Chris King, exhausted but elated after a day glued to the newsfeeds, reflects on the relief of today’s announcement.
At 1.30pm this afternoon Queens Park Rangers supporters anxiously refreshing their Facebook and Twitter feeds whilst nervously keeping an eye on Sky Sports News’ relentless regurgitation of the day’s sporting stories finally received the news they so craved. Tony Fernandes had completed his takeover of the club.
Fernandes is taking on the 66% share formerly held by Flavio Briatore and Bernie Ecclestone. His inaugural news conference in the press area at Loftus Road was a triumphant affair, as the softly-spoken Malaysian announced that he would become QPR chairman, with the man on his left-hand side, Amit Bhatia, returning to his former position as vice-chairman. The glorious return of Bhatia to the R’s board, where he acquired a reputation as the only member of the Rangers ownership structure intent on building bridges with fans, was certainly very comforting indeed.
Neil Warnock, meanwhile, looked serene sat next to the men whose respective arrival and return should see his odds of being the Premier League’s next managerial casualty lengthen substantially. The messages being flagged up by the Sky presenters were endlessly positive and enthusiastic; this could be to QPR supporters what the fall of the Berlin Wall was to millions of suffocated Germans. For the past few weeks positivity has all but disappeared, to be replaced by desperation, intrigue and downright misery. Soaring season ticket costs and constant snubs to loyal supporters by shareholders intent on running the club their way without due to regard for the needs of anyone else have long seen Loftus Road’s buoyant, raucous atmosphere disappear.
Under the reign of Gianni Paladini, Briatore and Ecclestone QPR was transformed from a respected football club which had been through desperately dark days into an arrogant laughing stock, apparently nonchalant about breaking the rules of the game. In their first full season in charge they jacked up the ticket prices, then when gates fell they attempted to make-up the shortfall by increasing them again in mid-September contrary to league rules. Fortunately the first opponents to be affected, Derby County, cried foul and they relented. Last season’s farce over the transfer of Alejandro Faurlin has been mentioned often enough.
The next crisis was only ever around the corner. This summer, with promotion confirmed, Briatore, Ecclestone and Paladini tried to extract even more of the hard-earned money of QPR supporters and test their loyalty once again with another big price rise. Many were unable to meet this disgustingly unfair challenge, and this decision led to a crowd of just 15,000 against Bolton Wanderers on the opening day; nothing short of humiliating for a recently-promoted side who ought to have been on top of the world. Fandom under the previous regime was what I imagine living in Mao’s China must have been like – unable to find out the real truth behind all the propaganda, but with an innate knowledge of a perpetual catastrophe unfolding before your eyes. Now QPR have the chance to become a real football club again, and it is an opportunity we must not waste.
Back in 2003, on what I must describe as one of the best nights of my life, QPR defeated Oldham Athletic 1-0 at Loftus Road thanks to a strike from Paul Furlong. The atmosphere during and after the game was electric - euphoria was pervasive across the ground, and the successes of that night were shared by all; from the board, to the manager, to the players and finally the jubilant fans. Last season saw stability returned to Rangers like a long lost friend, and trust placed in a manager whose experience at Championship level was unquestionable. Sensible signings were made, and the R’s duly progressed to the Premier League as Champions. One hopes we can now achieve that stability and success for a third time.
To put it bluntly, any new investors in the club looking to follow on from Briatore and Ecclestone could immediately appear as saintly, untainted beings, no matter how heinous their previous exploits might have been. There is no evidence that Fernandes has such a previous record, and he has done everything right so far. However, he has yet to be tested by the intense demands of Premier League football, which will attack both Fernandes’ patience, and his wallet. Signings must be made, for there is no way the R’s will stay up without proper investment and a squad fit for purpose. If I could speak to the Team Lotus owner for a few fleeting moments, I would offer him four sound pieces of advice to ensure the continuation of the ‘saviour’ tag which he has thus far enjoyed.
First of all would be to back Warnock’s judgement on players. The QPR boss knows the sort of player he wants, and marquee signings are all well and good for the club’s reputation, but worthless if they don’t fit in to the Warnock school of getting things done.
Secondly, Fernandes could repair a great deal of the damage done to the standing of the Loftus Road ownership structure by apologising to fans for the misdemeanours of the previous regime. Whilst he has tried to distance himself from criticising Ecclestone and Briatore, the longer the legitimate grievances of R’s fans remain unacknowledged, the harder they will be to erase.
Thirdly Fernandes has to deliver on his promises of stability; that means resisting the temptation to fire Warnock when, inevitably, the R’s are struggling and racking up defeats during the long, harsh winter.
Fourth, he has to find a sponsor, repair the club’s damaged image and make Queens Park Rangers Football Club an institution people are prepared to put money into, as well as finally putting shirts on sale. Enough revenue has already been lost, and the honeymoon period that will follow his arrival for some weeks is an ideal time to flog replica kits.
Whatever he does, he should never, ever try and make the club into something it isn’t. We will never be a boutique ‘brand’; it is a family club, with excellent community links and a proud tradition of loyal support through thick and thin. This is what Fernandes will have to build on, as he tries to bring the QPR back to the people who were chased away and pushed out of their football club by owners motivated by greed alone. We had better just hope this isn’t another false dawn, for Rangers supporters have been conned before with big ideas and high-profile takeovers before.
Tweet or follow @chriskking