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Sunday, April 28, 2013

QPR Report Sunday: QPR's Relegation Consequences...On This Day QPR Flashbacks: Clive Allen's Debut Hattrick... The Sun Proclaims QPR "GUILTY" in Faurlingate... Promoted QPR Beat Fulham.. Gianni Paladini Buys Into QPR






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- On This Day 34 Years Ago, Clive Allen's Full Debut - and Hattrick


QPR History in Photos: From the 1880s to the 21st Century - The Bushman QPR Photo Archives

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- QPR at Reading Today....How sad!


- 40 Years Ago Today: Final Home Game for Gordon Jago's Promoted QPR as they Beat Fulham


Two Years Ago: The Sun Proclaims QPR "Guilty" in Faurlingate Charges


- Nine Years Ago: Gianni Paladini Buys into QPR
On This Day 34 Years Ago, Clive Allen's Full Debut - and Hattrick


Independent/STEVE TONGUE

The only way is down for Queens Park Rangers

All but relegated, QPR provide a valuable lesson in how not to run a club with Premier League aspirations


The former Northern Ireland international and ex-chairman of the Professional Footballers' Association, Derek Dougan, once wrote a book titled How Not To Run Football. Dougan, who died in 2007, would have found Queens Park Rangers an interesting case study for an updated version. Like Leeds United, Ports-mouth and others, they are the latest club to live the dream beyond their means and find it becoming a nightmare.

Today they visit Reading knowing both clubs are almost certainly relegated – just as the Premier League's most lucrative broadcasting deal kicks in and the Football League adopts stringent new financial rules that allow losses of only £4m per year. So it is crucial that they go down in good health.

Reading will, having been run prudently by Sir John Madejski before he handed over to the Russian Anton Zingarevich, who confounded all those expecting a mini-Abramovich. By keeping wages under control, not making marquee signings and inserting relegation clauses into contracts, Reading will be in comparatively good shape. As Madejski put it: "We've built this brick by brick and we haven't gone for a quick fix. QPR have got all the hallmarks of quick fix, or allegedly quick fix."

Rangers appear to have made all the worst mistakes of Leeds and Portsmouth, leaving fans fearful they could end up in a similar position; not just in the lower divisions but in administration and uncomfortably close to oblivion.

Professor Tom Cannon of the University of Liverpool, a specialist in football finance, says that relegation (only West Ham of the last nine teams to go down came back up) means they will be facing the worst of both worlds: "Football League regulations are much tougher and QPR have spent so much to stay in the Premier League that the chance of parachute payments balancing the books are really small.

"You can't charge Premier League admission prices in the Championship, crowds and match-day revenue will go down and many of the commercial deals I'd guess will have break-clauses in the event of relegation," he adds. "Then there are the players on long-term contracts they will struggle to sell."

New managers with rich owners tend to want new players. Neil Warnock, Mark Hughes and Harry Redknapp were no exception and agents have had a field day with 24 signings in the four transfer windows since the Malaysian businessman Tony Fernandes became chairman in August 2011; on the latest figures only Manchester City and Liverpool spent more on agents' fees.

Rangers were the third highest net transfer spenders in 2012, even before splashing out £20m on Christopher Samba and Loïc Rémy at the start of this year; several other high-profile players were also able to demand huge wages because they came on free transfers, and will be disinclined to move on now unless the club pays up their contracts.

In speculating to accumulate, newly promoted clubs face a difficult balance. The two who also came up the season before last, Norwich City and Swansea City, have shown that it can be done and, as our panel shows, they are in a far healthier position than QPR in every facet of their operation. Crucially, each has survived a change of manager too.

If there is a single indicator of financial health it is the ratio between wages and income. Norwich's figure is the best in the League at under 50 per cent and would be even lower if the salary figure did not include their large catering staff, who under Delia Smith produce significant profits. Swansea, at 53 per cent, could still attract the players to win a trophy.

In their Championship-winning season, QPR spent almost £30m on wages when their income was barely half that – a ratio of 183 per cent. Last season it was reduced to "only" 91 per cent of turnover, with the 12th highest wage bill in the League but only the 17th highest income.

Loftus Road, with a capacity of less than 19,000, was immediately identified as a problem by Fernandes, but having already committed to funding a new training ground, a stadium means only further expenditure; hence a recent £15m loan from Barclays, which in turn has pushed up the club's debts to around £100m.

There was widespread relief when Fernandes bought out the old regime, and brought the wealthy Mittal family back into the fold. Original (and successful) Premier League members, by 2001 they were in the third tier and in administration. The chaotic regime of Flavio Briatore and Bernie Ecclestone was captured in the documentary The Four Year Plan – four years in which they went through six managers.

Fernandes made all the right noises about profitability and long-term sustainability and seemed to have an ideal track record in building up comparatively small businesses like his budget airline Air Asia and the Lotus (now Caterham) Formula One team. Yet neither he nor his chief executive, Phil Beard, had football experience or contacts.

As Professor Cannon says: "If you look at successful entrepreneurs, what often happens is that they think football's easy. They think they can do it better, as I think happened to some degree at Newcastle United. Tony Fernandes' plan was to make QPR major players, even when you've already got in London three of the country's top five clubs."

The one positive appears to be the board's genuine long-term commitment, exemplified in securing planning permission last Thursday for the new training ground. "They have enough resources to see them through, as long as they can meet the tough new regulations," Cannon says. "If they keep putting their hands in their pockets, they can avoid becoming another Portsmouth. But it's not going to be a quick fix."

The bottom line

These three teams were promoted two years ago but their finances last season were very different:

QPR/Norwich/Swansea

Capacity 18,680/26,840/20,650

Turnover £64m/£74.6m/£65.2m

Wages £58.4m/£36.8m/£34.6m

Ratio 91.2%/49.3%/53.1%

Profit -£23m/+£16m/+£17m

Debts £89m/nil/nil

All figures to 31 May 2012

Reading v Queens Park Rangers is on Sky Sports 1 today, kick-off 1.30pm

http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/footb....s-8591332.html



MIRROR



Ian Holloway on relegation: The effect of relegation for QPR or Reading will be devastating
27 Apr 2013 18:05

Dropping out of the Premier League could break players at Hoops and Royals, and the tears might flow

Tim Keeton
It will be about half past three this afternoon when the tears will start to flow.

It might be in the Queens Park Rangers dressing room, it might be in Reading’s.

But trust me, when the final whistle has blown at the ­Madejski Stadium, if one side or the other has lost – and so the last mathematical hope of staying in the ­Premier League has gone – the effect will be devastating.

I know a draw will leave both clubs with a theoretical chance of a survival miracle, and while you’ve got that you go on ­trying, hoping and ­believing.

But I think back to Old ­Trafford and the day my ­Blackpool side knew our time in the top flight was definitely over... and I still shudder at the memory.

Going down brings tears. I have to say that. Everybody in our dressing room was completely gone.

You know how hard it is to get there and you wonder if you will ever do it again.


Devastating: Relegation could spell disaster for Redknapp's QPR
Getty

You have been in one of the best leagues in the world, and you wanted to stay there. That is the biggest thing that hits you.

You have tasted the ­difference, you know the adulation, the ­attention, the tingle of ­anticipation when you turn up for games, and all that means.

In the Premier League the excitement is cranked up 20-fold. Adrenalin pumps ­harder. It’s a thrilling place to be. So that’s the first thing you realise – you know how hard it was to get there, and then it has all just gone.

That’s only the ­beginning for the club though and the ­manager – IF he is lucky enough to still be in his job.

At Blackpool, we were ­not going into financial meltdown. We didn’t sign players and say we would pay them top money whether we survived or not (although in a funny way that might have been why we did go down, but that’s ­another story).

What relegation could mean financially to Reading and QPR only they know. I hope they have budgeted for it, but I don’t know ­whether they have. If you haven’t got contracts that drop with the players, and you are still paying top-flight wages, you’ve got problems.

You might think it is ok, but it isn’t. People talk about the ­parachute payments, but trust me that’s a parachute with a great big hole in the middle of it, and strings that aren’t tied on all that securely either.

It might help a bit, but you come down with so much cost.

If you’ve got the players who failed earning the same money they were, then you won’t get rid of them.

The good ones, the ones you want to keep, get picked off and taken away from you.

The vultures who are still in the Premier League pick the meat off the bones and leave you with just the bones.

We had players who had just proved that they could perform at that level.

DJ Campbell had shown he could score goals at that ­standard, Charlie Adam that he could create chances and score too . Other sides could take now them away with no risk and pay them far more than we could.


Champagne Charlie: Adam was one of Pool's stars

David Vaughan, who had let his contract run out, had played brilliantly for us.

I’m sure he’d say it wasn’t a perfect season because he didn’t want to get relegated, but for his career it played out fantastically.

Any Premier League side could pay him far more than we could afford.

I’m not criticising him, good luck to him, but that’s another example of how relegation hurts a club.

Even when you get back to pre-season the bad vibes still haven’t gone.

We got over that by making two big signings in Barry ­Ferguson and Kevin Phillips, which was a statement of ­intent, and we got back to the play-off final, which I still think was a superb achievement with a different team.

But it comes back to Reading and QPR – and the point that losing this afternoon will be absolutely devastating. I wish both Nigel Adkins and Harry Redknapp the best of luck Mirror


Saturday, April 27, 2013

QPR Report Saturday: QPR in a Financial Mess?....Gareth Ainsworth: Craziness and Chaos at QPR (in Briatore-Paladini Era)...Redknapp Sounds as if he's Staying!...Flashbacks: QPR-Real Madrid...FInal Premier League Game

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             Originally posted on QPR Report by "ChrisGuy" - From the 1956/57 QPR Handbook


QPR History in Photos: From the 1880s to the 21st Century - The Bushman QPR Photo Archives

Follow QPR REPORT on TWITTER!
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- On This Day: QPR's Fnal Home League Game in the Premier League...QPR-Real Madrid Link? ...Paladini Talking Playoffs...Bahrein Tour Cancelled...Witney United Chairman


- Marlon King Back in the News



GUARDIAN


Stuart James/The Guardian

QPR's profligacy and Reading's prudence could not beat the drop

The Premier League's bottom two clubs opted for conflicting transfer and wage policies to stay up but neither have much hope left of succeeding

It looks like a collision of the condemned. Reading and Queens Park Rangers, the bottom two clubs in the Premier League, meet at the Madejski Stadium on Sunday waiting to be put out of their misery. Ten points adrift with only four games remaining, the threat of relegation looms large for two clubs whose approach to the season could hardly have been more different – yet is almost certain to end with the same miserable outcome.

While Reading were frugal spenders last summer and stand accused of never giving themselves a chance to survive in the top flight, QPR cast their net far and wide, broke their transfer record twice and, in the eyes of many, committed financial suicide. Whatever the postmortems reveal, the objective for both next season is to secure an immediate return, which is a lot easier said than done.

Since the Premier League's inception in 1992-93, only 16 teams have won promotion at the first attempt following relegation. It is sobering to think that a higher number of clubs have suffered another relegation over the seasons that follow, 13 have gone into administration and four have slipped into the fourth tier. There is, in other words, no easy way back.

Harry Redknapp has already outlined his blueprint for success in the Championship. Based on the promotion he won with Portsmouth 10 years ago, the QPR manager has talked about the importance of being able to "freshen it up" and how that task was made easier at Fratton Park because "an awful lot of players were out of contract". At QPR, however, Redknapp will not have that luxury.

As things stand QPR have 25 established players whose contracts run at least until the end of next season. Rob Green, Luke Young, Anton Ferdinand, Armand Traoré, Shaun Wright-Phillips, Shaun Derry, Alejandro Faurlín, Park Ji-sung, Jermaine Jenas, Stéphane Mbia, Bobby Zamora, Andy Johnson, Jay Bothroyd and Djibril Cissé have 12 months remaining; José Bosingwa, Adel Taarabt, Joey Barton and Jamie Mackie have two years still to run; Júlio César, Nedum Onuoha, Samba Diakité, Junior Hoilett and Esteban Granero signed contracts that expire in 2016 while Christopher Samba and Loïc Rémy have another four years left on their deals.

While there may well be offers for players such as Mbia, Taarabt, Júlio César, Green, Granero, Hoilett and Rémy, who has a buyout clause in his contract, it promises to be a major struggle to offload others, in particular Young, Cissé, Wright-Phillips, Zamora, Johnson, Barton and Bosingwa, all of whom are in their 30s and earning north of £40,000 a week.

As for Samba, the extraordinary financial package QPR put together to sign him looks more ludicrous by the day.

"I fear for QPR. They have given wages that are total madness," says David Sullivan, West Ham United's co-owner. "I said to Tony Fernandes [the QPR owner], it's a bold move in January when you sign three or four more players on huge wages. He said: 'Well, it's one last throw of the dice.'

"It's almost unlucky they were having a bit of a run because it gave the board the belief that they could survive. Now they've got a chance in 100. How they get rid of some of the players I do not know."

The parachute payments, which from the start of next season rise from £48m over four years to closer to £60m, will help, although QPR's financial mess – they lost £23m last year and have spent a fortune on wages, transfer fees and the termination of Mark Hughes's contract since then — will not be resolved by that windfall alone.

Sullivan, who suffered relegation twice with Birmingham and once with West Ham but on each occasion won promotion to the Premier League the next season, predicts QPR will make a huge loss, which could have severe implications in terms of the Football League's financial fair play regulations further down the line. "QPR will get about £25m in parachute payments next season," Sullivan says. "But total income next year won't be £40m. And I bet their wage bill will be £70-80m. I would say next season they will lose £50m even after the parachute payment."

The influence parachute payments have on the promotion shakeup is often overstated. Since 1995-96, when the Premier League was reduced to 20 clubs, only 20 of the 51 promotions were achieved by teams benefitting from those handouts. As for the eight clubs currently receiving the £48m package agreed in 2010, Birmingham are treading water in the Championship, Blackpool, Burnley, Blackburn and Wolves are at risk of being relegated to League One while Portsmouth will start next season in League Two. Only Hull, on course to win automatic promotion, and Bolton, who occupy the final play-off place, have the chance to go up in 2013-14.

While Reading have relegation clauses in place for every player, which means one of the lowest wage bills in the Premier League will immediately be brought in line with a number of other Championship clubs, few at QPR have similar agreements, adding to their financial woes.

The one comfort for QPR fans is that they have wealthy benefactors behind the club, including the vice-chairman, Amit Bhatia, who is the son-in-law of Lakshmi Mittal, the fourth richest man in the world. Together with the backing provided by Fernandes and his Malaysian business partners, QPR have the wherewithal to swallow the costs of relegation.

Last month, though, QPR secured a £15m loan from Barclays Bank, which raised a few eyebrows and it remains to be seen how long successful businessmen will be prepared to throw good money after bad. "If the owners and directors support them fully and keep that side together, you'd have to think it has got to be good enough to get them back up," Sullivan says. "But is it? Is it just a lot of older players who are paid so much they've got no incentive to get promotion?"

At Reading, the financial fallout will be nothing like as damaging. Their outlay in the transfer market last summer was less than £5m, which Anton Zingarevich, the club's Russian owner, has since admitted was a mistake. Jimmy Kébé, the Reading winger, hit the nail on the head in December when he said: "We are a good Championship team trying to compete in the Premier League."

Reading brought in about £23m in player sales in the two years following relegation from the top flight in 2008 but there will be no repeat of those sort of figures this time around. The squad that Nigel Adkins will bring down is nowhere near as talented as the one relegated under Steve Coppell and, other than Alex McCarthy, the highly-rated goalkeeper, it is hard to imagine Premier League clubs picking away at the carcass.

For Sullivan, it is just a relief to be watching from afar. "You lose money in every direction after relegation," he says. "The big thing is the wages. You could axe 20 staff on £20,000 a year and it saves you £400,000, and you've hacked your administration to bits. It's awful. But one player can be on £3m a year and you can't shift him. I had players on £30,000 a week and you offer them £1m to go and they won't. But you can't just prune, prune, prune. You've got to go out and bring in new faces, I totally believe that."
http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/blog/2013/apr/26/qpr-reading-relegation




MIRROR - Gareth Ainsworth's 600th as Player/Looks Back


MIRROR
By Darren Lewis

Gareth Ainsworth exclusive: After 20 years and 599 games, Becks is the best I ever played wit


Wycombe war-horse set to retire this weekend after his 600th game on the Crazy Gang, Goldenballs and how he wished he'd played for Blackburn

Gareth Ainsworth took a few seconds to reflect on the best player he has ever played with during his long career.

Then it came to the Wycombe midfielder.

"David Beckham came over to Preston when he was 17," he said, "He ended up taking my place in the team!

"He was absolutely phenomenal in training every day. He was just a kid but he was absolutely ripping it up.

"He wasn't yet the best technically because he was so young and was still developing. But, potential wise, you could see that this kid was going to be brilliant.

"I remember the gaffer, Gary Peters, pulling me into his office and saying, 'We're getting this kid on loan from Manchester United' and that was that.

"When he turned up, there was no fanfare surrounding him, no press following him. Nothing. He just got on with his job. He was a great player and showed people around him what it took to become a top player.

"When you've played with Becks, there are not many other players you could single out as being better!

"He was an outstanding talent at Preston, even at that age. It's just a nice story to be able to say that I was at the club when he came to take some of the first steps in what has been - and still is - a magnificent career for him."

There are a great many people who share the same respect for 39-year-old Ainsworth.

The midfielder brings a fine career spanning 20 years and 599 games - from non-League to the Premier League - to an emotional close this weekend.

It is fitting that his 600th and final game as a player should be against Port Vale, a club where he became Player of the Year for his performances during the 1997-98 season.

Vale's promotion to League One last week means it will be all smiles at Adams Park, which is sure to show its appreciation for one of its favourite sons before, during and after the contest.

After this weekend, Ainsworth devotes his energies to being a manager full-time, having signed a new, two-year deal at Wycombe earlier this week.

He added: "It's the perfect game to go out on in some ways. I've had a lot of happy times at Vale. We're at home this weekend, it's my 600th appearance. I can't wait.

"I think if it was a club I hadn't played for, I would be more worried, but Vale are promoted and as long as my family are with me at the end that is the most important thing for me."

High points in his illustrious career begin with his first victory - the debut that ensured all his hard work as a youngster had paid off.

"My first-ever professional game," he smiled, "Preston away at Shrewsbury in 1992. I'd made it as a professional and if I'd only ever played one game it would have made the world to me.

"Then, obviously to play in the Premier League was special. I've played at Wembley and helped QPR to promotion on the last day of the season. There was also promotion with Wycombe as captain.

"They have all been really special. But I don't think I will ever eclipse pulling the shirt on for the first time. The nerves of going out there, with mum and dad watching and thinking, 'I've made it as a professional!"

Less memorable times include an ill-fated £2million move to Premier League Wimbledon in 1988.

His spell in south London was blighted by injuries that limited his appearances for the Crazy Gang.

Ainsworth added: "That was one that I would rank as a low point. I had wanted to move to the Premier League and there was a lot of hype about me. But I picked up a groin injury and was out for a year. That was probably the lowest ever that it got.

"But I always gave it everything I had and always tried to conduct myself in the right way."

There is one other regret...

"Not pulling on a Blackburn Rovers shirt!" Ainsworth laughed. "I have been a fanatical Rovers fan since the age of five or six.

"I got released as an apprentice at 18. So I played at reserve level but never made it as a pro at Blackburn. That could have been a nice thing to do. The club is in my blood."

Ainsworth is the latest in a string of talented managers that have cut their teeth at Wycombe before going on to bigger things.

Martin O'Neill, John Gregory and Paul Lambert all learned their touchline trade at Adams Park.

But it wasn't until the arrival of boss Luigi Di Canio at QPR, during the stewardship of Flavio Briatore - one of the most chaotic spells at the west London club ever - that Ainsworth decided management was for him.

He explained: "It's something I didn't want to do until very late in my career. Luigi was the first person who told me that I should coach and do my badges.


"I thought, 'Yes, I'll do it'. And getting the caretaker job at QPR really gave me some good grounding because the chaos behind the scenes there, well, I don't think I will ever experience that again in football.

"It was crazy - even more chaotic than I thought. I was right in there and there were things going on around me that I was not aware of.

"It was probably the first time I had seen political things at the club that happen at all clubs but y
ou are not aware of as a player.

"I learned the other side to transfers. Results. Reporting to the chairman. It was just an eye-opener. It gave me a really good grounding.

"I'm thankful but I was pleased to get out and now I want to do it my way. Any football matters have to be the managers and my time at QPR has rammed that home more than ever."


As for his own managerial influences, Ainsworth is specific about the attributes he has picked up.

"In terms of motivation and turning me from a boy into a man, I'd say John Beck the ex-Cambridge United and Lincoln City manager. I picked up a lot of psychological stuff and the will to win.

"Then you go on to your Ian Holloways, John Gregorys and John Rudges.

"Football has always added something to my game and I wouldn't be the player I am today without a combination of all of those talented men. It has been a real pleasure to play under them all."

"I'm a big believer in creating your own path and not following everyone else.

"If it works, fantastic. If not, it's still fantastic.

"I just can't be more grateful to every chairman and every fan that has ever put faith in me and got behind me on the pitch whether as a player as a manager.

"It's the best job in the world. There are a lot of people who have been there for me and I know a lot of people who would love to have had what I have experienced in the game."

"The FA, with the new era at St George's Park, wants to educate coaches and managers. I really want to learn. Learn quickly but learn well.

"Every single day in management something new happens and you need to know what to do. You need to handle it your way.

"If I can have half the careers of some of the great guys I have learned from I will be delighted."

One man who will have a lump in his throat come 4.45pm tomorrow will be Gareth's dad, Bill.

Gareth added: "I cannot emphasise how much my dad has meant for my career. I've never had an agent. I have had him with me in an advisory capacity.
Mirror


MAIL/Sami Mokbel -EXCLUSIVE: QPR scrap awards night to avoid fan backlash after horror season

Queens Park Rangers have cancelled their end-of-season awards party for fear of a fans’ backlash.

The news emerged as co-owner Tony Fernandes prepared to fly to England for talks with the club’s hierarchy next week.

Rangers supporters are frustrated that the club’s lavish spending on wages has failed to head off a virtually certain drop into the Championship — and management have scrapped their planned dinner to avoid potentially embarrassing episodes.
Shambles: Queens Park Rangers have endured a difficult campaign that seems destined to end in relegation

Shambles: Queens Park Rangers have endured a difficult campaign that seems destined to end in relegation
Going down: Harry Redknapp has not been able to save QPR from the drop

Going down: Harry Redknapp has not been able to save QPR from the drop


At the end of the 2010-11 season, a brawl marred West Ham’s player awards dinner, which took place 24 hours after their relegation into the Championship was confirmed.

Instead, the QPR player awards will be handed out before the final game at Loftus Road, against Newcastle on May 12.

Fernandes is due in London next week as Rangers prepare for life in the Championship. He is expected to meet manager Harry Redknapp and other officials to begin work on a plan of action this summer. A number of the club’s top earners — including Loic Remy, Chris Samba and Julio Cesar — are expected to leave.

But Redknapp says he still has the hunger to manage Rangers if, as expected, they are relegated.

The 66-year-old believes his side can pass their way out of the Championship next season, but said the squad will need an overhaul during the summer, with ‘characters’ brought in to strengthen his team.

Redknapp stressed that Joey Barton, who is on loan at Marseille, would be welcome back and said he would target experienced players. The former Spurs boss had success with Teddy Sheringham and Paul Merson, whom he signed for Portsmouth in the twilight of their careers.

The manager said: ‘You can play football to get out of the Championship but it will be very difficult to come straight back up. It’s full of quality and tradition and big, big clubs.
Welcome: Redknapp said that Joey Barton can come back and play for the club

Welcome: Redknapp said that Joey Barton can come back and play for the club

‘I need characters that are up for playing Saturday, Tuesday, Saturday, Tuesday, but there have got to be some players going out first. I am ready for the challenge. I like football. I haven’t exactly got a hard life. I’m not tired of it at all.’

Redknapp also revealed that Bobby Zamora, who is suspended for tomorrow’s trip to Reading after his red card against Wigan, needs a hip operation but must weigh up the benefits of surgery as he would be out for 10 months.


http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/footbal....-backlash.h tml




-"China Brawl" Richard Hill Leads Eastleigh FC To Playoffs


- "QPR and The Parable of the PatchWork Quilt"


- 14 Years Ago: Player of the Year Awards...Danny Maddix and Young Player, Richard Langley...Gerry Francis Speaks...





More Details re QPR and Warren Farm.....

See...

Warren Farm Sports Centre Interest Group
"...EALING PLANNING OFFICER RECOMMENDATION IS TO GRANT PERMISSION - REPORT NOW AVAILABLE HERE  ..."


Coming Soon...The "Winners"


 
 
- Five From Mumbai to Train With QPR







Friday, April 26, 2013

QPR Report Friday: More on Warren Farm...RIchest English Managers (The QPR Connection)...Bates on Warnock






Follow QPR REPORT on TWITTER!
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FOUR YEAR  Flashback: This bizarre Story



FOUR YEAR FLASHBACK!

Sunday People/Tom Hopkinson - QPR'S 2-DAY WEEK CHEEK - Queens Park Rangers can expect another angry backlash from fans after it emerged that their players are being asked to train only twice a week.
- People Sport understands the club decided to cut their weekly sessions over the last couple of weeks after both promotion and relegation were ruled out.
- And although they expect to up their training again this week, the news is sure to infuriate supporters, who are still paying top prices to watch players who are only working part-time.
- And they will be once again spitting feathers as their managerless outfit lurches from one problem to another.
- There is also unrest among the Rangers playing staff over plans for an end-ofseason tour to Bahrain which will cut into their summer breaks. Rangers are sponsored by Gulf Air, the Kingdom's flag carrier..




-"China Brawl" Richard Hill Leads Eastleigh FC To Playoffs


- "QPR and The Parable of the PatchWork Quilt"


- 14 Years Ago: Player of the Year Awards...Danny Maddix and Young Player, Richard Langley...Gerry Francis Speaks...





More Details re QPR and Warren Farm.....

See...

Warren Farm Sports Centre Interest Group
"...EALING PLANNING OFFICER RECOMMENDATION IS TO GRANT PERMISSION - REPORT NOW AVAILABLE HERE  ..."


Coming Soon...The "Winners"


 

SKY

Ferguson the richest manager

Manchester United boss Sir Alex Ferguson has retained his position as the wealthiest football manager in Britain, according to a report to be published on Sunday.
The fourth annual Sunday Times Sport Rich List, to be published in full on 28 April, says that Ferguson, who has just led United to Premier League title glory, is now worth ?34m.
The list is based on identifiable wealth, which includes land, property, other assets such as art and racehorses, or significant shares in publicly quoted companies, but which excludes bank accounts.
Former Sunderland and Ipswich boss Roy Keane, who used to play for Ferguson at United, is next on the list at ?29m, followed by Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger (?29m).
QPR manager Harry Redknapp is worth ?13m, good enough for ninth on the list, just behind his predecessor at Loftus Road, Mark Hughes (?14m).
Interim Chelsea manager Rafael Benitez has joined the list in joint-10th, alongside England boss Roy Hodgson and Martin O'Neill, with a fortune of ?12m.
The richest Formula One drivers born or based in the UK have also been revealed and Lewis Hamilton leads the way among active drivers on ?60m, an increase of ?5m since last year.
Jenson Button has also added ?5m to his total in the last year and is now worth ?58m, while Scot Dario Franchitti, a four-time IndyCar champion, is worth ?50m.
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Ken Bates on Leeds & Warnock (Bates Reject C Hill)
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YORKSHIRE POST

GFH clause left Bates unable to sack Warnock


Ken Bates
By Richard Sutcliffe
Published on 26/04/2013 06:05

IN lamenting what he considers to have been a “wasted season” for Leeds United, out-going chairman Ken Bates last night revealed how the protracted takeover saga thwarted his plan to sack Neil Warnock last October.

The 81-year-old will tomorrow attend the final game of his reign as chairman when Brighton & Hove Albion bring the curtain down on United’s Elland Road campaign. Coincidentally, the Seagulls were also the opposition for Bates’s first home game in January, 2005.

Much has happened over the intervening eight years and three months, a period that has included two play-off final appearances, a spell in administration, one promotion, one relegation and a host of famous Cup wins.

Bates sold United to GFH Capital, a Dubai-based private equity firm, in December last year, when it was announced he would remain as chairman until the end of the season and then become president.

As proud as Bates is of his Leeds reign, he also admits to being frustrated at not being able to deliver the number one target when taking over from Gerald Krasner’s board.

Speaking exclusively to the Yorkshire Post, Bates said: “The plan when I came in was to get Leeds back in the Premier League but, unfortunately, that has not been possible.

“In that respect, this season has been particularly frustrating, as I feel we really should have been at least challenging. In many ways, it has been a wasted season. A lost year, if you like.”

The past 12 months have been dogged by uncertainty at Elland Road with GFH Capital’s takeover taking the best part of six months to complete. Since then, a 10 per cent share has been sold to Bahrain-based International Investment Bank.

Bates, whose sale of Chelsea in 2003 to Roman Abramovich took a matter of weeks, is adamant the protracted saga has impacted on a season United have mainly spent in mid-table.

He said: “There is no doubt, in my mind, that the uncertainty which has hung like a cloud over Elland Road for a year has been a major factor in our unsuccessful season.

“As everyone knows, we agreed a 90-day exclusivity period (with GFH Capital) that was due to run until August.

“We took that to mean the deal would be completed during that period, meaning the club could still have a real go at getting promotion this season. Instead, things dragged on and, eventually, they (GFH) asked for an extension to November 19, which was turned down.

“Despite that, what we did agree to do was keep talking and, obviously, the deal went through on December 21.

“What people won’t be aware of, though, is that two clauses were included in our agreement with GFH. One was that we could make no material change without consulting GFH, while the other was that Neil Warnock had to stay as manager.
“It meant any player bought or sold from June (2012) onwards had to be discussed and approved by Salem Patel, on behalf of GFH. We were happy to do that because, as I say, we thought the takeover would go through during the summer.

“Unfortunately, it didn’t and, instead, the deal wasn’t done until December 21. A consequence was that we had to keep Neil Warnock when I didn’t think we should.

“I wanted to sack him in October because I didn’t think it was working out. But I couldn’t because of what was happening with the sale.”


Warnock’s tenure as United manager finally ended on April 1, almost six weeks after he had first mooted the possibility of stepping down in the wake of the FA Cup fifth round defeat to Manchester City.

The 64-year-old’s departure came just a couple of days after he had publicly lambasted defender Tom Lees for his “stupid” red card in United’s 3-0 defeat at Ipswich Town. Warnock’s assertion that Lees had “let me down, the team down and the fans who travelled” left the Leeds chairman so incensed he immediately telephoned the Academy product.

Bates added: “I didn’t like what he did to Tom Lees. To criticise Tom like that was terrible. After we heard what had been said post-match by Warnock, Suzannah and I rang Tom on the bus home.

“I told him, ‘Forget what has been said, it is a disgrace’. We then told Tom what a valuable member of the squad he was.”

On Warnock, Bates added: “We went for one of only three managers to win seven promotions but it didn’t work out. Warnock was always getting his excuses in first.

“I kept hearing how we didn’t sign this player or that player. But we found the money for (Lee) Peltier, (Jason) Pearce, (Paddy) Kenny, (Rodolph) Austin, (Ryan) Hall and (Luke) Varney in the summer.

“The only player we didn’t sign who Neil really wanted was Clint Hill. He’s 34 and yet Warnock wanted us to commit £1.5m in wages and transfer fee. That was in January and we weren’t prepared to do that.”

Bates may not have too many positive things to say about United’s last manager but he has been impressed by his successor.

“Brian McDermott has made a big impression on everyone already,” he said. “Suzannah and I went for lunch with Brian (on Wednesday).

“He came across as a thoroughly decent man, who had plenty of interesting things to say.

“I found it interesting that he had spent the past two weeks finding out exactly what has gone on at Leeds United for the past three years. I also liked what Brian had to say about players living locally.

“At Reading, they all lived within 10 miles of the club. No-one commuted long distances, whereas at Leeds we have players living 100 miles or more away.”

http://www.yorkshirepost.co.uk/sport/foo....nock-1-5618631?


Yorkshire Post

I made mistakes, but I am leaving this club in a much better shape...’
Published on 26/04/2013 06:06

FOR Ken Bates, the past eight or so years as Leeds United chairman have been far from easy.

The return to the Premier League he targeted on day one after riding to the rescue as the Elland Road club threatened to buckle under ruinous debts has, much to his frustration, proved elusive.

He has also been the subject of a hate campaign that led to the United chairman’s mobile phone number having to be changed along with that of his fax machine in Monaco.

Despite all that, the 81-year-old insists his time as Elland Road chairman has been a happy one and that he remains proud of many things. Not least, that Leeds still has a football club to support.

“Leeds, as a club, were on their last legs,” recalls Bates when asked by the Yorkshire Post about the deal that saw him take charge of United on January 21, 2005.

“If I hadn’t taken over, the club would have gone into liquidation. I am certain of that. The tax debts alone were terrible and there just wasn’t the money about elsewhere to do what had to be done.

“Certainly, no-one one in Yorkshire was going to get involved. That is what I always say to any critics. What was the alternative?”

When Bates took charge, United had been relegated from the Premier League only eight months earlier. However, the ramifications of that demotion had become all too apparent with Elland Road and Thorp Arch having been sold by the previous board.

The sale of Leeds’s last two remaining assets had only bought time with the first month of 2005 bringing a winding up order from the taxman over an unpaid £1.2m bill.

Matters were so bleak, in fact, that then captain Paul Butler issued an impassioned appeal through the pages of this newspaper for United to be put in administration – and incur a 10-point penalty – so the players would know where they stood in the fight against relegation.

Bates’s arrival ended such talk. Transfer funds were soon found as the second and final parachute payment from the Premier League allowed Rob Hulse to be bought for £1.1m as another £2m was spent on Richard Cresswell and Robbie Blake.

Defeat to Watford in the 2006 Championship play-off final, however, proved to be a fatal blow from which United would fail to recover. Within a year, Leeds were not only in administration but also League One and a fraught summer ensued before Bates regained control ahead of rival bidders that included former director Simon Morris.

“What killed Leeds off was Peter Ridsdale’s contracts,” recalls Bates. “They were too long, the players were paid too much and the club just could not support it.

“The syndicate I brought in at the start of 2005 put in and lost more than £30m. It was a huge blow.

“Mind, money isn’t everything. It has never been my be all and end all. Instead, I love building things and doing things.

“It is why I have not taken a penny out of the club in wages, the first (chairman) since Leslie Silver to do so.”

After coming out of administration in the summer of 2007, United won promotion at the third attempt.

A seventh place finish followed in 2010-11 but Leeds slipped to 14th last term.

This time around, they sit 13th going into what will be Bates’s final home game as chairman when Brighton head to Elland Road tomorrow.

He said: “Some things have not been nice, such as the personal campaign waged against me. I had abusive phone calls, while all sorts of nonsense was sent to my fax machine in Monaco. I had to change my numbers.

“In that respect, football follows society and society is nastier than it was and more vicious. Twitter has played a part in that. It’s why I don’t do that or e-mail. What those chanting ‘Bates Out’ and causing problems fail to realise is how much damage they do while trying to be clever.

“In recent years, we have had three different first-class potential investors who did due diligence with a view to getting involved. But then, once they had witnessed the abuse meted out to me, they walked away. They didn’t need the hassle.”

On his time as Elland Road chairman, Bates added: “I am disappointed not to have got promotion to the Premier League, of course I am. That was the plan when I came in.

“But Suzannah and I have thoroughly enjoyed the last eight years. We have made lots and lots of good friends, who will remain so for life.

“I’d also like to thank the overwhelming majority of Leeds United fans who have shown unswerving loyalty during my time as chairman.

“It is just unfortunate that the majority have been silenced by the empty vessels who make a lot of noise to the detriment of the club they profess to love.”

When Bates and his financial backers took charge in 2005, he became United’s fifth chairman in less than two years.

Clearly, therefore, tomorrow’s game against Brighton will mark the end of an era.

He said: “I am proud of what we have done. I have made mistakes, I admit that. No-one in the world can claim to not making mistakes.

“But I am leaving the club in much better shape than I found it. Leeds United are in a stable condition. And that could never have been said about Leeds United in 2005.

“It is up to others to take the club forward now. And I have been assured that GFH have the financial resources to build on what we have done.”

http://www.yorkshirepost.co.uk/sport/foo....hape-1-5618627?

 
- Five From Mumbai to Train With QPR


QPR OFFICIAL SITE - R’S GET WARREN FARM GREEN LIGHT















Club gets go-ahead to progress plans for new training ground ...

QUEENS Park Rangers football club is delighted to confirm it has been given the go ahead to progress its plans for a state-of-the-art training ground facility at the Warren Farm site.

At a meeting this evening (Wednesday 24th April), Ealing Councillors voted in favour of granting planning permission for the club's proposal to build a full multi-purpose Elite Training Facility and Community Sports Complex on the Warren Farm site.

It is intended that works will begin in the coming months, with the facility set to be ready ahead of the 2015/16 season.

QPR CEO Philip Beard told www.qpr.co.uk: “This is a landmark day for Queens Park Rangers Football Club.

“We are hugely grateful for the support shown by all parties, especially the local residents, who we hope will benefit extensively from the range of facilities and activities that will become available over the course of the coming years.

“There is a lot of hard work ahead of us as we finalise the design details and tendering of the project, but today’s news is a massive step forward and a significant milestone for the club.”

The Elite Training Facility will house the entire football department, including our thriving Academy.

It will provide: grass pitches for the first team and academy, an indoor 3G pitch, an outdoor 3G artificial pitch, extensive gym, sports science and rehabilitation areas, Academy classrooms, a large number of changing rooms, media, catering and grounds maintenance facilities.

The Community Sports Complex will use the extensive experience of QPR in the Community Trust to develop participation programmes and forge stronger and deeper local connections.

QPR in the Community Trust will create a progressive programme of sporting, educational and social activities, leading to enhanced life experiences for Ealing residents and its neighbourhoods.

The facility will encourage participation in sport and will promote healthy and active lifestyles in a purpose built and safe environment. 

The new site - explained

The Warren Farm site will be developed into a full multi-purpose First Class Professional Elite Training Facility and Community Sports Complex, which will incorporate state-of-the-art facilities.

These facilities will be used by both our professional and academy footballers, as well as the community, and echo our ethos of being ‘more than just a Football Club.’

The development will be designed to meet the Club’s professional training requirements, and will meet the Elite Player Performance Plan (EPPP) Category 1 criteria, with a layout of natural and artificial training pitches and grids. These facilities will provide a platform for the development of home grown talent.

Community facilities will be developed in line with Sport England and National Governing Bodies standards. The community facilities and community development programme will be managed by QPR in the Community Trust.

We see this element of the proposal as a true partnership with the council, local sports clubs and wider community users.

The community will have some of the best facilities for people of all ages and levels of ability to participate in a wide variety of sports including football, rugby, cricket, basketball and netball. Sporting programmes and activities led by professionally qualified coaches will be implemented, and will include input and appearances from professional players from QPR.

The development will incorporate Secured by Design recommendations and will meet with the Council’s Sports Strategy and public sports participation targets. QPR


- Also: Ealing Council/Warren FarmsPlanning Officer Report



15 YEARS AGO - The Greatest Own Goal in History?





QPR: Lee Harper, Ian Baraclough, David Bardsley, Danny Maddix, Neil Ruddock (Antti Heinola 70), Steve Yates, Nigel Quashie, Vinnie Jones, Mike Sheron (Matthew Rose 46), Steve Slade (Gavin Peacock 79), Kevin Gallen.

Manchester City: Martyn Margetson, Richard Edghill, Tony Vaughan, Kit Symons, Kevin Horlock, Jim Whitley, Ged Brannan (Craig Russell 88), Jamie Pollock (Ian Bishop 84), Georgi Kinkladze (Paul Dickov 73), Shaun Goater, Lee Bradbury.




QPR Metro Blog:  Remembering QPR history: Four memorable Anniversaries (Repost)







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