Chris Ramsey has emerged as a serious candidate to get the manager’s job at Queens Park Rangers until the end of the season, after impressing since taking over from Harry Redknapp last week.
Ramsey led the club to their first away points of the Premier League season on Tuesday night with the 2-0 win at Sunderland, which was clearly a feather in his cap. But the favourable impression that he has created runs deeper than one result, with the players having bought into his ideas on the training pitch and the team looking organised in matches.
QPR had been expected to appoint Tim Sherwood, who has been out of work since his departure from Tottenham Hotspur at the end of last season, but the talks broke down, leaving the chairman, Tony Fernandes, to he thought he had secured an alternative, somebody that he described as his “dream manager”. He added that it might “take a while”.
At a time where there are few, readily available, full-time options for the post, the interim appointment of Ramsey has come under consideration. The 52-year-old has made it clear that he would like to get the job and, at the very least, he might be the man to buy some time for Fernandes to secure this “dream” appointment.
Paul Clement, the Real Madrid assistant manager, is on Fernandes’ radar but he has said that his immediate focus is on finishing the season at the Santiago Bernabéu Stadium. Clement has family ties to QPR, with his father, Dave, having played for the club. Fernandes is due in London before the middle of next week, when he will continue his hands-on work in the process.
Michael Laudrup has ruled himself out of the running, having briefly been installed as the bookmakers’ favourite for the job, after bets were placed on him. The former Swansea City manager, who has also been linked to the Japan national team, is under contract at Lekhwiya in Qatar.
“It is always positive to be linked with big jobs and taking over one of the biggest teams in Asia [Japan] or QPR are big jobs,” Laudrup said. “But, having said that, I would also like to say that I have no intention to leave Lekhwiya at the moment.
“We are top of the league and are starting the group phase of the Champions League in two weeks. We also have the cup coming up so the next three and a half months will be very exciting and intense and I don’t want to miss out on that.”
QPR also announced on Wednesday that midfielder Leroy Fer sustained a medial collateral ligament injury to his left knee during the club’s 2-0 away win at Sunderland.
Fer, who scored in the game on Tuesday night, could be up for up to 10 weeks with the injury with teammate Joey Barton tweeting his support: “Gutted for Leroy. He’s been great since he came in. Great lad. Big loss for us. But again another opportunity for someone to step up.”
