Blackburn striker Roque Santa Cruz hopes to keep Rovers in the Barclays Premier League - and secure himself a move to a bigger club in the process.

Manchester City last month failed with multiple bids for 27-year-old, who arrived at Ewood Park in 2007.

"I felt I had needed to give back the club everything they gave me with more effort by playing another season,'' the former Olimpia and Bayern Munich forward told Fox Sports en Latinoamerica.

"Being threatened by relegation stopped me moving.''

However, the Paraguay international feels his time at Blackburn is coming to an end.

He said: "My task at Blackburn is done, (the board) knew how I was thinking when I arrived to the club.

"I came here for continuity, to get up to pace again and I did pretty quickly. My intention was always to get in shape and then move to a big club.

"The transfer window put me in touch with people very interested in having me and of course I'm seduced by the idea of playing at very big club again.

"The Blackburn board are aware of that and accept it, but then we were in the relegation places and playing in the top flight is priceless for them. I understand that.''

By Ben Findon in Berlin
Last Updated: 3:19PM GMT 15 Feb 2009

Liverpool manager Rafa Benitez dispatched Voronin to Germany on a season's loan last summer but while Liverpool look short on strike options as they pursue Manchester United, at least the offloaded Ukrainian is savouring that top- of-the-table feeling.

Leaders Hoffenheim crashed 4-1 to Bayer Leverkusen on Friday evening, leaving the winners of Saturday afternoon's Hertha-Bayern showdown in front of a 74,000 full-house Olimpiastadion to go top of the Bundesliga.

Although Bayern's glittering cast of Franck Ribery, Luca Toni, Miroslav Klose and Phillip Lahm dominated possession, it was two predatory moments from Vorinin, deployed as a hard-running lone attacker, that settled the match.

He gave Hertha the lead shortly before the interval, peeling off Bayern defender Christian Lell to head home. Then, after Miroslav Klose had levelled on the hour, he crowned a Hertha counter-attack by steering the ball beyond Bayern goalkeeper Michael Rensing 13 minutes from the end.

It was a historic moment. Hertha had not beaten Bayern in Berlin since 2001 and the victory took them top for the first time since October 2006.

Bayern coach Jurgen Klinsmann, who saw Luca Toni limp off with a first-half ankle injury, described Voronin's performance as "superb".

Voronin said: "It was a perfect day, not only for me but for the club and the whole city. We had nothing to lose against Bayern and we proved that with the wonderful support of our fans."

The league table was flashed up on the stadium's giant screens within seconds of the final whistle, with Voronin and his team-mates, who have excelled beyond expectations this season, celebrating with a 15-minute lap of honour in front of Hertha's first sell-out crowd of the season.

Voronin, 29, joined Liverpool on a free transfer from Leverkusen in 2007 and was handed the No 10 shirt that once belonged to Michael Owen but Injury and loss of form cost him his Anfield starting place.

Four points cover the five man contenders in an increasingly absorbing German title race. Hoffenheim's remarkable progress has slowed with the Leverkusen drubbing being preceded by the dropping of points at foot-of-the table Borussia Moenchengladbach. Favourites Bayern had already slipped up recently at Martin Jol's Hamburg who. along with Leverkusen, are in close pursuit of Hertha.