27/04/2013 By David McIntyre Harry Redknapp has admitted that divisions among the players have been a major factor in QPRâs demise this season. Rangersâ relegation has all but been confirmed and will be rubber-stamped if they lose at Reading. They have been plagued by behind-the-scenes problems, caused partly by some players taking exception to the attitude of highly-paid signings who have failed to perform. And manager Redknapp said: âItâs a difficult one. Iâd be a liar if I said there werenât splits here â there have been. Itâs been a problem. âIf you play at a club with Robin van Persie or someone like Steven Gerrard and you know theyâre getting 130 or 140 grand a week and youâre getting 50, you know why â heâs getting that money because heâs that good. âItâs a problem when players can look and say âHe ainât that goodâ. People donât mind other people earning good money if they earn it.â http://www.westlondonsport.com/qpr/redknapp-admits-qpr-dressing811121-room-is-split?
Paul Doyle The Observer, Saturday 27 April 2013 22.31 BST Harry Redknapp says players do not resent high earners if they are performing like Robin van Persie or Steven Gerrard. Photograph: Nick Potts/PA Harry Redknapp has admitted that Queens Park Rangers' team spirit has been torpedoed by acrimony over wage inequality at the club. Rangers are almost certain to be relegated from the Premier League even if they beat Reading on Sunday and the manager acknowledges that part of the reason for their predicament has been a lack of squad unity throughout the campaign. "There are splits in the camp," said Redknapp. "I'd be liar if I said there wasn't, it's been obvious for everyone to see all year. It's a problem, it's not easy." QPR invested lavishly last summer, and again in January, to attract big-name players on salaries that in some cases dwarf those paid to longer-serving team-mates such as Shaun Derry, Jamie Mackie and Clint Hill, who helped the club win promotion from the Championship two years ago. The failure of some of the new arrivals to produce performances as high as their salaries has sown discord. "People don't mind others getting good money if they earn it," Redknapp said. "It's not a problem if you play at a club with Robin van Persie, Steven Gerrard or someone and you know that he's getting 140 grand a week and someone else is getting 50 grand, you don't mind that because you know he's worth it. But when players look and think 'he's not doing any better than me'," it's difficult." Redknapp previously vented his frustration at QPR recruits "who earn far too much money for their ability", notably expressing his dismay last December when José Bosingwa, who was signed from Chelsea on a £65,000-per-week deal, objected to being named as a substitute for the match at Newcastle. Redknapp, who is resigned to going down this season, will try to offload highly-paid flops this summer in preparation for a promotion bid from the Championship next season. He says that players "with good character" will be top of his wish list, saying that, while he will always be eager to sign inspirational veterans, the experience of Andros Townsend this season shows that enthusiastic youngsters should have a big role to play. Townsend has brought freshness and flair to QPR since joining on loan from Tottenham Hotspur in January but will miss Sunday's game at Reading due to injury. "Andros has been excellent for us and we are going to have to look at the loan market this summer for young players who are hungry," said Redknapp. A new striker will be among the manager's priorities. He knows QPR are unlikely to keep hold of the sought-after Loic Rémy and Bobby Zamora's hip woes mean he is unlikely to be a regular starter. An operation would repair the problem definitively but put Zamora out of action for around 10 months so Redknapp, left, hopes the player will postpone surgery until the end of next season so that he can play some role in the promotion push. "We'll look to keep him going because if he's out all year, what's the point? He's out of contract next year so you need him playing."
By Wally Downes Comments QPAAARGH! Harry Redknapp admits squad rifts and money envy have sealed Rangers' relegation fate 27 Apr 2013 22:30 'I would be lying if I said there were not splits in the camp here...It is difficult with players earning differently' says Hoops boss Harry Redknapp has finally admitted that a huge rift in his QPR squad has contributed to their impending relegation. His squad for today’s trip to Reading will be made up of modest earners and loyal servants, like club captain Clint Hill and stalwart Shaun Derry, who both played for the club in the Championship – and high-earning flops like Ji-Sung Park and Esteban Granero. The Hoops put on a united front under former boss Mark Hughes, and have tried to carry it off under Redknapp’s tenure. But with the drop into the Championship just hours away, the Rangers manager has finally lifted the lid on the schism that has crippled them. Redknapp admitted: “It is always a problem trying to heal a rift, it is not easy. “I would be lying if I said there were not splits in the camp here. “That has been obvious for everyone to see all year. “It is hard to know who speaks to who; I just take them out on the training ground. “I haven’t had this too much anywhere else, but when we came it was obvious there was a problem.” Broken: Rangers players look dejected after conceding Chris Brunskill / Getty Redknapp did his best to paper over the cracks in January, recruiting players who were eager to prove themselves – like Jermaine Jenas and on-loan Andros Townsend, as well as Loic Remy, the £8million striker who is sure to earn QPR a profit this summer. But the players brought in before Redknapp took over, on Champions League wages and struggling to get in the west London side’s ailing squad, are the ones believed to have created a divide among the beleaguered band. Redknapp added: “It is difficult with players earning differently. “It is not a problem if you are playing with Robin van Persie or Steven Gerrard and they are getting 130 or 140 grand a week while someone else is getting 50 – because you don’t mind if they’re worth it and so good. “So that’s a problem if players look at others and think ‘he isn’t that good’. That’s when you get problems. People don’t mind others getting good money if they earn it.” Even if Redknapp can restore a sense of harmony among his charges, he knows it will not be an easy job getting Rangers back up next season. Redknapp admitted: “It will be hard next year. Wolves went down last season and everyone, me included, thought they would come straight back up. “They have good players, a good side, a good set up and a good stadium. “They look like they could go down another division. “Wolves made a big mistake when Mick McCarthy left before they went down. Then they made some appointments that maybe weren’t right. “There are so many clubs down there, all Premier League teams once – look where Nottingham Forest are, and they won the European Cup.” http://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/football/news/qpr-boss-harry-redknapp-admits-1856807?#ixzz2RhupnoRp Follow us: @DailyMirror on Twitter | DailyMirror on Facebook
Wasn't the money so much as the lack of committed effort then. If the mercenaries had earned their keep there wouldn't have been rifts would there.
Mark Hughes and although I like the guy, Tony Fernandes. Tony has to take his share of the blame for allowing Sparkless create his circus. It would be funny if it wasn't so tragic.
Its been like it for a long time, my friend was told this by a long serving player. Why do you think I gave up on staying up weeks ago? This is also why I think we will struggle to come straight up unless we can get rid of SWP, Zamora, granero, bosingwa and the like.
It all started with the Barton era of panic buys with just 10 days of our first Prem transfer window.
Exactly what I said, SWP was no better than Mackie and Barton wasn't better than Faurlin yet they earned three times as much. Warnock started it all. Don't forget there was puncheon too who was no better than what we had, all that effort and he never played. I actually wanted Warnock gone right after promotion, harsh but we wouldn't have been in this situation now.
NW and Barton are clearly the beginning of all this **** .. Said at the time keep the championship squad together but after we lost to Bton with all that it was stage fright then it went tits up ... Still you can't blame anyone for them going down the path and buying our best ever squad ... It's want we all wanted at the time I said the team spirit would break and yet anyone had to back this squad to play together Christ on a bike most believed it would . Our last three managers have all ****ed up lets be honest here ? I cannot fault the club as TF and the board have backed our club 100% won't have a word said against them They have made QPR a household name and built well on our history We are clearly the focal club of the championship next year and in fact will make the league look entertaining .. That is not a mistake ... Every fan in the country will look and either want us to fail or want us back where we know we belong ... Either way is very good brand promotion. Want proof then watch how much publicity we get against say Charlton next season ? Everyone will want to beat us ... It will be tough and having been thinking about it in the sun here in Cyprus ... It's exactly the cure we need and keep this squad and unite them then we will do well ... And better equipped the following season We must keep as many as possible and get a winning mentality then sorry but this lot will be unstoppable Cisse if back could score 20 goals I have even thought about Barton but if he did come back he would **** it all up again
who bought Samba and Cesar? ffs you have Greene sitting on the bench getting paid ****loads for doing SFA, unbelievable
I agree with this. When he (Barton) started acting the **** the board - and by the board I mean TF - should've backed Warnock instead of Barton. They didn't. Up to a point. Hughes and Redknapp have enjoyed backing that NW never had, and, more to the point, was never given the chance to have. I can. Backing the club does not now, nor should it ever mean, turfing out a successful manager in favour of one who "interviews" the club for a job. They have made us a laughing stock and it's well deserved. We are going to be one of many pretenders in the NPC next year. Do we get out? I wouldn't even trust it to a coin flip. This lot won't do it IMO and neither will a star-struck chairman. Amit had the right tack. Trust a good manager and take a back seat. TF doesn't get this. No lessons have been learned. I want proof and I couldn't give a toss about Charlton or publicity. I want a team that's a team in more than name. I want to look forward to a Saturday without another "must win game" as we teeter on the precipice. I want a team that deserves the shirts they wear. This lot don't. Seriously? In the rest of his career? Yes he would. But on the plus side TF would have someone on the phone 24/7 telling him what's wrong with the club. WTG Tony.
This isn't something that can be changed overnight, so many of the players were on the way down when brought in on contracts that smacked of desperation by our club. We're lumbered with most of them because they are patently not good enough to play in the Premier League and their 'can't be arsed' attitude will be quickly found out in the Championship, as Wolves have found to their cost this season. Only Remy, Samba and Cesar are likely to be snapped up and that will weaken us further, Harry is gonna have to really excel himself with his wheeler-dealing to get us out of this mess and produce a team that will have a hope of challenging and not still be riven with the splits that did for us this season...
Excellent dissection Telford of the many flaws in DT's analysis. He is still looking at it unrealistically. The key problem is the mentality of the high earners who don't care if they are dropped and because of the ludicrous wages they are on will happily play in the reserves for years and collect their wages rather than show professional pride and take a drop to get regular first team football elsewhere. For as long as they are ****e the few remaining gratfers from our promotion side will continue to get the hump. You just have to look at the contempt on Hill's face when another calamity besets us as a result of Bosingwa not challenging or Samba being brushed off the ball by an opponent half his size. Instead of talking constantly about 'keeping this squad together' and 'instilling a winning mentality', tell us how that can be done without addressing the points made above and how you're going to achieve that wage parity.
TBH the club is full of people pointing fingers at everyone else (to be fair, so are we fans). Everyone has contributed to this momentous failure over the last two seasons. It has been a painful experience and an even more painful learning curve for our new owners and non-playing management team. However, we can leave behind the pain, the hope and the despair and do the right thing - look forward. The only wrong ahead of this club now is to NOT to have learnt anything from this experience. We have a state-of-the-art training facility to plan and develop talent with the right attitude and spirit. Hopefully a new stadium complex that will underpin the future growth, financial and otherwise, of the club. With a player and staff strategy to support this professional structure we can, and should, only be thinking about looking forwards. Of course it will never be that easy - it's QPR. Wouldn't have any other club in my blood - so it's onwards and forwards now. The last two years are just history - something to look back on. I'm looking forwards now and seeing OUR club develop into something special. Now that'll be some history worth looking back on!!
I've taken a lot of criticism from some quarters over the last 18 months for having a pop at our players. The only accolade that these players deserve is that they are undoubtedly the biggest bunch of over paid under performers the Prem has ever seen. The fact that we have been consistently in the bottom few over the last two odd years tells its own story. We simply haven't been good enough. Our last three managers have been unable to inspire this group of wa••ers. Managers make mistakes but they don't intentionally go out to lose games. These players couldn't be bothered. There paid too much to give a ****e. For this, PB,TF and the management of the club must take responsibility. I don't want another clear out, but several of these high earners must go. They must go because they don't give value for money. Cesar, Park, Bosingwa and Barton don't deserve the wages they are on. We can't afford players who played great for previous clubs. Previous reputations are as good as toilet paper for me. They didn't perform consistently in the Prem, why would anybody think that they will give a ****e on a cold wet night in Barnsley. TF took a chance. I salute him for that. His next few decisions will shape our club for years to come. Lets hope he knows how to learn from his mistakes.
