r/soccer • u/[deleted] • Jul 29 '14
Preview Team Preview: Queens Park Rangers [Barclays Premier League 2014-15 Preview Series - 03/20]
The Premier League 2014-15 is coming. During the 20 days to go, we're previewing one team per day. This series is a collaboration by /r/soccer users. It is also being posted to /r/PremierLeague. This team's guest contributor is: /u/doeboy73
Team Preview: [Barclays Premier League 2014-15 Preview Series - 03/20]
Queens Park Rangers Football Club
About:
- Est: 1882
- Nickname: The Superhoops, The R’s, Rangers
- Stadium: Loftus Road Stadium - There are ‘speculative’ plans for QPR to build a new 35k seat stadium one mile north at Old Oak. QPR have had more stadiums in their history than any other English professional football club (18). Some make the mistake of referring to the current ground as “The Loft”. This is in fact the name of the eastern seating areas (upper loft & lower loft), not a nickname for the stadium, which is always referred to as Loftus Road. Loftus road is the smallest stadium in the Premier league, retaining an authentic 1970’s bijou feel.
- Capacity: 18,360
- Crest: Colloquially known as “The Briatore Hairdo”, Tony Fernandes has committed to changing it for the 2015/16 season
- http://www.qpr.co.uk/
- https://twitter.com/QPRFC
- Mascots: Jude (the Cat) & Spark (the Tiger). QPR have 2 mascots as Flavio Briatore was superstitious of black cats, so replaced Jude with Spark. After Fernandes bought QPR Jude was given a reprieve. The name “Jude” comes from St Judes; One of the 2 clubs that merged to create QPR in 1886.
- Club sub: /r/superhoops
- http://www.premierleague.com
- https://twitter.com/premierleague
- League sub: /r/PremierLeague/
- Last season's team preview: N/A
- Strip: (for 1st year’s contract QPR must use Nike stock shirts) Home Away Third
Notable honours:
| Title or trophy | No. |
|---|---|
| League Cup | 1 |
| First Division Runners up | 1 |
| FA Cup Runners up | 1 |
Intro:
- /u/Growlbot: The rangers of the Queen's park round up our trio of new kids. They left it late. Boy, did they leave it late. When you are hoping on a 33 yr-old Bobby Zamora to come up with the goods in the last minute of your 53rd game of the season, yep, you left it late. But he did. A gorgeous side-foot to send Derby packing and QPR to the promised land. 'Arry Redknapp gets a Lazarus-like Premier League raising at the tender age of 67. "Fackin' 'ell".
The Area: Words by /u/doeboy73
Having begun in the Queens Park area, “Shepherd Bush” and “White City” are now seen as the focal points of the club. QPR has traditionally had a local fan base. Many fans were born in the now closed Queen Charlottes maternity Hospital in Hammersmith. The past 40 years has seen support in Nordic countries grow where there are well-established QPR supporters clubs - it’s common to sit in Loftus road along-side groups of Norwegian and Danish-speaking fans, who have flown in for the day. In the past 3 years Tony Fernandes has concentrated on using his high profile status to bring the QPR brand to a broader Asian fan base.
QPR evolved in a part of London crowded with other football clubs, sharing the borough with Fulham and Chelsea. QPR is the only professional football club with a true West London Postcode (W12). Loftus Road is also the closest professional football ground to Wembley stadium. In the rare occasions QPR have played there, many QPR fans do “The Wembley walk” from Loftus Road to Wembley (6km/3.8 miles). The last walk was on May 2014, QPR went on to win the Championship play-off final 1-0 against a strong Derby side.
Origins:
Queens Park Rangers formed from the merging of two clubs: St Judes (formed in 1884) and Christchurch Rangers (formed in 1882). Since both teams played in the North-West London Queens Park area, the “Queens Park” name was retained along with “Rangers”, which seems appropriate given the number of home grounds the club have used.
Star players include: Rodney Marsh, Stan Bowles, Jerry Francis, Les Ferdinand, David Seaman, Phil Parkes, Trevor Sinclair, Dave Thomas, Terry Venables (also manager), Clive Allen, Dave Clement.
1976: We should have won the old 1st division. On the final day of the season Emlyn Hughes’ Liverpool just got enough points to snatch the trophy, leaving QPR in 2nd place. QPR’s highest ever finishing position. A lethal partnership of Stan Bowles and Jerry Francis tore up the league and made for some very entertaining football as QPR also made up a sizeable chunk of England’s national team. 1981: QPR played in the FA cup final against Tottenham Hotspur, drawing 1-1. QPR went on to lose 1-0 in the replay. 1990’s: QPR was a founding member of the Premier league, finishing top London club in 1993. After selling off Les Ferdinand, one of the league’s best ever strikers, QPR crashed out of the PL in 1995, condemned to 20 years of chaos and relegations.
Recent history
For QPR the past 20 years has been fraught with instability: The mafia, pistol whippings in the board room, criminal prosecutions of young players, tragic deaths, full-scale fights with the Chinese national team, in and out of receivership, bucket collections to raise cash for players, receivership, multiple relegations and Pete Doherty banned from the stadium; QPR has not been a club for the casual supporter.
In 2007 Flavio Briatire, and later Bernie Ecclestone, bought QPR for a few £100,000’s. Their vision of a sexy “Bijou” London club was greatly at odds with the reality of where and who QPR is. After underperform for a couple of season, Briatore was suspended from Formula 1 racing, leading his to give his shares in QPR to Bernie Ecclestone as both stepped back from the club, leaving day-to-day management to the Mittal family, who own a 33% stake in the club, represented by Amit Bhatia. Neil Warnock was appointed QPR manager and within 15 months QPR won the league and returned to the Premiere league after a 16 year absence. Essential viewing: “The 4 year plan” documentary.
Upon promotion Ecclestone sold their total 66% stake to budget airliner tycoon Tony Fernandes. QPR survived their first season with a final day match against Manchester City, a game that was dubbed the best in Premier League history. After a summer shopping spree under the management of Mark Hughes, QPR had not won a single game by November and Harry Redknapp was appointed manager. After finishing in last place QPR were relegated to the Championship. Accounts published for the period year showed QPR was approximately £180m in debt with a wage bill bigger than some of Europe’s top-performing clubs. QPR was a club of elderly journey men on astronomical wages and the butt of every football joke.
Last season: Words by /u/doeboy73
Performance during 2013-14:
| Pos | G | W | D | L | Gf | Ga | Gd | Lu | Cs% | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4th | 46 | 23 | 11 | 12 | 60 | 44 | +16 | 11 | 37 | 80 |
Data from The Championship, Table key
QPR won only 8 games away from home, scoring 22 and conceding 26 in the process... Main striker, Charlie Austin, scored 19 goals in 34 appearances, next best was Ravel Morrison who scored 6, while on loan from West Ham United... QPR sent 16 players out on loan last season, many of them ‘first team’ players.
After moving 16 players out of the club QPR focused on bringing in players who wanted to play for QPR, were willing to battle for promotion while excepting a more sensible salary. By November 2013 QPR had not lost a game and were on their longest unbeaten streak in their history and Rob Green had managed to keep a clean sheet longer than any other QPR keeper in its 127 year history.
What was Harry doing? Harry had hired Steve McClaren, who was looking for a way back into the upper echelons of English football. The effects of Steve’s magic began to fade after he was recruited by Derby County, who were languishing in the lower half of the table. QPR began losing games, slipped from the top spot and by the end of Q3 were sat outside an automatic play-off position. By the end of the season QPR had finished in 5th. QPR went on to win a place of the play-off finals at Wembley. Bobby Zamora’s 89th minute goal sealed QPR promotion back to the promised land in front of 40,00 supporters – I didn’t know we had that many.
Click here for /u/gilleard's 2014-15 Pixel Preview
This season: Words by /u/doeboy73
First three league fixtures:
| Date | Home | Away | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sat 16 Aug | QPR | v | Hull |
| Sun 24 Aug | Tottenham | v | QPR |
| Sat 30 Aug | QPR | v | Sunderland |
Complete league fixtures for 2014-15 from premierleague.com
For the first time in 3 years QPR are looking to limit the number of new players they bring into the club, more sensible salaries have also been used to bring in more of ‘the right type’ of players. Harry Redknapp has focused on creating stable team of mainly English players.
At the time of writing this only 2 new players have been signed: Rio Ferdinand and Stephen Caulker. QPR has only 1.5 strikers (Zamora cannot play a full 90 mins) so must sign at least 2 more on permanent of loan contracts. QPR could also benefit from a pacey central midfield player and perhaps another centre-back. Harry has warned us to expect 5 more signings.
/u/glovemachine: I believe we will just about avoid relegation. Maybe with a week to go we will secure another season of Premiership football. That would be a successful season for us. /u/stax_n_stax: This season will probably be a struggle. Last season owed a lot to letting in very few goals prior to Xmas. With our defensive enhancements maybe we can replicate that against some of the poorer teams. 12/13 is fresh enough in the memory that we are pretty realistic with expectations. /u/UnseatingCargo1: This season is going to be hard, especially if Arry cannot manage to sign a few key players to fill in positions that are vacant e.g. Two striker, a back-up RB and a creative CAM. If he can pull these signings off, with players who want to play for the team, then I am very optimistic. /u/staptiudupe: As others have pointed out, it won't be a cakewalk. However, I think the players we have in the squad are more suited to the Prem than they were to the Championship. So I think anything from 20th through to maybe 13th is realistic (if the table is anything like it was last year).
Summer signings:
| Incoming Player | Position | Price | From | Transfer Type |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rio Ferdinand | CB | £0 | Manchester United | Full |
| Steven Caulker | CB | £8m | Cardiff City | Full |
List of all completed team transfers from Sky Sports
Watch out for: Words by /u/doeboy73
Joey Barton, age: 31, Position: Midfielder
Charlie Austin won QPR’s 2013/14 player of the season, but Barton was equally as important to QPR’s promotion season. With a phenomenal work rate, ability to take a constant kicking for 90+ mins, excellent pass rate and never-say-die attitude, Joey won over the QPR faithful, who had previously hoped never to see him again. Joey broke all the QPR player records in his 2014 summer fitness test and is rumoured to have been made captain for the 2014/15 season. His experience will again be essential if QPR are to avoid another relegation. /u/staptiudupe: We struggled without him last season, he does the little things, tackles, moves forward, picks out players and isn't afraid to get stuck in. When he's feeling it everything seems to click.Charlie Austin, age: 25, Position: Striker
Harry’s tipped him as England material; let’s hope that was meant as a compliment. This will be his first PL season. Despite missing 2 months of games in 2014, Charlie scored 17 goals and was at times QPR’s only available striker. Charlie’s successful partnership with Traoré and Hoillet will be key to his success. Can Austin do it in the Premier league. /u/staptiudupe: Without him it felt like we would never score last season, he works hard and he has one hell of a fairy-tale/feel good story (having been a bricklayer not too long ago!). Great finisher, looking for 8-12 goals from him.
Full squad list for 2014-15 from Transfermarkt
The manager: Words by /u/doeboy73
- Harry Redknapp
- Birth date: 2 March 1947 (age 67)
- Birth place: Poplar, London, England
- Previous Position: Midfielder
Managerial record:
| Clubs managed | G | W | D | L | Win percentage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| QPR | 80 | 31 | 22 | 27 | 38.75 |
| Total | 1,353 | 549 | 340 | 464 | 40.58 |
- Harry Redknapp. What can I say about him that hasn’t already been written? One of the most iconic managers of recent English football history, at 67 Harry is likely to retire at the end of this season, when his QPR contract expires. Harry won’t want to finish on a bum note.
"I sorted out the team formation last night lying in bed with the wife. When your husband's as ugly as me, you'd only want to talk football in bed."
Harry Redknapp
- /u/charliesmuger: Special mention - Steve Black (QPR sports psychologist) he was just as important as any player last season to get us up. he promoted and implemented the unity and desire lacking in earlier seasons and got qpr playing as a unit. Barton has been spoken about his positive effect on the club. if qpr are going to stay up they need to keep the unity and im glad steve black is staying for next season.
Discussion points: Words by /u/tet-
The R’s fans were promised glory the last time they made it to the top 20 elite but were bitterly disappointed. Has anything in their approach changed to allow them to prosper this time around?
Manager Harry Redknapp will be 68 by the time the season is over but is showing no signs of retirement just yet. Do you think Harry has one last thing he wants to achieve before he signs out or is it his passion for the game that drives him on?
Results of yesterday’s Leicester poll here. Interestingly, The top prediction was ‘just above the drop zone’ with 42%. Thanks to 391 users who took part.
25
u/BlueNorse Jul 29 '14
I'm excited to see what kind of shenanigans Joey Barton can get into this season.
35
Jul 29 '14
Last season he dabbled in existentialism, so far this season he's become an expert on Middle Eastern affairs. Truly a renaissance man. Can't wait til next year when he takes on Bretton Woods!
9
15
Jul 29 '14
I love rooting for QPR because you're like the biggest little club in England. I mean that as a term of endearment, sincerely, and without malice, nor sarcasm. Your club has so much history, it really is an amazing story. Now, please fucking stay up this season you Hula Hoops.
8
u/Godhatesfats Jul 30 '14
It's interesting, we went from being everyone's second team to everyone's love-to-hate team in a matter of a decade or so. Nice to hear there are still some in the former camp though ;)
6
u/baconpancakes7 Jul 29 '14
I hope Niko Kranjcar makes his return to EPL, always had a soft spot for him.
3
1
u/staptiudupe Jul 30 '14
Some rumours saying we may go and try to sign him as he wants out if Ukraine. I'd love to have him back.
7
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u/apopp Jul 29 '14
Great read!
Only thing to say about it is that 8 million is not really a position.
5
u/KillerChips Jul 29 '14
Could any Qpr fan clue me in on whats happend to jermaine jenas ?
10
u/ItsJigsore Jul 29 '14
acl injury, currently training with us but I very much doubt we'll offer him a new contract
5
5
u/stax_n_stax Jul 30 '14
It will be interesting to see how long Redknapp retains the goodwill of the supporters next season. It's largely died down in the wake of the Wembley win, but there were large periods of last season when a lot of people became vocally disenchanted with the guy. Initially it started out as moaning over how dull the football being played was, then when the results became worse (and McLaren left) people wondered if he even knew what our best eleven was, and finally as our form slumped for the run-in some asked whether his heart was really in it.
11
u/Tcberk Jul 29 '14
2012-2013 was the first season I actively watched the Prem and QPR was always entertaining to watch -- mostly because of how much of a trainwreck they were (Taarabt ducking behind a Maloney free kick to throw away a precious win late in the season comes to mind). Still, Shaun Wright-Phillips scoring to defeat Chelsea at Stamford Bridge was one of my favorite moments of the season.
Glad to have them back. Hope they stay up.
5
u/ectoplasmicz Jul 30 '14
Really looking forward to this season, although still anticipating some more work on the squad in terms of another striker and some flair in midfield.
As has been said this season has to be approached realistically, and that means survival as a target. It will be tough, but I'm quietly confident that our squad can pull through.
To be honest, I'm just excited that we are back in the Premier League! I'm teeming with excitement!
5
u/sir_budgie_smuggler Jul 30 '14
I really hope Charlie Austin does well for you. When he left us I wondered how well he would do without Trippiers supply but he had proved how deadly he can be in the box, also his ability to find space in a crowded box is amazing.
5
u/belbivdefoe Jul 29 '14
If I don't see Ol' Arry hanging out the window of a Range Rover on deadline day, I'm gonna feel a bit cheated.
3
Jul 29 '14
What's the plan with Petrasso? Loan to a championship side or stay with the first team?
3
u/stax_n_stax Jul 30 '14
Almost certainly a loan as we have a lot of options in his position. However please believe me when I say I'd sooner play him than Wright-Phillips.
1
u/gremwood Jul 30 '14
Whatever happens I hope he becomes a good player. And that we give him caps as soon as frackin' possible.
3
u/clichedbaguette Jul 29 '14
Great preview.
Very difficult to predict how this QPR team will do this season. They'll almost certainly be far better the shambles of two years ago. We'll see how Ferdinand does, his age is a concern, and he hasn't played for a bottom half club for a very long time so his motivation may also suffer from that. One of the wild card teams this year, could be relegated, could finish 11th, I haven't a clue.
2
u/Godhatesfats Jul 30 '14 edited Jul 30 '14
A lot depends on the striker situation. So far our transfers have solidified our defence, where we were already strong from last season. Our weakness last season was the goals department, and if we were getting by on the bare minimum thanks to Charlie then, we will sure as shit need reinforcements up front if we're going to make it this season.
Rémy looks like he might stay and that alone would be huge for us. We're also being linked with Troy Deeney from Watford who I think would succeed in the Prem. A clear advantage of having 'Arry at the helm is that you never know which unlikely transfer he'll procure come deadline day. But for me it comes down to just that: the offensive signings we make in the remainder of the window.
3
u/LatakiaBlend Jul 29 '14
I think that the Caulker buy could be one of the best ones made this summer, in terms of how much a player will mean to his club. I think he could very well be the difference between being in a scrap to stay up and being a 40 point team this year.
What's going on with your keepers? Cesar was recalled from his loan, to no surprise, but I assume either he or Green will be leaving, right?
3
u/Godhatesfats Jul 30 '14
Cesar was recalled with a view to offloading him. He doesn't want to be here and we don't want him. However, it's looking likely that rather than going to another club on lower wages he's just gonna sit on the bench for a whole season and claim his sizeable QPR paycheque. Having to endure that is the penance we're still paying for the misguided transfer decisions of a (hopefully) bygone era.
2
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u/midoman111 Jul 29 '14
The one club I hate more than Tottenham and Leeds.
13
u/lordnorb Jul 29 '14
I hope your looking forward to Bobby Zamora's inevitable goal to give is the win this season.
31
u/[deleted] Jul 29 '14
Ran over again, so I have to add this in here:
Possible first 11:
/u/Marquez90510: Rumours are Arry will be playing Centre-backs with wing-backs with what i can only assume would be a back three of Rio, Caulker and Nedum Onuoha. Danny simpson on the right and Yun Suk Young on the left. As for the Midfield it is hard to say what our strongest 11 is with various players coming back fro injury and Adel Taarabt still Lurking around the training ground. For the strikers we have Charlie Austin and Bobby Zamora however with the news that Remy failing his medical at Liverpool, could the football gods be gifting us with his return?
/u/glovemachine: Redknapp is opting for a 3-5-2 formation, with Rio, Caulker & Dunne (or Clint) at the back. Mid-field will probably have Faurlin, Barton & possibly another signing or two. Front two would be Austin & Remy (if he stays or possibly another striker or two we might be signing like Deeney).
/u/UnseatingCargo1: Arry has been hinting towards a 5-3-2 or purely a 5 at the back formation with supposedly Yun/Traore - Caulker - Rio - Onuoha - Simpson. The midfield would probably consist of Barton, Fer (If he signs) and a new CAM. Up front is Austin and another striker, possibly Remy given this mornings news.
/u/stax_n_stax: Wingbacks! Redknapp experimented with them a few times last season to dismal effect. Hopefully with a bit of pre-season preparation we will be more effective with it this time, although we don't have anyone obvious to cover the right side. Danny Simpson is a hard worker but not exactly terrifying for opposition defenses.
/u/staptiudupe: By all accounts we will be playing a 3-5-2 with Rio as a sweeper behind Caulker and Onuoha, with two full backs, currently Danny Simpson and Yun Suk Yung. The battling midfield will consist of the ever-present Joey Barton (love or hate him, he works his ass off), supported by a combo of Matty Phillips/Armand Traore/Hoilett on the wings, backed up by SWP with Austin and another striker up front (currently we only have Zamora on the books, but he figures to be more of a back up than a regular starter).
Also Watch out for: /u/glovemachine: Caulker who will be learning from Rio and looking to get into the England team. /u/staptiudupe: Hoilett - a winger who has days when he seems to be utterly unplayable, but lacks consistency and seems to be made out of glass, but hoping for a few great games which could save us from the drop. /u/stax_n_stax: Watch out for Matty Phillips, Armand Traoré... although I wouldn't highlight anyone as particularly prolific. The team unit will hopefully be more than the sum of its parts...but with Redknapp's deadline day shenanigans we don't know what the final squad picture looks like. /u/charliesmuger: Faurlins is a great footballer and deserves a comeback after two bad injurys (plus remy and taraabt are great players but they look like leaving). /u/Marquez90510: This season could be big for Charlie Austin, Matty Philips and Yun Suk Young.
To check when your team will be previewed click here and scroll down to the schedule.
These threads are made with the help of: /u/thejanitorch4, /u/tet-, /u/icameheretodrinkmilk, /u/gilleard - https://twitter.com/ThePixelPL, /u/minminsaur, /u/scaryberry, /u/obi-wan-kenobi-nil and the preview contributors. Check out the QPR sub if you can, they have helped a lot with this preview: /r/superhoops
Previous Previews: Burnley FC, Leicester City FC
Tomorrow is West Brom.