Everton vs. QPR: Q&A with QPR Report

We spoke to Mike who is doing a fantastic job over at QPR Report. Definitely stop by the site when you get a chance. I for one would love to see the R's back in the Premier League so that we can chat with Mike again!

RBM - QPR are 3rd in the Championship. How do fans feel about the chances of coming right back up to the Premier League?
QR - I think we have a reasonable chance of bouncing back: Our big budget; more players to come....(Now is it fair that clubs spend more than others; the whole parachute payment thing - I don't really think so. But that's for another day.).

RBM -  Harry Redknapp survived the drop with QPR. How is he perceived by the club's ownership?
QR -  I think our owners LIKE having a "big name" as manager; and certainly there are few names bigger than Redknapp. And in honesty, Redknapp although he failed to keep us up last season, has very much stabilized the club, getting rid of a lot of "undesired" players.  It wasn't beyond the realm of possibility that QPR would have kept plummeting straight through to Division III ("League One.") like Wolves.


RBM - How has the Joey Barton experiment been going? Has he been a distraction to the rest of the team?
QR - Personally I don't like him as an individual; and I don't like his tweeting. But THIS Season (so far) on the field, Joey Barton has been great - in the running for "Player of Year." And the very fact that he was even playing for QPR this season was quite a shock - including probably to him.  We won't talk of his first season at QPR which ended in THAT final game he got sent off at Manchester City, and got a TWELVE Match ban (which really didn't matter to QPR, because he was out on loan all of last season.)

RBM  - Who have been the best players on the pitch this season for The Hoops?
QR - Joey Barton and Charlie Austin! Add Rob Green and Richard Dunne and Clint Hill

RBM - What does the QPR youth setup look like? Any young players you expect  to see make the move up?
QR  - What's a "Youth Setup?" Sadly QPR don't do youth development! It's been many, many years that a QPR player have come through the youth set up and established himself in the QPR First team - Probably Richard Langley (who's now RETIRED from English football).
In truth, we did have a couple of youth players "taken" from us - Dean Parrett to Tottenham, and Raheem Sterling to that club, which I'm sure you'd rather I not mention! Hopefully that will now change (and we have a sparkly, shiny, state-of-the-art new Training ground on its way). But it's a long, long time, since QPR had 4 or 5 or 6 "Home Growns" in the QPR First team.

RBM - Finally, how about a score prediction for the Saturday game? Who do you expect to shine for either side?
QR - Like Everton, we'll be probably resting several players, including our first choice goalie, Rob Green and I imagine Charlie Austin. But I think you'll be seeing our highly-paid Brazilian International goalie making his first game of the season - and hopefully playing brilliantly as he and we seek someone to take him: Everton 5 QPR 0.

Thought Everton would struggle without David Moyes but doing great...Had some great games vs Everton in the past - Crushing you.. Being Crushed - at Loftus Road.. with Bob Latchford and Dave Thomas (sob!). Thanks and good luck (after today)!