The Opposition View: Queens Park Rangers
Jack May speaks to QPR's LoftForWords to get an Rs view on Saturday's game
Well, here we go again. The six-pointers are starting early this year. Three places and five points separated us last season, as we both churned out championship-saving results in the final five games of a turbulent season.
This Saturday Wayne Rooney’s boys - and approximately 1800 of the Green army - make the 468 mile round trip to the capital for an already important 12:30 kick off against Queens Park Rangers.
I talked to Loft For Words about all things transfers, relegation battles, and hopefully - for both of us - better things ahead.
You had a solid finish to the end of last season, winning 3 on the bounce to secure safety, eventually finishing 18th. Are you encouraged by that strong finish and what it means for you this season?
It was really a season in three thirds for us. We won two of our first 17 matches under poor Gareth Ainsworth, who inherited a total mess here and sadly (because he was a great player for us) just wasn’t up to the job or the level. We then had Marti Cifuentes part one, where he was figuring out exactly what he had here (not much) and what he could do with them (not the Cruyffian ideals of his background). With some handy January additions and some more pragmatic thinking we basically bottomed out with a Valentines Day defeat at Stoke and then came home with a wet sail winning eight of the last 15 games. We sealed survival by beating Leeds 4-0 at home in a live TV game on a Friday night, kyboshing their promotion hopes at the same time – who says Sky don’t invest in original British comedy?
What’s the aim this term?
We’ve had a nightmare two years. From October 2022 to October 2023 we won six out of 48 matches and rattled through four managers. That was largely caused by us getting way ahead of ourselves when we got some big money for Ebere Eze and then finished the lockdown season strongly with some good loan signings. We went all QPR about it all over again, chucking money around at players with no re-sale value, taking Andre Gray types on loan with huge wages, and working ourselves back behind the FFP eight ball. When the promotion push failed (which promotion pushes do from time to time) we let Mark Warburton go, got taken in by Mick Beale and allowed him to spend yet more money, and when that imploded we were left with a dreadful squad, no sellable assets, and no money to do anything about it.
After all of that I just want QPR to have finally, finally learned their lesson. We’re incredibly fortunate we weren’t relegated in 2023 and 2024. We need steady, considered, sustainable improvement.
Overall, are you feeling positive about the season ahead?
Broadly, yes. I think if you’d asked QPR fans at the end of last season with all the momentum we’d built up and the dramatic wins against Leeds, Birmingham, Leeds (still laughing now) and others which kept us up there was a real feeling that with this manager we could push on and trouble the top ten at least this season. I think that’s been tempered somewhat by a pre-season in which we failed to score in any of our final four friendlies (albeit games with Fulham, Brighton and Spurs in there) and then got turned over all too easily by West Brom on the first day.
The profile of the signings we’re making are exactly what we need to do. As said, we got ourselves into a mess through making short term recruitment and retainment decisions. We need to find value in the market, we need to pay less in salary, we need sellable assets, we need a younger team. You get that by shopping in unfashionable parts of Europe. And, lo, our summer intake so far has come from Lommel (Belgium), Brest (giggity), Lugano (Switzerland), Sporting Gijon (Spanish second division), Estrela (Portuguese team, not the Spanish beer), Perth Glory (900 dollaredoos), Bayern Munich (B team, don’t get too excited). The age of this merry band of boys are 25, 22, 23, 30, 21, 21, 18, 23. Some will settle straight away (Paul Nardi the goalkeeper, and the Dembele-Saito combination already look exciting), some will take time (Jonathan Varane had a bit of a mare at Sheff Utd), and some won’t settle at all. I think there’s a general acceptance around the support base now that it’s going to take some time.
Yet to win in the league so far. Concerned? A 2-2 with Sheffield United is a positive result, no?
We were passive, insipid against West Brom. Stood off them, allowed crosses into the box, got punished. They looked a decent side, we were miles off it. Played well in the first half of the cup game at Cambridge, then like a bunch of complete tarts after half time and were lucky to get through. Sheff Utd, initially, more of the same from the West Brom game. Looked nervous, physically weak, timid. Second half, the QPR of the spring was back. Thoroughly deserved the point, Dembele and Saito running the show, might have gone on to win but for Jack Colback’s latest public shitting of the bed.
How was your pre season?
As already said really. The big problem we’ve come out of it with is Ilias Chair is injured for the first time in his QPR career and we’re really missing him.
Any exciting incomings and/ or disappointing outgoings?
Anybody who was at Home Park for the game between us last season will appreciate why Asmir Begovic being waved on his way this summer saw a Bank Holiday declared in Shepherd’s Bush so we could all sit outside the Crown and Sceptre with a cold one and toast to a future where it doesn’t feel like your goalkeeper is actively working against you. His replacement Paul Nardi hasn’t thrown the ball into his own net yet (touch wood) so that’s been an improvement straight away.
Chris Willock and his dad spent the last two and a half years engineering him into position for a lucrative free transfer this summer and they got…. CARDIFF CITY. Oooooh, enjoy lads, you’ve really hit the big time there.
Taylor Richards has been loaned out as far as Cambridge. Not far enough by half.
Karamoko Dembele, child superstar at Celtic and now looking to kickstart his career after a brilliant loan at Blackpool last season, and Japanese international Koki Saito, sadly currently part of the all-encompassing City Football Group/Death Star, look the pick of the new arrivals.
Nicolas Madsen, 6ft 4ins, goalscoring, set piece taking, Danish midfielder from Westerlo looks like being the next data and analytics pick off the OnlyBallers subscription, we’re waiting to see whether that gets announced/hijacked by Coventry prior to Saturday.
When we spoke last, you described gaffer Marti Cifuentes as a ‘miracle worker’. Is that still the view at Loftus Road?
We used to make excuses for Gareth Ainsworth because of the mess he inherited here after the collapse of the Warburton reign, the ruinous few months with Mick Beale and the Neil Critchley misfire. Poor squad, broken dressing room, rock bottom morale, no FFP headroom to do anything about it, you’ve got to cut Gareth some slack, we said, as we won two games in the first three months of the season. Marti Cifuentes took that situation on, kept the team up, and did it in some style. Last year’s home games against West Brom and Leeds (bahahahahaha, sorry) were as good as QPR have played for many years. So, yeh, he’ll do for me. Very keen to see what he makes of the squad this season because, as QPR are wont to do, we’re veering off in another completely different direction recruitment wise.
Where do you think you can cause us some problems on Saturday?
Perhaps it was just adrenaline and debut vibes, but if Dembele and Saito play like they did at Bramall Lane you’re going to have difficulties.
What about weak areas?
We’ve been too ready to let crosses come into our box, and poor at defending them when they have done. Four of the five league goals we’ve conceded have looked pretty much the same. Kenneth Paal, a previously very reliable left back, seems to be unsettled by his contract situation and transfer speculation and has started the season poorly.
We’re still not right in the centre of midfield. Varane had a bit of a ‘welcome to the Championship’ moment in Sheffield, Colback got himself sent off for chewing up the referee, Sam Field isn’t playing well, and they’re all quite similar players anyway. We’ve been outplayed twice in that area by the likes of Mowatt, Swift and O’Hare in the games so far. Hence, I guess, the interest in This Enormous Dane Will Devour Us All.
Ilias Chair, a star man of last season, is currently injured and Jack Colback will miss the game through suspension. How worrying are these absences for QPR?
Ilias Chair’s our best player, and after 40+ appearances four seasons in a row it’s very odd to be without him. Really need him back asap.
Colback, sigh, he makes your teeth itch. He made such a huge, positive difference to our midfield when he came into the game on Saturday, led a turnaround from 2-0 down, and then does that. He’s done it his whole career so I doubt he’s going to stop now. We always say there must be something a bit wrong with you if you’re playing for QPR and in Colback’s case it’s his brain.
We’re currently both on a loss and a draw in the league, while dispatching of lower league opposition in the Carabao Cup. Similar records, similar struggles last season. This game feels like a must-win for both of us, don’t you think?
I don’t think you have must win games in August. Look at the way us and Sheff Wed started last season, and where we finished. Turns out you can lose your first dozen and still be fine. I’d like us to win though, just to settle everyone down, build a bit of confidence, and give all these new lads a bit of air and time to settle.
Score prediction?
Yes, I expect so.
Brilliant article, loved the gallows humour from Loftus Road.