QPR's short-term plan needs to end Rio Ferdinand has moved to Queens Park Rangers on a free -- but will it turn out to be an expensive gamble? Good news! QPR have signed a Manchester United star, a Champions League winner with World Cup appearances and global recognition. He's not young but he's experienced. He's expensive but he'll justify it. AND Maroon 5 are top of the charts with smash hit "Payphone." The date was July 9, 2012 and QPR had just pulled off a coup by signing Park Ji-Sung; he was a signal of intent, a "marquee" signing and made captain. He was a 100,000 pounds-a-week disaster. Fast forward two turbulent years, one relegation, one promotion and a clear-out of ineffective players and we seem to be back where we started. QPR have just signed another Manchester United cast off, Rio Ferdinand. - Ferdinand: I had plenty of offers The defender is 35 and has persistent back and hamstring problems that are unlikely to improve with age. And even when he was fit last season, David Moyes did not seem to trust him completely as he watched six Premier League matches from the bench. When he hasn't been adding appearances to his glittering career, he's been adding strings to his bow as the years have advanced -- he's hosted Rio's World Cup Wind Ups and presented on the BBC. He has an online magazine, a clothing line, a record label and has produced a film. He has a lot on his plate. In recent years, Loftus Road has been a magnet to players reaching the end of their career (Ji-Sung), keen to live in London (Jose Bosingwa) and after big money (Chris Samba). And they have not been successful. The players that have done well are the ones that have an emotional bond with the club (Clint Hill), are young and hungry (Charlie Austin) or have a point to prove (Joey Barton). If Rangers had a young and inexperienced squad, like Derby or Leicester, then the idea of nabbing Rio for a swansong to impart some wisdom might look half alluring. But Richard Dunne, 34, and Clint Hill, 35, each have another season at the club and fulfill those paternal duties with plenty to spare. QPR lack pace at the heart of defence and it's probably the one attribute Rio cannot bring at this stage of his career. Rangers have tried and tested the method of buying established, big-money names, often imported from abroad, and it has failed them. The Premier League sides that did well last season in similar situations -- stadium, budget, attendances -- like Crystal Palace, Hull and Stoke built their sides with players that were largely young, always hungry and predominantly British. Surely the club has learned from its mistakes? Ferdinand has been one of the best defenders in the world for over a decade and has been a leader in all of the sides he has played for. But his future as a footballer is limited; he is a stop-gap. Short-term thinking is a perilous modus operandi for any business to employ but in football, where players can lose form over night or suffer injury in an instant, it is playing with fire. There are plenty of exciting young defenders Rangers could look at; Jaamal Lascelles at Nottingham Forest, Cyrus Christie would have been an astute signing had Derby not lured him from Coventry last week and it's only a matter of time before Pelly Ruddock Mpanzu is snapped up from Luton. It appears Rangers have signed Ferdinand in an expensive, short-term gamble that is one back spasm away from becoming a bust. There's a platform to build on now. They have a genuine chance of staying up even if they have a bad season, with Burnley, Leicester, Swansea and West Brom in the division. But the signing of Rio, the links with Frank Lampard and the general lack of business by mid-July makes me think this is going to be another reckless, white-knuckle ride.
Short term plan...is stabilisation..... for long-term planning Stabilizstion in Premier League is what we want...and so Rio may provide the edge to keep us up...other players can mature around him...and we can develop a long term plan
and if it fails again? We will be right back where we started. Except in more debt. Wed have been in a saints/swansea situation if we prepared last time with a long term plan. A young core that doesnt have to be replaced every season.
We have to look at a one-year plan, a three year plan and a long-term plan. That's only sensible. Firstly, the one-year plan: stay up. Simple as that. Get the experience in the side that knows how to play at this level, and how to scrap for the results we'll need. Hopefully the end of the season is a nice dull drift when safety is confirmed by mid-April at the latest. And get some youngsters that will learn alongside the older heads. Three year plan: Consolidate as mid-table. That means a steady improvement of the experience, skills and attitude of the squad. build a team that can compete in this league and not be embarrassed, but without spending huge money on transfers. Build the infrastructure for long term stability both on and off the pitch. Long-term: challenge for Europe, cups, and titles. use the ability and potential to do that, to attract the players that will enable this to happen. Short-term planning is perfectly fine, as part of a longer term goal. But if all people are willing to see is the short term plan, then no wonder it makes less sense.
Ok Flyer, but we didnt, mistakes (large ones) were made. Does that mean that any new plan will also by default fail again ? Or do we just sit here and criticize any attempt at a plan ? Or do we cut TF and Harry, a bit of slack, and see this new plan develop, and just maybe it might work with lessons learnt ?
Yesterday the papers said cleverly, bebe and young were available, why wait until next season with gems like that out there now?
Here is the link to the article; http://www.espnfc.com/club/queens-p...ost/1949701/qprs-short-term-plan-needs-to-end Written by someone named Wally Downes Jr. Related to a member of our coaching staff perhaps?
Or by someone who wants to bestow a bit of credibility to his made up article that it neither possesses or deserves?
No wonder people get mad at my posts if the sarcasm isn't picked up. Bebe? He's their version of SWP! The sad thing is, bebe and fellaini apart, the ten they put up for sale are just our types of buys. I'd seriously take Hernandez though.
It's not easy to portray sarcasm in plain text. How about if you add a ninja ( ) to any post you mean sarcastically? That way we know and won't need to accuse you of being constantly negative, saving our own tedious responses to any posts of yours that don't contain a pic of Keith, the Ninja of Sarcasm.... Edit: was going to be a dancing panda, but for some reason I can't do dancing pandas, only ninjas with Action Man Eagle-Eyes...
I tried, but they keep disappearing. I can see them when I am editing, but not when I'm posting for some reason.....
Awful article. Any good parts were undone by this part:- The problem with the short-term is the need to replace the players on far too regular a basis and, as Flyer often points out, the lack of any return for the financial outlay. Loss of form or injury could affect a 24 year old almost as easily. We've looked at the Forest lad and are making a serious bid for Caulker. I note more wild speculation about various wages (always higher than most reported when it's slating us and usually at the low end when were trying to defend ourselves). If he hadn't written it in the break time before the lesson, it might have been a good piece of writing.
