- The QPR Team of 1898! For More: See Bushman's Photo History of QPR's Founding Years
- Throughout the day, the QPR Report Messageboard has news updates, comments and perspectives - even links to other board comments of interest re QPR matters (on and off the field) along with football (and ONLY football) topics in general....Also Follow: QPR REPORT ON TWITTER
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UPDATE:
Paul Warburton/Ealing Gazette - Tony Fernandes' QPR takeover hangs in the balance
- PROSPECTIVE QPR owner Tony Fernandes will spend a ‘pivotal’ day trying to persuade the Mittals to sell their 33 percent stake to him.
- The Air Asia mogul has changed his mind about buying a piece of the Premiership new boys – and now wants the lot.
- Fernandes has already thrashed out a deal to take the 67 percent shares owned by Flavio Briatore and Bernie Ecclestone – but the remainder, owned by billionaire Lakshmi Mittal and orchestrated by son-in-law Amit Bhatia, is the sticking point.
- Bhatia, who quit the board in May as vice-chair after falling out with Briatore, is thought to want a way back in if Briatore goes.
- An insider said: “Today is pivotal. If the Mittal stake is for sale, it might cost a bit more than Fernandes is willing to pay, and he really does want total control now.” Gazette
Jacob Murtagh/Fulham Chronicle - QPR defender slapped with three-match ban
- CLINT Hill has been hit with a three-match ban after QPR decided not to appeal against the red card he received in Saturday's opening-day defeat to Bolton.
- The former Crystal Palace full-back was given his marching orders late on for a shove on Martin Petrov.
- Boss Neil Warnock had planned to contest referee Martin Atkinson's decision, but has opted not to appeal the dismissal after reviewing video evidence.
- Hill will now miss the games against Everton, Wigan and Newcastle before returning to the fold for the trip to Wolves next month. Fulham Chronicle
- Fifteen Years Ago Today: QPR's First Game back in Division II after Premiership relegation (Video snippets from Oxford United Game)
- Twenty Years Ago Today: Gerry Francis QPR Managerial Debut (and Ian Holloway adn Dennis Bailey made QPR Playing Debuts)
- Twenty-Six Years Ago: Jim Smith made his QPR Managerial Debut
- Eight Year Flashback: Richard Langley Leaves QPR for Cardiff....Leon Knight Turns Down Opportunity to join QPR
- David Conn/The Guardian: The Premier League has priced out fans, young and old - Ticket prices have soared way beyond the cumulative 77.1% inflation rate for 20 years and excluded traditional support bases
- Recent Tony Fernandes Interest in Investing in West Ham and Norwich
- Australian Youth Goalie Seems to have joined QPR
- Update II: Leon Clarke seems WILL be Joining Swindon Town
- Clarke Carlise Drunk Driving Charge
- Who Does Tony Fernandes Follow on Twitter?!
Fox Sports - QPR waiting for off-field changes
Published August 15, 2011 - | FoxSports
(AP) – The opening weekend of any Premier League season is an evocative time for all concerned, but this weekends fixtures were given an added resonance with their being played out in the context of a spate of harrowing civil disobedience which beset many of Englands largest cities early last week. While Tottenham Hotspurs fixture against Everton was unable to be fulfilled in the aftermath of the London rioting, there was a semblance of normality restored to the capital as Queens Park Rangers went ahead with their opening day tie against Bolton Wanderers on Saturday.
Returning to the top-flight after a 15-year absence, Neil Warnocks QPR stormed to the Championship title last season with a brand of football which combined canny defensive conservatism with an intuitive attacking flair unmatched by any of their promotion rivals. Led by captain Adel Taarabt a mercurial genius blessed with extraordinary technical ability and (at least for the time being) backed by a collection of remarkably wealthy men, there is arguably much more expected of QPR than of their fellow newly-promoted teams, Swansea and Norwich City. However, in front of an enthusiastic Loftus Road crowd on a sun-dappled August afternoon, the Hoops were given a rather bleak reality check as their opponents produced a cunning and professional performance to consign QPR to a heavy 4-0 defeat. Despite a bright start to the game, the home sides giddy early enthusiasm was steadily ground down by a Bolton side which is all too conscious of the specific faculties required to survive at the highest level. While his side didnt disgrace themselves by any means, Warnock has been served an early reminder of just how great the gap in class between the Championship and the Premier League is.
Of course, as interesting as QPRs on-field return to the top-flight is, events in the Loftus Road boardroom are proving just as intriguing at present. Over the summer cracks have appeared in the edifice of Flavio Briatore and Bernie Ecclestones co-ownership, regular in-fighting and poor public relations strategies having drawn the ire of an increasingly exasperated fan base. For several weeks now rumors regarding an imminent takeover of the club by Air Asia and Team Lotus owner Tony Fernandes have abounded, his presence alongside Briatore in the directors box on Saturday seeming to confirm much of the conjecture. Indeed, with the Malaysian businessman reportedly in advanced talks with the west London club, there have been whisperings that a deal may be struck as soon as the early part of this week. The great hope of many of the Loftus Road faithful is that the current owners (who, incidentally, have gradually made tickets prohibitively expensive to swathes of supporters) will move aside and make way for an individual or consortium more willing to invest in the squad and provide it with the slight strengthening many feel it needs in order to fulfill its substantial promise in the Premier League. Above all, it would be fair to say, the fans want to see their club to be run by men who have its interests far more clearly at heart. Whether Fernandes is the man to provide that cohesion and stability remains to be seen, but at least for a large number of QPR supporters any change which brings an end to the Briatore/Ecclestone axis would be positive in the short term at the very least.
The team may have endured a disappointing start to the new campaign, but the burgeoning potential QPR has is plain for all to see. Equipped with a squad possessing more than a smattering of quality and a manager who knows the division well and inspires great loyalty in his charges, the basic framework is in place for Rangers to comfortably guide themselves to safety this season. All that is needed now are owners who dont seem bent on destroying the most traditionally positive aspects of this most endearing of footballing institutions. If the boardroom difficulties are swiftly ironed out and Warnock provided with the funds he so yearns for, then theres no reason why the attractive and successful football we saw from QPR in 2010/11 wont be gracing the Premier League on a regular basis this season. Fox Sports
Hull Daily Mail - HULL CITY: Bullard set to cut ties – and move to QPR
- JIMMY Bullard looks set to finally cut ties with Hull City this week following a month-long disciplinary.
- And he is expected to immediately resurrect his playing career by agreeing a move to Premier League new boys QPR.
- The club-record £5m signing has been suspended for the past four weeks following an incident on a pre-season trip to Slovenia, which saw him immediately ordered to stay away from the club.
- Bullard was finally summoned to a lengthy disciplinary hearing at the KC last week, in which he was represented by the PFA.
- City are believed to have taken legal advice and considered all available options, including dismissing the ex-Fulham and Wigan man.
- But with QPR renewing their interest this week, and the threat of a long drawn-out legal battle ahead, it now appears a severance agreement is more likely to be reached.
- Bullard, who has made just 19 league starts for City since signing in January 2009, is contracted until the end of the 2012-13 season.
- That contract still has a value of more than £4m in wages going forward. But City will now look to make a significantly lower payment of less than £1m given his present situation." Hull Daily Mail
Everton Official Site Rodney Marsh on QPR and Everton
Rodney Marsh is never shy in offering an opinion on football and evertonfc.com caught up with him ahead of Saturday's game against one his former clubs, Queens Park Rangers.
We got Rodney's view on QPR ahead of the meeting at Goodison Park and asked him about his experiences of facing Everton as part of a question and answer session.
What did you think of QPR’s 4-0 defeat to Bolton on the opening day of the season, and what more do they need to be competitive?
I watched the game live over here in America and it was very disappointing - they started okay but as soon as the first goal went in it was all hands to the pump and they came up well short.
I would say they need eight more players to be competitive. I don't think there is one player that plays for QPR who would get in the Everton team.
A lot has been said about the role that Adel Taarabt has to play, how important do you think he is to Rangers’ fortunes?
Before the season started, QPR called me to ask my opinion about the season and I said similar to what I've said already and added the fact that Taarabt isn't a ball player, he's a ball holder.
In the Premier League unless you're a top player like Wayne Rooney or Thierry Henry then you can't hold on to the ball.
Taarabt playing in a poor QPR side holding the ball is almost a liability and he got dragged off on Saturday of course.
Can DJ Campbell and Jay Bothroyd score the goals to keep QPR in the Premier League?
I don’t think QPR have spent more than £1.25m in the summer and you won't get quality for that amount of money.
I'd like to add that this isn't Neil Warnock's fault, he's been outstanding at QPR and he's a terrific manager but I just think that when your hands are tied then you can never compete.
Judging by what you’ve said so far, would you say that Neil Warnock faces a tougher task in keeping QPR up than he did when he was in charge at Sheffield United?
Yes I do, but I tell you what when teams come up from the lower division they don't appreciate how quick and skilful the forwards are that they are playing against.
I’ve seen it year after year from teams down at the bottom.
If you don't improve your defence when you come up from the Championship, it's like deer in the headlights for the first dozen games.
At Sheffield United Neil Warnock had a better squad of players than he does now at QPR.
What do you make of Everton?
Everton have a very good squad of players and they are solid mid-table team.
I think David Moyes is one of the most underrated managers around, I think he's superb.
I’ve spoken to Danny Donachie many times and David is progressive, he is enthusiastic about bringing in new ideas and is an absolutely wonderful manager.
Which Everton players stand out for you when you watch them?
Everton have a lot of good players. Arteta's been injured but came back against Bohemians and is a terrific player with really good feet.
Cahill of course scores plenty of goals and comes from deep for headers, but the all round performances of Everton are good.
Tim Howard in goal is my man, I'll tell you a quick story about him. Ages and ages ago I got a phone call and this guy and he said ‘Rodney I have a 12-year-old goalkeeper who is fantastic and could be a player'.
He was playing in a tournament in Tampa and I thought crikey he's a great little player - and it was Tim Howard.
That was nearly 20 years ago and he's gone on to be, in my opinion, a world class goalkeeper.
What are your memories of Everton and playing against them?
When I was a very young player before I got in the team at Fulham, they had the golden vision Alex Young who was one of the greatest centre forwards that ever played.
Then you go on to Colin Harvey, Howard Kendall and Alan Ball and Everton were just a superb football club and football team and will always have my respect.
Which defenders did you come up against when you played against Everton?
Oh my goodness, I played against Brian Labone, who was like a lamp post you couldn’t get past him, it was like he was made of granite.
I played one of my first games against a battering ram of a centre forward called Fred Pickering, and there was a little left winger called Johnny Morrissey who was a terrific player.
I got into a fight with Jimmy Husband once and I head butted him they are all really good days that I remember, playing against a great, top-level football team.
http://www.evertonfc.com/news/archive/2011/08/16/r-s-legend-marsh-looks-ahead
- Everton Match Preview/ Everton-QPR Stats and Past Encounters. (Past Everton-QPR Video)
- QPR-Rochdale: Tickets On Sale
- On This Day: QPR's 1975/76 "Championship" Season started (Video)
- Also on this day: QPR's First Away Game after First Division Relegation...and Tommy Docherty's QPR (without a sold Allen and Goddard) lost on Opening Day
- Four Year Flashback: Chairman Paladini Warns of QPR Administration
- Official Site on the New Shirt "A Modern Classic"
- Flashback 18 Months: Club Desire to Funnel Communications via the Official Supporters Club (OSC)
- Still No QPR Offical Site Update (and apparently nothing in the first programme) re the Status of the Official Supporters Club (OSC). Despite Committee Resignations.
- Still Waiting! "[P]lans are already afoot for a pre-season celebration, once the players return to training in July." QPR May 11, 2011 Statement
However, the Official Site does offer: "HAVE A PIC WITH THE TROPHY! QPR
- Audio: QPR Report Comments on the BBC World Service
- QPR Documentary "Four Year Plan" - To Marbella Festival in October
- Alec Stock's Daughter Offers some Memories of Her Father
- Six Year Flashback: QPR vs Sheffield United and Alleged Gun/Boardroom "Incident"
- Wigan Game, August 27th: Change of Time
- Social Media/Facebook/Twitter - Most Popular Clubs...QPR Stats re Social Media: Facebook & Twitter
- QPR Get Rochdale at Loftus Road in the League Cup (Carling Cup) - week of August 22)
- Premiership Attendance Stats: With QPR's Stadium Capacity - QPR will be near or at the bottom.
- A Statistical Guide to Points Needed to Stay Up
- "Spot The Ball: Last Week's Answer"
- Suggest A Caption! - Further Zimbio Photos from QPR-Bolton
- This Week's "Spot The Ball"
