With Tony Mowbray seemingly leaving Ewood Park, there will be plenty of speculation on who takes charge of Blackburn next. 

As is always the case with managerial speculation, there's always plenty of talk on who comes next, and it is not different with Blackburn as they look to build upon the solid foundations left by Mowbray.

Since Mowbray took charge, the club has gone from strength to strength and this season, looked to be leading a promotion charge. A drop-off in form after the new year though made that difficult and has seemingly meant the club will be looking elsewhere when it comes to first team manager.

Blackburn are in a strong position squad wise, even with Joe Rothwell, Ryan Nyambe and Darragh Lenihan seemingly on their way as their contracts are due to expire.

There is still a good squad for someone to come into and here, we take a look at three candidates the Rovers board should consider should Mowbray depart the club.

Gareth Ainsworth

Ainsworth seems the obvious choice because of his Blackburn links with the Wycombe manager coming from the town.

However, looking beyond him being a local, it's a good fit. Ainsworth has worked wonders with a small budget at Adams Park, guiding Wycombe to their first ever promotion into the Championship where they took it to the last day before being relegated.

His style of football is direct and high pressing which is a philosophy that Blackburn have leaned on this season with great success. In addition, he's a good man manager, getting the best out of individuals and improving them, a trait Mowbray said his successor should possess.

Michael Duff

Another manager who has worked wonders with a smaller budget is Cheltenham manager and Burnley legend Michael Duff.

Seeing past his Burnley links, Duff has masterminded an incredible rise from the Gloucestershire side with the Robins punching well above the weight in League One.

He's another manager that gets a young squad thriving, and the style of football again is direct, high pressing and on the front foot. Scoring goals isn't an issue for his side, with attacking football being favoured at The Jonny-Rocks Stadium.

Slavisa Jokanovic

Jokanovic isn't done in the Championship and could see another job come his way soon after his sacking at Sheffield United this season. Unfortunately things didn't work out for the Serbian at Bramall Lane but he could see luck swing his way at Ewood Park.

It's certainly the higher-profile candidate compared to the other two, but Blackburn are in need of a manager who can come in and develop with the club, something Jokanovic did at Fulham. He took over at Craven Cottage when they were battling relegation before turning them into Championship heavyweights.

Given time and resource, Jokanovic could be the man to take Rovers back into the Premier League.