Harry must take share of QPR blame â and put it right Harry must take share of QPR blame â and put it right Dominic Smith | On 26, Jul 2013 Dominic Smith believes Harry Redknapp must take a fair share of the blame for QPRâs relegation â and has a job on his hands to get them back up. Twitter addicts will be well aware of the âEd Ballsâ phenomenon, the tweet that keeps on giving. When the Shadow Chancellor accidentally typed his own name into the tweet box rather than the search bar in April 2011, even in the cringing embarrassment of having made such an error, he would never have thought it would still be shared two years on, culminating in âEd Balls Dayâ, when users from across the world replicated what is now one of the most famous utterances in the platformâs short life. But giving it a run for its money is the entirely purposeful public thoughts of the ever-entertaining Adrian Durham, who, upon Harry Redknapp being appointed new boss of Queens Park Rangers in November last year, tweeted âI genuinely believe Harry will lead QPR to a higher finish than Spurs under AVBâ. As QPR meekly surrendered to relegation, churning out performances that dredged the depths of the worst the top flight has witnessed, and Andre Villas-Boasâ Spurs qualified for Europe by playing rather better, cheeky fans set upon the RT button with Ed Balls-like vigour. Itâs not just dunderhead Durham that reacted so positively to the appointment. Itâs a charge so long-running that itâs almost become parody that Redknapp is the sweetheart of the footballing press, and although Durhamâs prediction was farcical, much of the press agreed that he was an astute appointment. His failure to steer QPR away from relegation therefore seemed to come as a surprise to them, and focus inevitably switched at the end of the season to whether Rangers could keep hold of a manager the calibre of Redknapp as a Championship club. But the gleeful retweeting of Durham demonstrates something different: that fans know that, whilst the naïve cash splurge of Tony Fernandes and insipid displays of Mark Hughesâ signings are primarily responsible for their demise, Redknapp cannot escape without blame. He should feel responsible and be willing to turn the club around. Whilst Redknapp promised to ensure QPRâs long-term stability and put an end to the lavish wastefulness of the Hughes era, there was little evidence of it. Chris Samba was jetted in and out again on an eye-watering £100,000 a week contract, the long decline of Jermaine Jenas was indulged, and the fetid carcasses of Hughesâ buys were left to aromatise despite assurances that some players would be excluded. Not even Loic Remy and Andros Townsend could stem the onrushing tide. It mustnât be forgotten that, although Redknapp enjoyed success with free-spending Portsmouth in the second tier, it is a different challenge to turnaround the fortunes of a relegated side, and his record here is less impressive. When the losing habit is entrenched, as it has been at QPR, it becomes difficult to break. And sides relegated from the top flight will now be fearful of âdoing a Wolvesâ. QPR are the 9/2 favourites to win the Championship this season and 13/8 to be promoted. New Paddy Power customers are entitled to a £20 free bet. When Redknapp took Southampton down in 2005, and with no funds available to strengthen his squad, he struggled in the Championship and left just before Christmas to rejoin Portsmouth in the top flight. Saints fans have never forgiven him. His squad restructuring at QPR has started well, drafting in Danny Simpson to replace the villainous Jose Bosingwa, and filling the gigantic Samba shaped hole with big-but-not-quite-as-big Richard Dunne, sensibly on a pay as you play contract. New signing Karl Henry, meanwhile, could be the model Redknapp player, his Frankensteinâs monster prowling aggressively in the centre of the pitch as his master purrs agreeably from the sidelines. It looks as though he will miss out on target Gary Hooper, who is off to Norwich, but the Hoopsâ firm interest in the 25-year-old shows there is plenty of money available to sign a marquee forward player. But there is still work to be done. Much was said when comparing Hughesâ extravagant acquisitions with the dependable players who led Rangers to promotion in 2011, but so few of that squad still remain. Shaun Derry and Clint Hill, so often patronisingly labelled as committed but limited, were central figures in their last successful Championship side, but both are now well into their thirties and canât be relied on to have the same impact. After Redknapp praised his âtop-classâ credentials back in December, Adel Taarabt seems to have flounced once too often and is being touted around other clubs. When he is at his best, Taarabt is a unique and dangerous player, but at his brattish worst he typifies the disharmony at Loftus Road. Jamie Mackie, the only other survivor from that side, has allegedly handed in a transfer request of his own. Redknapp will know he needs to clear the deck too. Bosingwa and Djibril Cisse have been moved on, as have Jay Bothroyd and DJ Campbell of the new players Neil Warnock signed immediately upon promotion. Of those still clinging on from the Hughes era, Remy, Stephane Mbia, Julio Cesar and Esteban Granero will probably leave, but there is work to be done to ensure they do to prevent the febrile atmosphere which was so apparent last year. That wonât be helped by the return of Joey Barton from France, another like Taarabt who sails too close to the wind. Redknapp may like a maverick talent, but Barton, now the wrong side of 30, is no Taarabt in terms of game-changing ability and may represent too great a gamble to keep on. The question is though, who would have him? After that there remains the nucleus of a talented Championship squad, a mixture of young and experienced players with something to prove. If Redknapp can motivate the likes of Junior Hoilett, Park Ji Sung, Shaun Wright Phillips and Bobby Zamora, he may find he has a talented pool from which to draw from. As long as Tony Fernandes keeps bank-rolling QPR, Redknapp should be content that the ambition of the club matches his own. But with that ambition comes its own danger, that there is an expectation that Rangers should regain their Premier League status at the first opportunity. For a squad for whom the scars of a humiliating relegation still throb painfully, a poor start in the chaotic Championship could inspire panic. Rangers fans will be hoping that, this time, Redknapp stays put.
