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Thursday, November 29, 2012

QPR Report Thursday: Next Aston Villa...World's Highest-Paid Managers (Including Harry Redknapp)...Mark Hughes and Shaun Wight-Phillips/US Investors....Bent and Beckham Updates




- QPR REPORT MESSAGEBOARD


_____________________________________________________


- A Look at Joe Jordan

- Welcome to QPR's Media Addition:
"IanJTaylor ‏@IJTaylor81 - Welcome to Loftus Road @andywa7kins who officially joins the #QPR media team today. Good to have another person on board. #PLpressoffice"

IanJTaylor ‏@IJTaylor81

Welcome to Loftus Road @andywa7kins who officially joins the #QPR media team today. Good to have another person on board. #PLpressoffice

Read more: http://qprreport.proboards.com/index.cgi?action=display&board=general&thread=34157&page=1#301496#ixzz2DbQKwhl1

- QPR Official Supporters Club (OSC) Quiz Night - December 5



- Reminder to QPR: Hannukah is in Just Over a Week! (See An Open Question to QPR -  QPR: A Club Supported by Christians, Muslims, Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists...and Jews: So Why the Club Silence re  Jewish Holidays?" 


Trevor Steven

Clock is ticking for QPR stars to wow Redknapp


http://www.cityam.com/sport/trevor-steven/clock-ticking-qpr-stars-wow-redknapp

RELEGATION might not be until May, but the fate of many a Queens Park Rangers player will be decided much sooner, as Harry Redknapp weighs up which men he can rely on to drag them off the foot of the Premier League.

Redknapp knows exactly the type of character he likes, and come January it will obvious to all which Hoops stars fit his criteria, because those who don’t will soon be shipped out on loan or sold.

QPR were right to act when they did and replace Mark Hughes with Harry, because it gives the new manager a handful of games before the New Year to assess his team and prepare for the transfer window.

Hughes could not axe those failing players since he brought most of them in – it would have been a damning indictment of his own judgement. It’s far easier for Redknapp to be ruthless.

Clearly they are light in attack, while they are very shaky in defence. I don’t see Anton Ferdinand or Armand Traore as good enough, so at least two of the back four need replacing.

If I was a betting man I’d back Redknapp to keep Rangers in the top flight, despite their dreadful start. What QPR need more than anything is a good man-manager, and he’s the best in the business.


ESPN/Gabriele Marcotti



Harry Redknapp not afraid to put his reputation on the line


Harry Redknapp polarizes. Not because he necessarily means to, but because he has a persona many love and a few absolutely loathe.

The cheeky, street-smart cockney character whose interviews get interrupted either by a stray ball hitting him on the head during training or his wife, Sandra, calling him on his cellphone. The wheeler-dealer who works out bargains for exotic players, isn't quite sure what email is, and, occasionally, signs folks who end up living in trailer parks (never mind that the Marco Boogers tale isn't actually true, it gets repeated often enough that it may as well be). The twinkly-eyed, old-school Harry Houdini who keeps things simple and gets results against all odds (in this particular recollection of history, his experience at Southampton usually gets airbrushed).


Because Redknapp is so amiable and seemingly gets too much support from the media and most coaches and ex-pros, there is a natural backlash. Some find him fake, some see him as a Forrest Gump-type figure, a sleight-of-hand self-promoter with few original ideas, permanently in the pocket of "friendly" agents. A guy who is lazy, whose folksiness is a put-on to seduce simple-minded owners and fans. A man who, far from being a shrewd operator in the transfer market, has left a trail of financial destruction in his wake (apart from Tottenham, most of his former clubs have suffered major financial ills; whether it's all -- or even partly -- his fault is another matter).


Obviously, the "real" Redknapp lies somewhere between the two extremes. I spent some time with him a few years back and I actually found a guy who loved to talk football, who was very comfortable discussing tactics and whose knowledge of foreign players was pretty good. It's a side of him that's rarely portrayed in the media, and heck, for all I know, he could have been putting it on.


But then, if he really was the seat-of-the-pants dilettante some believe he is, would Joe Jordan have worked alongside him at Portsmouth, Tottenham and now Queens Park Rangers? In fact, would he have wanted Joe around? I've known Jordan for several years, I've worked with him on TV. He is basically the antithesis of the vacuous, happy-go-lucky character Redknapp supposedly plays in the media.


Jordan is serious, methodical and studious. If Redknapp was really "Happy Harry" and nothing else, he would find Jordan depressing and funereal and wouldn't want him anywhere near him.

But what's interesting about Redknapp -- apart from the visceral reactions he generates -- is his willingness to get back into the game and put his reputation on the line. You saw it when he accepted the QPR job. It's not a common trait among managers, especially ones near the top of the food chain.


The standard arc for a boss is to move on to a bigger job if he can, or at least make a lateral move if he can't or if he gets sacked. Look at Alan Curbishley. Not that long ago he was a kind of "thinking man's Redknapp:" a more cerebral East End type with West Ham connections. When he parted ways with West Ham in 2008, most predicted he'd be back in a Premier League job real soon. Four years later, Curbishley is still out there. Why? Most likely because he simply wasn't willing to take a step down.


You could make a similar case for Rafa Benitez. He was out of work for nearly two years after leaving Inter and before becoming Chelsea's interim boss last week. He flirted with a number of gigs but ultimately stayed put, in anticipation of another "big" job.


Why do managers sit out and wait for better -- and better-funded -- jobs?


The answer, if you're cynical, is that most are generally insecure and they are terrified as to what may happen if they fail at a smaller club. Screw up with a Champions League-caliber team and, generally speaking, you'll be thought of as an A-list boss just because you managed at that level. But move down a notch or two and come up short and you'll have a problem.


The (incorrect) assumption is that coaching a big club to a top-four finish is somehow tougher than, say, avoiding relegation on a shoestring. And people who do the former are, almost automatically, better managers than those who do the latter. Because the converse also applies -- a guy who gets relegated with a club that probably should get relegated is going to be worse than a guy with a top-three wage bill who fails to qualify for the Champions League.


That's just the groupthink that exists in the game, with very few exceptions.


Back to Redknapp, though. What prompts a guy who finished fourth in the Premier League last year and turns 66 in March to take over a club that have yet to win this season?


It's not the money. It can't be. Redknapp does live in a palatial home that looks like something out of "Miami Vice." But he's done extremely well in previous jobs and, by all accounts, he doesn't have a flashy lifestyle.


Could it be that he genuinely loves his job and the buzz of management? So much so that rather than holding out for a can't-miss gig or sitting there and collecting appearance fees by moving his stand-up routine to the pundit's coach, he's willing to take over the bottom team in the league (again)?


Even his harshest critics have to concede this: He is putting his own reputation on the line. Again.


There are plenty who would never dare to do what he is doing in taking the QPR job. ESPN

Trevor Steven

Clock is ticking for QPR stars to wow Redknapp

http://www.cityam.com/sport/trevor-steven/clock-ticking-qpr-stars-wow-redknapp

RELEGATION might not be until May, but the fate of many a Queens Park Rangers player will be decided much sooner, as Harry Redknapp weighs up which men he can rely on to drag them off the foot of the Premier League.

Redknapp knows exactly the type of character he likes, and come January it will obvious to all which Hoops stars fit his criteria, because those who don’t will soon be shipped out on loan or sold.

QPR were right to act when they did and replace Mark Hughes with Harry, because it gives the new manager a handful of games before the New Year to assess his team and prepare for the transfer window.

Hughes could not axe those failing players since he brought most of them in – it would have been a damning indictment of his own judgement. It’s far easier for Redknapp to be ruthless.

Clearly they are light in attack, while they are very shaky in defence. I don’t see Anton Ferdinand or Armand Traore as good enough, so at least two of the back four need replacing.

If I was a betting man I’d back Redknapp to keep Rangers in the top flight, despite their dreadful start. What QPR need more than anything is a good man-manager, and he’s the best in the business.

Read more: http://qprreport.proboards.com/index.cgi?action=display&board=general&thread=34127&page=1#301485#ixzz2DbQ16cqH


Trevor Steven

Clock is ticking for QPR stars to wow Redknapp

http://www.cityam.com/sport/trevor-steven/clock-ticking-qpr-stars-wow-redknapp

RELEGATION might not be until May, but the fate of many a Queens Park Rangers player will be decided much sooner, as Harry Redknapp weighs up which men he can rely on to drag them off the foot of the Premier League.

Redknapp knows exactly the type of character he likes, and come January it will obvious to all which Hoops stars fit his criteria, because those who don’t will soon be shipped out on loan or sold.

QPR were right to act when they did and replace Mark Hughes with Harry, because it gives the new manager a handful of games before the New Year to assess his team and prepare for the transfer window.

Hughes could not axe those failing players since he brought most of them in – it would have been a damning indictment of his own judgement. It’s far easier for Redknapp to be ruthless.

Clearly they are light in attack, while they are very shaky in defence. I don’t see Anton Ferdinand or Armand Traore as good enough, so at least two of the back four need replacing.

If I was a betting man I’d back Redknapp to keep Rangers in the top flight, despite their dreadful start. What QPR need more than anything is a good man-manager, and he’s the best in the business.

Read more: http://qprreport.proboards.com/index.cgi?action=display&board=general&thread=34127&page=1#301485#ixzz2DbQ16cqH

Guardian - Stuart James

QPR's Harry Redknapp ready to offer Darren Bent escape route out of Villa
• Villa striker fell out with Redknapp at Tottenham
• Redknapp: I like Darren, I've no problem with him


Queens Park Rangers are ready to offer Darren Bent an escape route out of Aston Villa, with Harry Redknapp confident he can patch up his differences with the striker he fell out with at Tottenham Hotspur when he accused the England international of missing a chance "my missus could have scored".

With Andy Johnson and Bobby Zamora facing long spells on the sidelines, Redknapp, the QPR manager, has made signing a proven goalscorer in the January transfer window a priority to give his side a chance of survival.

Bent, whose 102 Premier League goals have come at an average of one every two appearances, falls into that category and, furthermore, he will be available when the window reopens after being deemed surplus to requirements by Paul Lambert, the Villa manager.

Having been reduced to watching from the stands in the games against Arsenal on Saturday and Reading on Tuesday, it has now emerged that Bent had recovered from an ankle injury three weeks ago, which means he has been overlooked for the past four Premier League fixtures.

Liverpool have been linked with Bent, who cost Villa a fee rising to £24m when he joined from Sunderland a little under two years ago, but Brendan Rodgers, the manager at Anfield, has other targets. Fulham are far more likely suitors – Martin Jol, their manager, was in charge at Spurs when Bent joined in 2007 and he remains an admirer – although QPR would appear to be the frontrunners.

When Redknapp was in charge at Spurs he upset Bent after he ridiculed the forward for failing to score with a header against Portsmouth in 2009, but in the wake of the goalless draw at Sunderland on Tuesday night, which highlighted the need for reinforcements up front, the QPR manager talked as if that episode were water under the bridge.

"I like Darren. I've got no problems with Darren Bent," Redknapp said. "I just made a comment that maybe I shouldn't, when I said I think my missus would have scored when he missed a header that day. I can laugh at myself, I don't mind.

"It was obviously difficult, he didn't like it and that was sort of it really, and within no time he decided that he didn't want to stay. But I think he's a good player. I'd like to have Darren Bent available, believe you me. He can score goals. I've got no problem with Darren as a boy or as a player. I think he's a good player."

There is no suggestion that Bent will submit a transfer request at Villa but, by the same token, it is easy to imagine he would relish the chance to start playing football again. With that in mind, he is unlikely to rule QPR out because of what happened with Redknapp in the past.

Villa will have to take a big hit on their investment, with £10m likely to be the maximum they could hope to recoup for a player who turns 29 in February and whose manager has made it so clear that he has no future at the club.

Lambert's decision to not even name Bent as a substitute in the past two matches has prompted much debate but it has now come to light that the forward had declared himself fit ahead of the two previous fixtures, against Manchester United and Manchester City. He was not in the matchday squad on either occasion.

Bent has not received any explanation from Lambert for the way he has been treated, which has left the player mystified. He lost the captaincy in September and was dropped two weeks later, only to come off the bench and score the equaliser against West Bromwich Albion at Villa Park.

Bent has started only one game for Villa since the Albion fixture and in recent weeks has seen Jordan Bowery, a 21-year-old striker signed from League One side Chesterfield in August, named ahead of him on the bench.

There were reports Bent stormed out of the changing room on Tuesday night after Lambert read out the names of the 18 players involved but sources have suggested Bent shook hands with the players to wish them "all the best" ahead of the match. He later watched the game from his executive box, in the Trinity Road stand.

Following the 1-0 victory over Reading, which lifted Villa out of the bottom three, Lambert was asked 22 questions about Bent in his post-match press conference. As well as talking repeatedly about the difficulties of managing 25 players and how he tries to "pick a team a team and squad to win a game", the Villa manager insisted he rated Bent as a footballer, rejected any suggestion that his attitude was an issue and claimed to have no problem with how hard he was working in training.

In the real world, though, everything points to the exit door
http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2012/nov/28/darren-bent-qpr-aston-villa

MARK HUGHES & SHAUN WRIGHT PHILLIPS INVESTING IN THE US?

 


The Offside Rules

File Under "Out of Nowhere": FL group planning $400m SSS


You sitting down? Good because there seems to be serious, on-the-downlow SSS talk in Florida. And in Tampa of all places.

According to a quasi-hidden website, "VSI Flames, Inc. (VSI Tampa Bay Flames) recently entered in to a formal agreement with its funding partner PRI Development Partners LLC for the purpose of providing the Tampa Bay region with a first class and purpose built soccer stadium along with a separate 20+ training field and Academy complex...."

   Check out some of the names of investors in VSI: Shaun Wright Phillips, Mikel Jon Obi, Mark Hughes, and Ian Wright. Safe to say this group has more than a few real soccer heads. Oh and not incidentally, VSI will run a USL Pro club in 2013 that will play in an Empire Fields-esque temporary modular stadium built by Nussli....The Offside Rules

See Also  - Vispro and Vispro Investors




Guardian - Darren Bent

QPR's Harry Redknapp ready to offer Darren Bent escape route out of Villa
• Villa striker fell out with Redknapp at Tottenham
• Redknapp: I like Darren, I've no problem with him

Stuart James
The Guardian, Wednesday 28 November 2012 17.30 EST

Queens Park Rangers are ready to offer Darren Bent an escape route out of Aston Villa, with Harry Redknapp confident he can patch up his differences with the striker he fell out with at Tottenham Hotspur when he accused the England international of missing a chance "my missus could have scored".

With Andy Johnson and Bobby Zamora facing long spells on the sidelines, Redknapp, the QPR manager, has made signing a proven goalscorer in the January transfer window a priority to give his side a chance of survival.

Bent, whose 102 Premier League goals have come at an average of one every two appearances, falls into that category and, furthermore, he will be available when the window reopens after being deemed surplus to requirements by Paul Lambert, the Villa manager.

Having been reduced to watching from the stands in the games against Arsenal on Saturday and Reading on Tuesday, it has now emerged that Bent had recovered from an ankle injury three weeks ago, which means he has been overlooked for the past four Premier League fixtures.

Liverpool have been linked with Bent, who cost Villa a fee rising to £24m when he joined from Sunderland a little under two years ago, but Brendan Rodgers, the manager at Anfield, has other targets. Fulham are far more likely suitors – Martin Jol, their manager, was in charge at Spurs when Bent joined in 2007 and he remains an admirer – although QPR would appear to be the frontrunners.

When Redknapp was in charge at Spurs he upset Bent after he ridiculed the forward for failing to score with a header against Portsmouth in 2009, but in the wake of the goalless draw at Sunderland on Tuesday night, which highlighted the need for reinforcements up front, the QPR manager talked as if that episode were water under the bridge.

"I like Darren. I've got no problems with Darren Bent," Redknapp said. "I just made a comment that maybe I shouldn't, when I said I think my missus would have scored when he missed a header that day. I can laugh at myself, I don't mind.

"It was obviously difficult, he didn't like it and that was sort of it really, and within no time he decided that he didn't want to stay. But I think he's a good player. I'd like to have Darren Bent available, believe you me. He can score goals. I've got no problem with Darren as a boy or as a player. I think he's a good player."

There is no suggestion that Bent will submit a transfer request at Villa but, by the same token, it is easy to imagine he would relish the chance to start playing football again. With that in mind, he is unlikely to rule QPR out because of what happened with Redknapp in the past.

Villa will have to take a big hit on their investment, with £10m likely to be the maximum they could hope to recoup for a player who turns 29 in February and whose manager has made it so clear that he has no future at the club.

Lambert's decision to not even name Bent as a substitute in the past two matches has prompted much debate but it has now come to light that the forward had declared himself fit ahead of the two previous fixtures, against Manchester United and Manchester City. He was not in the matchday squad on either occasion.

Bent has not received any explanation from Lambert for the way he has been treated, which has left the player mystified. He lost the captaincy in September and was dropped two weeks later, only to come off the bench and score the equaliser against West Bromwich Albion at Villa Park.

Bent has started only one game for Villa since the Albion fixture and in recent weeks has seen Jordan Bowery, a 21-year-old striker signed from League One side Chesterfield in August, named ahead of him on the bench.

There were reports Bent stormed out of the changing room on Tuesday night after Lambert read out the names of the 18 players involved but sources have suggested Bent shook hands with the players to wish them "all the best" ahead of the match. He later watched the game from his executive box, in the Trinity Road stand.

Following the 1-0 victory over Reading, which lifted Villa out of the bottom three, Lambert was asked 22 questions about Bent in his post-match press conference. As well as talking repeatedly about the difficulties of managing 25 players and how he tries to "pick a team a team and squad to win a game", the Villa manager insisted he rated Bent as a footballer, rejected any suggestion that his attitude was an issue and claimed to have no problem with how hard he was working in training.

In the real world, though, everything points to the exit door.

Article history
Football
Darren Bent · QPR · Harry Redknapp
Sport
More news
More on this story

Bent: 22 questions about Villa's record signing
Paul Lambert was quizzed by reporters after Tuesday's game, when Bent was not even named as a substitute
Europa League may be axed

http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2012/nov/28/darren-bent-qpr-aston-villa

Read more: http://qprreport.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=general&action=display&thread=33683&page=3#ixzz2DbKjn1bt
re West Ham Fans Chanting Anti-Semitic slurs at Tottenham Game 





Guardian - Darren Bent

QPR's Harry Redknapp ready to offer Darren Bent escape route out of Villa
• Villa striker fell out with Redknapp at Tottenham
• Redknapp: I like Darren, I've no problem with him

Stuart James
The Guardian, Wednesday 28 November 2012 17.30 EST

Queens Park Rangers are ready to offer Darren Bent an escape route out of Aston Villa, with Harry Redknapp confident he can patch up his differences with the striker he fell out with at Tottenham Hotspur when he accused the England international of missing a chance "my missus could have scored".

With Andy Johnson and Bobby Zamora facing long spells on the sidelines, Redknapp, the QPR manager, has made signing a proven goalscorer in the January transfer window a priority to give his side a chance of survival.

Bent, whose 102 Premier League goals have come at an average of one every two appearances, falls into that category and, furthermore, he will be available when the window reopens after being deemed surplus to requirements by Paul Lambert, the Villa manager.

Having been reduced to watching from the stands in the games against Arsenal on Saturday and Reading on Tuesday, it has now emerged that Bent had recovered from an ankle injury three weeks ago, which means he has been overlooked for the past four Premier League fixtures.

Liverpool have been linked with Bent, who cost Villa a fee rising to £24m when he joined from Sunderland a little under two years ago, but Brendan Rodgers, the manager at Anfield, has other targets. Fulham are far more likely suitors – Martin Jol, their manager, was in charge at Spurs when Bent joined in 2007 and he remains an admirer – although QPR would appear to be the frontrunners.

When Redknapp was in charge at Spurs he upset Bent after he ridiculed the forward for failing to score with a header against Portsmouth in 2009, but in the wake of the goalless draw at Sunderland on Tuesday night, which highlighted the need for reinforcements up front, the QPR manager talked as if that episode were water under the bridge.

"I like Darren. I've got no problems with Darren Bent," Redknapp said. "I just made a comment that maybe I shouldn't, when I said I think my missus would have scored when he missed a header that day. I can laugh at myself, I don't mind.

"It was obviously difficult, he didn't like it and that was sort of it really, and within no time he decided that he didn't want to stay. But I think he's a good player. I'd like to have Darren Bent available, believe you me. He can score goals. I've got no problem with Darren as a boy or as a player. I think he's a good player."

There is no suggestion that Bent will submit a transfer request at Villa but, by the same token, it is easy to imagine he would relish the chance to start playing football again. With that in mind, he is unlikely to rule QPR out because of what happened with Redknapp in the past.

Villa will have to take a big hit on their investment, with £10m likely to be the maximum they could hope to recoup for a player who turns 29 in February and whose manager has made it so clear that he has no future at the club.

Lambert's decision to not even name Bent as a substitute in the past two matches has prompted much debate but it has now come to light that the forward had declared himself fit ahead of the two previous fixtures, against Manchester United and Manchester City. He was not in the matchday squad on either occasion.

Bent has not received any explanation from Lambert for the way he has been treated, which has left the player mystified. He lost the captaincy in September and was dropped two weeks later, only to come off the bench and score the equaliser against West Bromwich Albion at Villa Park.

Bent has started only one game for Villa since the Albion fixture and in recent weeks has seen Jordan Bowery, a 21-year-old striker signed from League One side Chesterfield in August, named ahead of him on the bench.

There were reports Bent stormed out of the changing room on Tuesday night after Lambert read out the names of the 18 players involved but sources have suggested Bent shook hands with the players to wish them "all the best" ahead of the match. He later watched the game from his executive box, in the Trinity Road stand.

Following the 1-0 victory over Reading, which lifted Villa out of the bottom three, Lambert was asked 22 questions about Bent in his post-match press conference. As well as talking repeatedly about the difficulties of managing 25 players and how he tries to "pick a team a team and squad to win a game", the Villa manager insisted he rated Bent as a footballer, rejected any suggestion that his attitude was an issue and claimed to have no problem with how hard he was working in training.

In the real world, though, everything points to the exit door.

Article history
Football
Darren Bent · QPR · Harry Redknapp
Sport
More news
More on this story

Bent: 22 questions about Villa's record signing
Paul Lambert was quizzed by reporters after Tuesday's game, when Bent was not even named as a substitute
Europa League may be axed

http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2012/nov/28/darren-bent-qpr-aston-villa

Read more: http://qprreport.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=general&action=display&thread=33683&page=3#ixzz2DbKjn1bt
- QPR Disciplinary Record this Season really NOT that Bad  - Midtable in the Fair Play League










Wednesday, November 28, 2012

QPR Report Wednesday: Redknapp's First of 35 Points! Sunderland Reports and Comments...Taarabt: The Stats...Next: Aston Villa!




_____________________________________________________



- Reminder FA CUP Third Round Draw on Sunday 

- QPR Disciplinary Record this Season really NOT that Bad  - Midtable in the Fair Play League


- "Open All R's" Podcast With Rodney Marsh



QPR AT SUNDERLAND

Tony Fernandes ‏@tonyfernandes - Something to build on. Our first clean sheet away from home. Need to take our chances though. 


Independent/Simon Johnson - Harry relaxes with his 'blue and white army' - until he sees the troops on the pitch

Tactical adjustments tighten team's defence but cannot dispel the nervous moments
There are some managers who may show a touch of nerves as they are about to embark on what they confess to be the toughest job in their career, but for Harry Redknapp this is familiar territory and it showed.

Redknapp has had just six months to wait to be back in charge of a Premier League game following his dismissal from Tottenham and the confident manner in which he strode down the players’ tunnel just before kick-off spoke volumes.

This was a man who has been involved in relegation battles with Portsmouth, Southampton and Spurs in the past decade and his body language was the epitome of calm before he even went to take his seat in the away dugout at the Stadium of Light.

The photographers waited expectantly for that first glimpse of the 65-year-old, but he let his players take centre stage and run out on to the pitch first. Meanwhile, he took the opportunity to put his arm round opposite number, Martin O’Neill, and exchange a few pleasantries.

O’Neill is under pressure himself with Sunderland just above the relegation zone and it was almost as if Redknapp was providing the Northern Irishman with some words of comfort, rather than the other way around, before the two teams commenced battle.

Just to emphasise his aura of coolness, he ignored the glare of the cameras before the whistle blew to sign an autograph for an eager Sunderland fan.

Of course, Redknapp is not the first new manager to be put in charge of a west London club in the past few days, but there is no doubt he is set for a happier marriage at QPR than Rafael Benitez is facing at Chelsea.

Only 350 QPR fans braved the floods in the North-east to make the trip and they certainly made their voice heard from the outset just as Chelsea supporters did on Sunday. But whereas Benitez was greeted with a chorus of boos and hostile banners demanding his instant departure, QPR’s small travelling support couldn’t have made him feel more welcome.

There was certainly no sign of any regret that Mark Hughes had been replaced after collecting a measly tally of four points from their first 12 games this season.

Indeed, they instantly christened their team “Harry Redknapp’s blue and white army” and it was evident optimism had replaced the despondency that has been almost ever-present in their throats since August.

Still it was one thing being happy to see him in the flesh, it was what impact he could make on the side that they really wanted to see. It was not as if he had much time to make a difference, having seen QPR lose at Manchester United on the same day he was officially appointed on Saturday.

Since then he has taken one light session with the players who weren’t involved at Old Trafford on the Sunday, before giving the squad a full workout after meeting the press yesterday.

That didn’t stop him from making changes, with Jose Bosingwa, Esteban Granero and Samba Diakité replacing Alejandro Faurlin, Kieron Dyer and Shaun Derry.

More importantly, though, was the tactical shape of the side and while Redknapp is best known most for his attacking instincts, it was clear he made defensive organisation key on his debut.

Only Southampton have conceded more goals in the top flight this season and perhaps it helped that they were facing a Sunderland side who had amassed just 12 goals this term.

Employing a 4-5-1 formation when Sunderland had the ball, which switched to a 4-3-3 when they won possession, ensured they were in control for most of the game.

All the players seemed to be sharper in closing their opponents down and strong in the tackle, with Redknapp’s words that they should be embarrassed over their points tally providing an instant incentive. Even Adel Taarabt, a luxury player whom Redknapp sold to QPR when Tottenham manager, earned a round of applause from his coach after fouling Jack Colback – because of the desire on show.

But as the game wore on, Redknapp found his seat increasingly uncomfortable and regularly patrolled the touchline, urging his players on despite the return of torrential rain. His angst was particularly noticeable at set-pieces, which was not surprising as it was arguably the biggest weakness during Hughes’ reign and they looked vulnerable every time Sunderland had a corner or free-kick around the box.

There was also the inconvenience of having to replace keeper Julio Cesar with forgotten man Robert Green at half-time, but even that didn’t disturb the visitors’ rhythm.

O’Neill appeared to be the manager who is in charge of a group of players adrift at the bottom of the table, rather than Redknapp, and QPR fans, who saw one great escape last season, can start dreaming of achieving the impossible once again.


http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/footb....ch-8360601.html


GUARDIAN/LOUISE TAYLOR

Harry Redknapp sees rare reasons to hope on opening night with QPR
QPR showed a bit more spirit but their Sunderland opponents looked even worse for the troubled manager, Martin O'Neill
Harry Redknapp clocked on for a first night shift in charge of his latest club and ambled down the tunnel with an arm draped companionably around Martin O'Neill.

Since the last time they met he had lost the Tottenham Hotspur job, won a court case and been jilted by England, so it was perhaps no surprise that QPR's new manager remained locked deep in conversation with his fellow warhorse until they adjourned to adjacent technical areas.

While the track-suited O'Neill cut a relentlessly hyperactive touchline figure, the way Redknapp continually dug his hands into the pockets of his new QPR club anorak suggested he had made a tactical error in not opting for the full-length maximum-tog duvet coat.

They say that the winter winds which hit the North Sea coast at Sunderland blow in all the way from the Russian Steppes and during a raw, wet evening's chillier moments Rednapp must have wondered if he had not somehow ended up coaching in Ukraine after all.

He turned down that national job for a west London club harbouring reputedly the most divided, discordant dressing room in the Premier League but a combination of "new-manager syndrome" and Harry's galvanising charm seemed to have QPR playing with definite spirit if not exactly stellar sharpness.

Their cause was helped by palpable home nervousness exacerbated by an increasingly edgy crowd. O'Neill's side were on a dispiriting run featuring two Premier League wins in 20 games and almost immediately were forced to regroup when Lee Cattermole limped off with knee trouble. Sunderland's captain and key midfielder had hobbled off in similar distress with the other knee during Saturday's defeat to West Bromwich Albion and it was perhaps a measure of the manager's desperation that O'Neill took the gamble of starting him.

Although the Saturday night rumours that spread like wildfire across Twitter suggesting the Northern Irishman had resigned were entirely erroneous and Ellis Short, Sunderland's chairman, was swift to offer the manager reassuring support, these are unexpectedly uncomfortable times for O'Neill. The last thing he needed was Redknapp to succeed where Mark Hughes had spent 11 months failing, and win an away game.

Winning any sort of league match has proved beyond QPR this season but they held their own here, even if Sunderland's left-back Danny Rose looked the best player on the pitch and Júlio César had to excel to beat away Steven Fletcher's left-foot shot following a deceptively clever reverse pass from his subsequently withdrawn team-mate Adam Johnson.

Only a few months ago it seemed one of the items in Redknapp's in-tray would be unlocking Johnson's mislaid talents ahead of the next World Cup in Brazil. Yet instead of wearing Three Lions on his shirt the man who might have been England manager was sitting alongside Anton Ferdinand and the rest of the QPR substitutes taking shelter from the second half's driving rain.

This time last year, of course, Redknapp was in charge of an exhilaratingly high-flying, title-challenging Spurs side starring Gareth Bale, Luka Modric and Rafael van der Vaart. Precisely how, he could have been forgiven for wondering, had it come to this?

At least he could take heart from the statistic that Sunderland's last three league wins – against Fulham and Wigan this season and Hughes's QPR last term – have come against teams reduced to 10 men. Then there was the knowledge that in 18 previous meetings with assorted clubs, O'Neill had beaten him only once.

Further reasons for cautious optimism began emerging. He may not exactly be Modric, but Adel Taarabt, QPR's outstanding individual, was showing off some promising touches. Similarly while replacing C̩sar Рwho tore a groin denying Fletcher Рwith Rob Green may not have been the first substitution Redknapp had envisaged making, the goalkeeper discarded by Hughes did well, impressing when cutting out Craig Gardner's dangerous cross and then saving a Fletcher header.

Redknapp has never been afraid to make bold switches and sensing Taarabt was tiring, he replaced the Moroccan – treated to a diplomatically avuncular pat on the back and little word in the ear – with Shaun Wright-Phillips.

Despite a bright cameo, that substitution failed to inspire a debut victory but while Redknapp will be happy enough with a point in the Wearside rain, the wholesale boos which greeted the final whistle served as a reminder that O'Neill is badly in need of an arm round the shoulder right now.

How much longer Short will continue to provide it remains to be seen

http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/blog/....hope-sunderland



GUARDIAN

Harry Redknapp starts QPR reign with goalless draw at Sunderland

Daniel Taylor at the Stadium of Light

Harry Redknapp's first game as Queens Park Rangers manager will at least bring a measure of encouragement even if it was a match of few highlights. They will head into December as the only club in England's four divisions still looking for a first league victory but there were flickers of improvement and, on the balance of play, they might have made it even more galling for the Sunderland fans who booed their team off the pitch.

It was a scruffy match, lacking any real tempo and not helped by the unremitting rain, but whereas Redknapp got started with an away point, Martin O'Neill must be alarmed about his team's inability to exert any sense of superiority against the Premier League's bottom side. His team, flirting heavily with the relegation places, have now won only two of their past 21 league matches going back to last season.

QPR's record is even less distinguished but they did end their six-match losing sequence on the road. It was the first time in 24 away matches they have kept a clean sheet, and Redknapp might be disappointed they did not build on a promising start. With a touch more ambition, Sunderland were vulnerable enough for Redknapp's team to give him a winning start.

The plus points for Redknapp were that his team played with structure and organisation and the kind of solidity that has rarely been seen so far this season. "I feel more optimistic than I did on Saturday," he said. "Certainly there's a lot to work on, but there are real positives. The confidence has to be a bit shot but I'll keep telling them they're good players and hopefully they will believe it. I can't pluck anyone out of thin air but I thought we looked decent. We kept Martin quiet. He wasn't jumping around too much tonight."

This is certainly a worrying time for O'Neill, who described it as a "frustrating evening" and indicated that some of his players might have been affected by the crowd's exasperation. Sunderland began the game slowly, as might be expected of a team that have had their own confidence issues, but the more worrying aspect for O'Neill was that they never really changed gear. They struggled for cohesion, lacking any form of penetration, and lost their captain, Lee Cattermole, to a knee injury after only six minutes.

The home side missed his drive but O'Neill made the point that other qualities were missing as well. It was a sterile performance from a team struggling to remember how O'Neill invigorated them when he took over almost a year ago. They fashioned one good chance just before half-time when Danny Rose and Adam Johnson combined to set up Steven Fletcher but it was a moment of rare clarity. Rob Green, brought on at half-time because Júlio César had torn a groin, saved Fletcher's header from a second-half corner, and that was pretty much it.

For that, Redknapp deserves credit. The man taking charge of his fifth Premier League club had resisted the opportunity to make wholesale changes but there were some key alternations, with José Bosingwa brought into defence and Samba Diakité and Esteban Granero added to midfield. Shaun Derry dropped to the bench and there was no place at all for Kieron Dyer and Alejandro Faurlín. The idea, Redknapp later explained, was that he wanted a stronger, more athletic midfield, with Diakité alongside Stéphane Mbia. And the ploy worked.

"They had a renewed spirit about them," O'Neill said of Redknapp's side. If anything, it was Sunderland more conspicuously lacking in self-belief. "I knew it was going to be a difficult game but we needed to play with a wee bit more confidence," O'Neill continued. "The crowd gets edgy and it's a question of character as much as anything else. The players have to play the ball they choose, not the ball the crowd chooses."

Sunderland's supporters had been provoked to the point of restlessness. Early in the second half, with Redknapp's players playing keep-ball, the crowd found their voice to express displeasure about the absence of anything resembling a tackle. Later there was more anger when the ball was returned to the goalkeeper, Simon Mignolet, too many times for the spectators' liking.

QPR were more positive. They passed the ball at times with a confidence that belied their position in the league. Djibril Cissé drove an early effort wide but their best chance arrived in the 38th minute. Mignolet saved the first attempt at the feet of Jamie Mackie and when the rebound fell to Adel Taarabt his follow-up effort ricocheted off Phil Bardsley to safety.

The visitors might have won it in the final exchanges, too, only for the substitute Shaun Wright-Phillips to aim a shot straight at Mignolet. By then, however, a goal would have represented a genuine shock. As the rain teemed down, it felt like the two teams could play for a month of Sundays without finding the ingenuity that was needed.


http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2012/....r-league-report



Dave McINtyre/West London Sport - Optimistic Redknapp hails midfield trioHarry Redknapp hailed his midfield trio after QPR began his reign as manager with a 0-0 draw at Sunderland.

With Stephane Mbia sitting in front of the back four and Samba Diakite and Esteban Granero imposing themselves, Rangers looked comfortable for most of the game and picked up only their second clean sheet in the league this season.

It vindicated the decision to leave out Alejandro Faurlin and Shaun Derry, who played against Manchester United at the weekend.

Rangers made an encouraging start under the new manager, leaving Redknapp feeling optimistic about their chances of climbing away from the bottom of the table.

“I liked the look of us. The three lads in midfield looked strong and we look like we have plenty of ability,” he said.

“I’m more optimistic than I was on Saturday, that’s for sure. We well deserved a draw and I was pleased with the performance.

“I went for power in midfield with the two African boys. You wouldn’t want to play against those two.

“Diakite came off after he was booked but looks like he could be a really good player for us. Mbia did well too and Granero can play, so there were good positives.

“It’s going to be tough. We must not kid ourselves. When you look at the position we’re in it’s very difficult, but I can see there are some decent players here.


http://www.westlondonsport.com/qpr/optimistic-redknapp-hails-midfield-trio


Dave McIntyre/West London Sport  - Cesar injury a concern for Rangers
QPR are assessing a groin injury Julio Cesar suffered during the goalless draw at Sunderland.

The Brazil goalkeeper was replaced by Rob Green at half-time after leaving the pitch in some discomfort.

“It’s a torn groin,” confirmed manager Harry Redknapp, whose team made a solid start to his reign as manager.

“He [Cesar] is a good pro. I’ve been impressed with him as a fella and you can see why he’s done what he has in the game.

“Rob came on and made a good save, so I’m lucky to have two good keepers

http://www.westlondonsport.com/qpr/cesar-injury-a-concern-for-rangers



QPR OFFICIAL SITE

HARRY HAPPY WITH A POINT

Redknapp pleased to get up and running ...

If everybody works hard, you can’t ask for anything more. The players did that tonight.""
Harry Redknapp
NEW R’S boss Harry Redknapp was full of praise for his side, as Rangers gained a creditable point against Sunderland at the Stadium of Light.

Redknapp’s revitalised charges were arguably the better side over the course of the 90 minutes, with Jamie Mackie and Shaun Wright-Phillips both going close to breaking the deadlock.

Speaking exclusively to www.qpr.co.uk at the full-time whistle, Redknapp said: “I was pleased with that tonight.

“The players showed a great attitude and there’s a real spirit in the dressing room.

“They enjoyed getting a clean sheet and realise they got a reward for their hard work.

“All I can do over the coming weeks is do the best with what I’ve got and I felt I did that tonight.”

He added: “It was a good point for us.

“I thought the players worked their socks off for us.

“They put in a performance and that was important, especially for those unbelievable fans who made the long trip up here.

“I think the stats prove we’ve been outplayed by every team bar one this season and you can’t win football matches if you get out-worked by the opposition.

“Tonight we put a shift in and that's the first thing you ask for.

“If everybody works hard, you can’t ask for anything more. The players did that tonight and that’s encouraging for the future.”

Rangers lined up in a 4-1-4-1 formation in the North East, with Stephane Mbia playing in a deep-lying midfield role behind Esteban Granero and Samba Diakite.

Redknapp added: “It was a midfield you wouldn't want to play against.

“The two lads (Mbia and Diakite) are powerful and strong. They’re great athletes and I was very impressed with what I saw.

“Granero, the Spanish lad, is a very good footballer as he showed tonight.

“It was a nice blend.”
http://www.qpr.co.uk/news/article/271112-redknapp-sunderland-513296.aspx


TEAM TALK




Harry should try to harness Taarabt talent




Adel Taarabt is already being linked with a transfer, but WhoScored.com's Ali Tweedale believes his skill and passion are prize assets to QPR.
With audacious rumours surfacing on Tuesday morning linking Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson with a wholly unexpected and rather unrealistic move for QPR's Adel Taarabt in the January transfer window, yet more questions are sure to be raised as to whether new Hoops manager Harry Redknapp wants to keep Taarabt at Loftus Road.
The pair never saw eye-to-eye when they were at Tottenham together, with Taarabt's chances limited more or less exclusively to cup games, despite Redknapp publicly saying he had seen fewer players as talented as the Moroccan.
The then Spurs manager had stated that he had never seen a player do some of the things Taarabt managed on the training ground, and that he could well go on to achieve big things in his career.
But Redknapp did not back up his sentiments in his team selection. Arguably Taarabt's finest moment in the league for Tottenham came in March 2007 in an extremely brief appearance against West Ham at Upton Park with Martin Jol as manager, when he came off the bench with his side 3-2 down with three minutes left.
After Dimitar Berbatov had equalised, Taarabt played his part in a Spurs counter attack to win the match at the death. Many fans had expected him to push on from there and break into the first team on a more regular basis, but in came Juande Ramos, and then Harry - and it was not to be.
After a successful loan spell in the Championship with QPR, Taarabt made the move permanent in the summer of 2010 and helped the Hoops back into the Premier League en route to winning the Championship Player of the Year award. Taarabt stoked the fire with Redknapp, stating that he had made a mistake going to Spurs, where the manager had not given him the chances that he would have got under Arsene Wenger at Arsenal.
Now, with the two reunited at Loftus Road, the tabloids have jumped on the bandwagon to report that Taarabt is on his way out. We have seen moments of magic from the Moroccan in his time in England and Redknapp might know better than getting shot of a player with the potential to change a game in an instant.
Taarabt's 2011/12 season was very much a settling-in period for him in the top flight, and he has already matched his goalscoring tally from last term this time around. He started 24 league games last season and only managed two goals, while he has already netted twice this term in only eight starts.
Given the ambitious nature of his play, many of his attempts on goal come from outside the penalty area, and his shooting from distance is largely justified by the fact that he troubles the keeper so often. Since the start of last season, only Wayne Rooney (38) has had more shots on target from outside the penalty area in the Premier League than Taarabt (35). The two have similar shooting accuracy from distance, with Rooney hitting the target 54.3% of the time, while Taarabt does so with 53.0% of his long rangers. Rooney, though, leads the charts for goals from outside the box, with five, while no fewer than 22 players have scored more such goals than Taarabt's two.
He so often infuriates fans with his flamboyant play, but he is clearly learning that he cannot be the main man every week as he was in the second tier. When QPR were promoted, the midfielder would frequently try things from outrageous positions, and Redknapp will be one to try and curb that part of his game.
He seems to have become a little more unselfish in his play already this season, having created more chances this season (2.7 per game) compared to last (2.2). Only seven Premier League players can boast a better key pass rate than Taarabt this season (as can be seen on WhoScored.com's Premier League statistics page), and most of those rely on set pieces to lay on those chances. In fact, only Everton's Steven Pienaar (2.5) and Liverpool's Luis Suarez (2.46) create more chances in open play on average than the Moroccan (2.33); an astounding statistic for a player at a team that has scored only 10 league goals and are bottom of the table.
Taarabt has his tricky dribbling skills to call on when he needs to create space to put balls into the box, and his success rate when it comes to taking on opponents (61.4%) ranks him amongst the best in Europe's top five leagues, ahead of the likes of Lionel Messi (59.5%) and Franck Ribery (48.6%). Messi attempts 5.9 dribbles per game, compared to Taarabt's 4.9, so it is not as if the Argentine simply tries to dribble past many more players.
That is not, of course, to say that Taarabt is anywhere near Messi's level. The end product is very much missing from the QPR youngster's game, though his dribbling skills are there for all to see.
As pointed out in this WhoScored Team Focus article by Michael Cox, the Hoops have struggled massively in front of goal, and it is difficult to look past their misfiring strikers to find their problem. Taarabt's tally of two goals from 36 shots hardly helps matters, but scoring the goals is more of an issue for the strikers.
Redknapp will be almost certainly dipping into the transfer market in January, and it might well have crossed his mind to replace the injured Bobby Zamora up front. Though Taarabt will probably not be off to Old Trafford, reports that he could be on his way out of the club may not be too far off the mark given his history with Redknapp.
However, the new Hoops manager might think better of it. Taarabt is an unquestionable talent with a fiery and determined attitude to succeed that could come into great use in what is undeniably already a relegation battle for Queens Park Rangers. Teamtalk 












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