Blackburn Rovers hope to complete the sale of the club to the India-based company Venky's next month. The Rovers chairman, John Williams, told the club's official website: "Both parties are hopeful that the transaction will be completed in November."

Should the deal go through, Blackburn Rovers would be the first Premier League club to be owned by an Indian firm. The company, which deals in pharmaceuticals and poultry farming, has begun the process of due diligence.

The chair of Venky's, Anuradha J Desai, said: "We expect to be the first Indian company to acquire a Premier League team and we are particularly delighted that the team is Blackburn Rovers, with whom we believe we have many shared values and ambitions."

Speaking last week, the Blackburn manager, Sam Allardyce, welcomed the prospect of the sale and new investment in the team. He said: "The club has been for sale for some time and new investment would be most welcome. Investment is needed at every football club and investment here has dried up somewhat because of the club being up for sale.

"We have a strong base at Rovers, a very good club which is run and managed very professionally indeed. Blackburn Rovers has a strong history and it could have a bright future given the right sort of investment."