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- Five Years Ago Today: Gianni Paladini Axes Gary Waddock and Appoints John Gregory...Bizarre talk of Waddock learning from Gregory. A Month later, he was gone
- Five Years Ago: Gary Waddock's Last Game in Charge of QPR (QPR Lost to Port Vale)
- The Joey Barton Quiz
- Redknapp on Woodgate
- Flashback Article: "Chelsea: Muppets on a String!"
- Manchester City's massive Academy Project/Spending
- True show of gratitude: Plymouth Axe Peter Reid as Manager
- Blackburn Flying Some Fans to India to give views to Owners!
QPR Official Site/Mick Jones Blog - JONES BLOG: HOW JOEY HAS HELPED ADEL
QPR Assistant Manager Mick Jones brings us his latest blog direct from the Harlington training ground …
It has been a great few weeks here at QPR, but I have to say the way we performed in our two games since the closure of the transfer window has not surprised me. In fairness, our displays against Newcastle and Wolves just showed how necessary it was for us to make those late signings.
The squad we had wasn't strong enough for the Premier League, but I have to say we couldn't have had better results than who we managed to bring in prior to the takeover of the Club.
Of course, once the takeover went through, the Manager was suddenly in a position to take the Club forward.
How Neil Warnock got those signings made in the last 48 hours of the window - and particularly in the final 12 hours - I'll never know. I have never seen a Manager so determined to get those players in. He knew they were vital to us. Had we not got them, I think we would have struggled this season. Now we have better prospects of being successful.
And that's no reflection on the lads who got us up. It's just normal - the higher you go, the better the player. We had to bring quality in, and we're delighted that we managed to do that.
The target for us from the start of the season was 17th place in the Premier League. And that shouldn't change. If you ask any QPR fan, if we finish in that position at the end of the season to stay in the top division, I am sure they would be delighted.
The message from within the Club is not to get carried away and to keep our feet on the ground. I know a lot of fans are finding that difficult at the moment, particularly with how we played against Newcastle and Wolves.
And I can understand that.
After our goalless draw with Newcastle, Neil Warnock, Keith Curle and I were in a room at the stadium and we were like three kids at Christmas with a new toy!
Our performance that night was stunning. What was even better was how we carried that into the game at Molineux.
I know Mick McCarthy and I admire his footballing philosophies. He was at our game last Monday and he told me after the match at the weekend that he had left Loftus Road very impressed with what he had seen. And we carried that into the Wolves game - we started so well and were like the home team for the first 20 minutes up there.
The new group of lads have only been with us a couple of weeks and yet there is already a very strong team spirit amongst them.
And the reason for that is the players that have come in are all great characters with personalities. They have all played in the Premier League, they know the Premier League and every one of them has a point to prove.
Look at Anton Ferdinand. He has always been a top centre-half, but has never been the centre-half he should be. I think Neil will make him that centre-half.
Danny Gabbidon has been in the wilderness for a couple of years, Joey Barton with all his off-the-field problems, DJ Campbell, Jason Puncheon, Jay Bothroyd, every one of them has got a point to prove.
But the biggest thing I have noticed is the way the bar has been raised in training. Joey on the training ground is different to any other player I have seen in my career.
He trains in a way that is vital to him, and everyone else looks at him and thinks: 'I better get up to that level.' There is no doubt that Joey has been inspirational to us already.
The Manager made Joey his captain. He met with Adel Taarabt privately to explain it to him first. After that meeting, I asked Neil how it went, and he said it went well. Neil told me that Adel accepted Joey had to be the Captain.
And what's happened to Adel in the last couple of weeks is that he has looked around the training ground and he has seen how people like Joey train. And Adel has thought to himself: 'If I want to play at the highest level, that's how I have to react.'
And I have heard Joey during training sessions say to Adel: 'If you want to sulk, do it while you're running back! Don't do it walking, If I ask you to do something, do it.' And Adel's reaction to that has been fantastic.
And not many people could say that to Adel and get that sort of reaction. But Adel recognises Joey's status in the game. That tells Adel that Joey must be right.
Shaun Derry - who is another natural choice for captain because he is another great leader - said that it was a great decision too. At this particular stage of Joey's career, he is the perfect choice to be QPR Captain.
*If you have a question for Mick Jones, or a topic you would like him to discuss in a future blog, e-mail paulm@qpr.co.uk QPR
QPR OFFICIAL SITE - GABBIDON INJURY UPDATE
Head Physio Nigel Cox has confirmed that the injury sustained by defender Danny Gabbidon in Saturday's 3-0 win at Wolverhampton Wanderers is not as bad as first feared.
Gabbidon, 32, came off at Molineux with seven minutes remaining after falling awkwardly and Cox told www.qpr.co.uk: "Danny twisted his knee, and the subsequent swelling made a full examination difficult.
"We sent him for a scan on Monday morning and the report has come back that there is no major structural damage, which we are delighted with.
"The injury certainly isn't as bad as we initially feared. At this moment in time he is a doubt for this Sunday's game against Aston Villa but he is working hard and doing everything he can to be available for selection." QPR
Talksport - QPR starlet Andrade aiming to emulate Ronaldo
By Declan Taylor Monday, September 19
QPR rookie Bruno Andrade is aiming to become Loftus Road’s answer to Cristiano Ronaldo.
The Portuguese winger, 17, made his debut for QPR with an 11-minute cameo in the side’s 2-0 defeat at Wigan in August and is now hoping for some more game time under Neil Warnock.
And Andrade, who joined QPR aged 13, wants to emulate illustrious compatriot Ronaldo, who scored 117 goals in 290 appearances for Manchester United before joining Real Madrid in a world-record £80m deal.
"Cristiano Ronaldo inspires me,” he said. “He is my role model. Even though people compare me with Ashley Young I want to be like Ronaldo but I know I have a long way to go before I get to that level.
“I’m only 17 now and I have had the opportunity to compete in the Premier League. Now I’m hoping for more games this season.
“My dream was to in the first team here at QPR and now I have made it. I am a professional and I’ve learned a lot from Neil Warnock who has helped me.” Talksport
Borneo Post - MAS, AirAsia to focus on core areas — Fernandes
KUALA LUMPUR: The continous growth as the premier airline and low-cost carrier, respectively, will be the key outcome of the collaboration between Malaysia Airlines (MAS) and AirAsia, says Tan Sri Tony Fernandes.
“There has been relatively poor returns from the many businesses it ventured into previously. It tried to do too many things, (have) low cost as well as first, business and economy classes. (It is also into) maintenance, repair and overhaul and catering, which are separate businesses,” he said in a ninterview with Bernama yesterday.
Referring to the share-swap proposal between MAS and AirAsia announced some weeks back, Fernandes killed off speculation that it would lead to an eventual merger between the two carriers.
“I don’t believe in a merger. It will be like what we did with AirAsia and AirAsia X, we separated them (and allowed them to focus on their businesses).
“The key is to remain focused on the respective strengths and the similar formula should apply to MAS,” he said.
Many quarters had also voiced their concerns on the benefits of such an agreement when Khazanah Nasional Bhd, the major shareholder of MAS, announced that it would take up 10 per cent stake in AirAsia while Tune Air Sdn Bhd, the investment vehicle of Fernandes and Datuk Kamarudin Meranun, would own a 20.5 per cent stake in MAS under the share-swap deal.
There were also some who suggested that the arrangement would benefit AirAsia more than MAS.
“(Why) has there to be a winner or loser, why can’t there be two winners?” Fernandes asked, adding that Malaysians generally tended to be positive about things but in this case, some commentators were making statements to suit their advantage.
He said the whole aim of the collaboration was to make the two Malaysian airlines stronger because of the enormous competition in the market, increase shareholders value and ensure that their employees’ welfare were well taken care of through improved earnings.
“Some airlines have benefited from two of us fighting,” he said, without naming them.
Sounding upbeat and optimistic about the collaboration, he said, both MAS and AirAasia could enhance their efficiency through cost savings.
“We have our staff at the same place. Do we need two separate offices or check-in staff?” he asked.
Fernandes said MAS should focus on its core strength, having won the Best Cabin Crew Award continuously for many years.
“That is the kind of service that money can’t buy,” he stressed.
MAS, he said, should offer the right products that would appeal to the market, in this case, premium service, while those who preferred low-cost travel could opt for AirAsia.
Going forward, Fernandes said he would leave it to MAS to undertake the changes and was also positive about what the new chief executive officer at MAS, Ahmad Jauhari Yusof, could do.
“He is a fantastic guy. Humble, smart and gets his hands dirty and he is able to make a difference. The team (at MAS) is strong. Let’s wait and see,” he said.
Fernandes said the collaboration between MAS and AirAsia was also about making Kuala Lumpur an aviation hub in South East Asia and bringing back some of the traffic from Singapore.
“I want people to look at the bigger picture and give us support to fight global competitors,” he said.
“You got to be in ‘La La Land’ if you think there is going to be less competition (from now on). For AirAsia, there is Lion Air, Cebu Pacific and Tiger Airways. There is so much of competition we got to be ready for globalisation and the open sky policies.”
Fernandes said one should allow the collaboration between MAS and AirAsia some time to work before positive results would show in the next two quarters from the improved business focus.
He emphasised that AirAsia’s solid financial record was a result of being focused on what it did best in the business.
Referring to the jersey advertisements by MAS and AirAsia with English Premier League club, Queens Park Rangers Football Club (QPR), he said, it was about building brands.
“If you look at many of newspapers in Britain yesterday, pictures of (QPR captain) Joey Barton and MAS were all over the place,” said a beaming Fernandes in reply to a question whether it was worth for MAS to spend so much money on advertising.
“If you keep cutting (costs), then there won’t be anything left. If you think that RM5 million to RM6 million is heavy, that is equivalent to about 20-25 advertisements (placements) in some of the newspapers here. MAS needs to build its brand and the issue here is not cost but revenue.”
Saying that AirAsia owed its success to branding, Fernandes, who owns a 66 per cent stake in QPR along with two other Malaysians, said they wanted to give more value to companies that were sponsoring the club.
He said because of their involvement in the club, a lot of QPR fans in Britain were also enquiring about visiting Malaysia.
“I think (Tourism Minister) Datuk Seri Dr Ng Yen Yen will be very happy when she hears that,” he said.
“We sponsored Formula 1, Manchester United, so on and so forth. You don’t grow from 200,000 passengers to 33 million without that (kind of branding). The key to AirAsia’s success is putting money into branding.
“Take Emirates Airline, for instance. They are every where in terms of sponsorship, and so is Red Bull,” he added. — Bernama - Borneo Post
-This Week's "Spot The Ball"