Deja Vu: QPR Transfer Talk...A Year Ago

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As the January transfer window opens, there is a certain feeling of deja vu of a year ago. There are a couple of obvious differences: In January, 2006, the manager was Ian Holloway; today, it's John Gregory. A year ago, we were challenging for a playoff spot; now we're righting relegation.

What was being said a year ago - January 2006 - about transfers: window

BBC - [Ugo] Ukah going as Holloway wields axe
Defender Ugo Ukah has been told he can leave Queens Park Rangers. The Nigerian has made just two first-team appearances since being brought to the club by chairman Gianni Paladini last summer.
Manager Ian Holloway is set to tell at least four other players they are not in his plans and should move on.
"Some lads haven't done it for me. I've told Ugo that he can go and I'll be telling others the same. We need to move forward," said Holloway.
"I want to add to the squad. If I can't buy anyone I'll at least look to bring people in on loan BBC

OLLY: WE CAN'T AFFORD MARCUS
Bristol Evening Post 05 January 2006
Ian Holloway today ruled out a move for Bristol City striker Marcus Stewart. Queens Park Rangers boss Holloway expressed an interest in taking the striker to Loftus Road prior to November's deadline for loan signings. And the former Bristol Rovers manager is now looking to recruit a new forward, possibly on loan, during the January transfer window . But although Stewart is unhappy at being left out of the City side and might now consider a move in search of first-team football, his wages are a stumbling block. Holloway revealed: "I did make an enquiry about Stewart a couple of months ago, but we couldn't afford the money."There was no way we could afford to bring him here pemanently, but I did consider a loan."That will not be possible unless the money situation changes. As far as I know, that is the same, so it doesn't look like a deal will be possible."
QPR and fellow Championship club Plymouth Argyle have expressed an interest in Stewart, who is keen to retain his family base on the outskirts of Bristol.
Holloway added: "He's a magnificent player and there's no doubt about that." But my chairman seems to prefer me looking for younger players and I've lots of other options to consider. I've drawn up a list of targets that I want to show him and Stewart is not on it at present...." Bristol

Holloway on New Signings & Promotion Push - TEAMTALK
QPR manager Ian Holloway has admitted he is looking to strengthen his squad as he tries to improve his side's position in the Championship.Rangers are now six points adrift of the play-off positions, but Holloway remains upbeat and insists if he can get his hands on the right reinforcements, promotion is still a possibility.
Holloway said: "I'm looking overall towards the rest of the season now and I'm confident I can make a few signings soon. Maybe not in time for Saturday's game but after that perhaps."
I'm sure once we do that we can make up the points on the play-off positions. It's all over the park, I'm looking, but it's defence in particular. We need some more defenders at this club." Teamtalk

Holloway on Selling Evatt & Bean...Ben Kosky/Kilburn Times - January 11, 2006
Ian Evatt has been placed on the transfer list as QPR begin clearing the decks to make room for new signings.The big centre-half, signed for £150,000 from Chesterfield only last summer, is one of five Rangers players to be told they can leave the club.Midfielders Marcus Bean and Adam Miller are also surplus to requirements, while Aaron Brown has signed for Swindon following a loan spell with the League One strugglers.Another of the Rs' summer signings, Nigerian defender Ugo Ukah, has also been made available for transfer after making just two appearances for the club.
By contrast, Evatt has pulled on a hooped shirt 18 times - but manager Ian Holloway decided he had seen enough after last month's back-to-back defeats by Coventry and Brighton."Ian Evatt was captain at his old club, so he's not a nugget - but he knows how I feel about what he's been giving me so far," Holloway told the Times."You need to have a lot of pace and be confident in your pace. I've put him in the reserves and it's up to him how he responds to that."He had a lot of clubs after him in the summer and, if I do manage to bring in other defenders during the window, he'll be further down the pecking order."
Bean, who spent two months on loan at promotion-chasing Swansea earlier this season, entered discussions about a new contract following his return to Loftus Road. But the QPR boss was less than impressed by Bean's displays against Coventry and Brighton and insisted: "I think everyone needs to know where they stand."With everyone else I've got in midfield and Scott Donnelly coming through as well, I don't think Marcus will be patient enough."
He came back and had a little chance to get back in the first team, but the fact is I chose Evatt and Beanie and we lost a couple of games, then I left them out and we started winning again."Holloway has so far made little progress in his attempts to add to the squad - with the need to find a new striker increased by Kevin Gallen's ongoing injury problems.Gallen and Marc Nygaard, who has a calf strain, will both be absent again when Rangers take on Southampton at Loftus Road on Saturday."I don't know what's happening with Kevin Gallen," Holloway added. "He's had scan after scan and we're still no closer to working out what's wrong with him."I thought I'd managed to get a striker in on loan a couple of days ago, but then his club changed their mind. The problem is that, with this stupid window, everyone's chasing the same players."I don't think I'm going to have any money to buy, but I'm trying to get some loans, preferably young players."Midfielder Steve Lomas, who also played for the Rs' reserves in Tuesday's 2-2 draw at Wycombe, could return to the first-team squad this weekend.The former Northern Ireland skipper has been out for nearly three months with a hamstring problem. Kilburn Times

Official Site - I'M SATISFIED
"....With the January transfer window now open, Holloway also revealed he is due to discuss his long list of targets with Gianni Paladini on Tuesday morning."The transfer window will be used to look at moving the club forward and I'm due to sit down with Gianni and Antonio tomorrow to speak about the targets."I've got 6-8 targets in three different brackets. Some are buys, some expensive and some are in the loan category. We'll see what comes of it, but I've made a few calls and I'm quite optimistic.''Holloway reserved a final thought for two of the club's young guns, Shabazz Baidoo and home debutant Scott Donnelly."Shabazz and Scott are the type of characters I'm looking for at this club and will both do very well.'' QPR

Clubcall - Q.P.R - Holloway -"I need to sell"
Queens Park Rangers manager Ian Holloway has admitted he needs to sell some of his players in order to strengthen his squad in January.
Following the 1-1 home draw against Burnley, the Hoops boss will be looking to make moves in the transfer window.
"I've got to get rid of people in my squad to make room. I am due to talk to the players who have not been doing it for me," revealed Holloway.
"They can move on in this window and hopefully we can move on."
Holloway also pinpointed the need to bring a striker to Loftus Road : "At the moment we haven't got a striker in the higher echelons of the scoring charts" Clubcall