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Kean sets sights on overhauling Villa Blackburn boss Steve Kean has warned the likes of Aston Villa and Swansea the scrap to avoid Barclays Premier League relegation is far from cut and dried. Most pundits believe it is a case of three from five to go down into the Championship, with Wigan, Bolton, Blackburn, Wolves and QPR separated by only two points. Villa have a seven-point cushion and Swansea eight but Kean highlighted the plight last season of Blackpool, who went down despite being well above the bottom three for much of the campaign. The Rovers boss said: "You look back to last season and I think I'm right in saying Blackpool had 32 points at this stage, so we feel we can get back to teams, and not only Villa. Swansea are just above them, and we're looking to catch the teams above us. "We're playing well, we're picking up points and we go into this phase of games looking forward. We know we have to take care of our own points but some of the teams in and around us have got to go to the venues we've already been at and got points from. "We're confident at the end of this month we'll have points on the board and hopefully a bit of space between us and teams in and around us." Kean is taking encouragement from recent home performances, with wins over Fulham and QPR sandwiched by a defeat against Newcastle in a game they dominated. With Saturday's match with Villa followed by meetings with Wolves, Sunderland and Bolton, March is shaping up to be a crucial month for Rovers' survival hopes. They could be facing Villa at the right time after Robbie Keane returned to the United States and fellow dangerman Darren Bent was ruled out for the rest of the season through injury, but Kean is not underestimating the talent at Alex McLeish's disposal. He said: "They've still got (Gabriel) Agbonlahor, (Emile) Heskey, (Marc) Albrighton, Charles N'Zogbia, possibly (Stiliyan) Petrov coming back in again, so they've got lots of quality. Having said that, it's certainly not ideal for Alex." Martin Olsson, who picked up minor ankle and knee problems on international duty with Sweden, is the only doubt. David Dunn has recovered from a thigh injury but Gael Givet and Jason Lowe serve the last matches of their respective suspensions. McLeish has hit back at claims from fans he is too negative in his approach but admits he will look to bring in new players and "stamp his authority" on the squad this summer. McLeish came in for strong criticism from supporters who witnessed last weekend's goalless draw at Wigan. He admits the current side is not as strong as the one which just missed securing Champions League qualification two years ago and has been under instructions to reduce the wage bill. But McLeish is adamant he has always maintained a positive outlook in matches as Villa look to add to Rovers' relegation fears at Ewood Park. He said: "I've never put the shackles on the lads, never have done since the start of the season. "Yes, I want the forward players to get back and defend and help the other parts of the team just like any other major team in the world does, the Barcelonas, the Manchester Uniteds. "But I don't say to players `go and play negatively, go and pass the ball back'. It can be down to quality and maybe we've not shown it enough at certain times. "At the moment it is a Villa team that is trying to grow, trying to gel, and not exactly as strong as the Villa team a couple of years ago. "Sometimes players struggle for one reason or another but we certainly encourage them to get forward and get the victories." McLeish concedes the criticism Kean and, more recently, he himself have received from the respective sets of fans is commonplace in football these days. He said: "Steve Kean has had some criticism, I've had that too, it is not pleasant but part of the modern game when you are at this level. "No-one likes to see that happening, it is sad when it does, but it is the nature of the beast these days, it is the society we have created, the knee jerk and blame culture we are living in now. "We are in that results business and Steve has taken it brilliantly, bounced back with some positive results but they are still fighting for their lives. I don't think any team under 40 points is not fighting for their lives." McLeish will welcome back skipper and midfielder Stiliyan Petrov after a thigh injury.