Potted histories of the Premier League usually contain a caveat when mentioning Blackburn Rovers' 1995 title along the lines of 'aided by Jack Walker's millions, Kenny Dalglish was able to build a side that broke the domination of Manchester United'.
The odd man out among the roll-call of Premiership champions, Blackburn under Dalglish were an excellent side who played with two centre-forwards and always used wingers yet, aside from the sniping over money they were also criticised as being a rather functional outfit.
They netted 80 goals in that title-winning campaign however and a points tally of 89 would have seen them finish level with Manchester United had it been repeated last season.
Rovers spent plenty of course and broke the transfer record on a couple of occasions, firstly to sign Alan Shearer and then Chris Sutton but they did not have a huge squad of big-earners, snapped up to keep them away from other clubs and relying on the rotation system to keep them all happy.
In reality, with the new Sky money kicking in, Blackburn did not have the kind of financial advantage over the rest of the clubs that Chelsea did at the beginning of the Abramovich era although they were well-placed to take advantage of the fact that clubs such as Arsenal and Liverpool had not yet gotten their heads around football's 'brave new world'.
The vast majority of Dalglish's signings were British, the likes of Tim Sherwood, Paul Warhurst and Stuart Ripley, bought with the financial backing of a local man who wasn't interested in taking over any old football club, only the one he had supported all his life.
A little over ten years on and in a football world dominated by owners from Russia, Thailand, Iceland and the USA it seems almost quaint by comparison.
Fast forward to today and Blackburn again have an image problem (the problem being of course that they are not from London, Manchester or Liverpool). Still locally-owned but no longer able to complete at the very top end of the transfer market, Mark Hughes has built a top-quality side that again make good use of wide players and rarely fall into the trap of playing just one man upfield.
Strongly criticised in some quarters for what is seen as their physical approach, Rovers possess attacking players such as Morten Gamst Pedersen, David Bentley and Benni McCarthy who collectively would be worth at least £25m if they were to be sold.
Not that they are on their way however. Blackburn at present does not seem to be a place that players are keen to leave. Aside from a mega-money bid from one of the top four clubs, where would they go? Lucas Neill chose West Ham and whatever he says publicly must realise now how much greener the grass is on the Ewood Park turf.
David Moyes had it right when he said recently, responding to criticism of Blackburn from Arsene Wenger: "Football is a strong sport and there are tackles and challenges, which are part of the rules.
"I see Blackburn as better than people give them credit for."
The sniping is unlikely to stop. Blackburn as a town and as a team remains unfashionable. For being pragmatic and solid at the back and yet dangerous when going forward, Hughes will be criticised whereas Jose Mourinho has been lauded.
Rovers fans though can look forward to more cup runs, more decent league finishes and more European football over the next few years so I'm sure they won't be too worried.
