QPR: Discontent Mellowing To Uncertain Hope Philip Cornwall cannot think of a promoted side with fans less enchanted with their board than QPR, but will a good start and a change of owner cheer the masses at Loftus Road? Last Updated: 01/08/11 at 15:20 Post Comment Latest Articles Is Arsene Wenger Missing The Point? Amid more discussion about whether one should boo in a friendly, there's a suggestion in the Mailbox that Arsene Wenger's dismissal of the boos has made things worse... Top Ten Uncapped Euro 2012 Options Post comment This time last year Jack Wilshere was uncapped and now he's England's golden boy. Are there any players who can make a similar journey between now and the summer? All Articles Manager: Neil Warnock (since March 2010). Odds on being first out of a job: 2-1 joint favourite. Last season Championship: 1st, 88 points (more like 78 with an appropriate deduction). FA Cup: Third round. Carling Cup: Second round. Transfers in Kieron Dyer (West Ham, free); Jay Bothroyd (Cardiff, free); Danny Gabbidon (West Ham, free) Transfers out Gavin Mahon, Pascal Chimbonda (both released) If you start typing 'QPR' into Google, then auto-suggest offers an intriguing second option: 'qpr points deduction'. Try 'Arsenal' and, somewhat optimistically, it offers 'arsenal transfer' - and when I inputted Rangers' name I was looking for the latest transfer gossip surrounding a club who should be approaching the Premier League full of optimism. That they are not is in part due to the uncertain run-in to promotion endured by the best side in the Championship last season. In brief, to my mind there is no issue of player eligibility for which the appropriate punishment is going to be a fine as large as £875,000 but no points deduction. QPR's hierarchy got away with it over the registration of Alejandro Faurlin in terms of official sanction, but it contributed to the loss of confidence in the directors shown by Rangers supporters. When Bernie Ecclestone, Lakshmi Mittal and Flavio Briatore and their many, many millions became involved in September 2007, there were Rangers fans dreaming not just of escaping the Championship but of once again being the biggest club in west London. In January 2008, when the Rs drew the neighbours in the FA Cup, the Daily Mail headline read: ''Paupers' Chelsea to host the jet set as QPR make the short trip to Stamford Bridge.' But boardroom wrangles, low-key spending allied to fears over the future of Adel Taarabt, greatly increased ticket prices and a general sense of alienation had left a cloud of discontent over Loftus Road. There were also the rumours that Neil Warnock's reward for promotion would be the boot, and the manager is 2-1 joint favourite to be the first from the Premier League to move on this season. This summer Kieron Dyer, Danny Gabbidon and Jay Bothroyd were all acquired on free transfers, and not the kind of Bosman steals that brought Michael Ballack, say, to Chelsea. The suggestions are they will miss out on DJ Campbell, despite agreeing a fee with Blackpool. I cannot think of a promoted side with fans less enchanted with their board and it is reflected in some of the printed pre-season guides. Just in time for a re-write from me, though, comes the news that Tony Fernandes, a Malaysian businessman with an F1 marque, is close to buying out Ecclestone. Perhaps the chance to add Team Loftus to Team Lotus was irresistible. Discontent is mellowing towards uncertain hope, at least. The deal should give Warnock some more money to spend. The free transfers gathered heretofore would excite no one, except for Dyer catching the eye of Shepherd's Bush physiotherapists, but now there is hope that having laboured so long for promotion in 2011, they will not have the same target in 2013. The chances of Taarabt staying seem enhanced already and a decent start would help keep him on Rangers' books come September 1. A first-day home meeting with Bolton is a lot better than it could be, while trips to Everton and Wigan are not the most daunting the Premier League can offer. September and early October look promising, too, with Newcastle, Villa and Blackburn coming to west London while there are away games at Wolves and, even closer than Stamford Bridge, Fulham. Not until Chelsea visit on 23 October do Rangers face one of the top six, a generous start that Warnock will know he must make use of. Fan unrest is easily blunted by a victory or three. Blackpool, who with less resources reached a points total double (in my case), treble or more the expectations of many last season, set the new benchmark for promoted sides. Warnock, a sure-fire press conference irritant, will look to match Ian Holloway's approach to games, too. Taarabt could not make sufficient impression for Spurs, but their ambitions were and are loftier; he may well be good enough for the Premier League. Whatever you think of Warnock, and he is a taste many do not wish to acquire, he deserves praise for giving Paddy Kenny a second chance the keeper took so well. Overall, the squad does not look good enough, with less strengthening than Norwich and Swansea have managed, but if Fernandes moves quickly then there is still time for that to change. When I wrote this originally, with regard to the hierarchy I asked the question: 'Do QPR want to stay in the Premier League?' The answer from Fernandes must be an undoubted yes and if the takeover is completed then optimism should return to the levels you would expect after a glowing promotion campaign. Philip Cornwall http://www.football365.com/faves/7075984/QPR-Preview
Well one thing's for sure, thanks to the internet we don't need to amass in or outside LR to make our displeasure known! If that comes across to future owners as 'DON'T **** WITH Rs FANS!', job done I reckon...
