Paul Clement has ruled himself out of the vacant managerial position at Queens Park Rangers and reaffirmed his commitment to Real Madrid, paving the way for Tim Sherwood to take up the reins at Loftus Road.
The highly regarded Clement, who has worked as Carlo Ancelotti’s No2 at Chelsea, Paris Saint-Germain and now at the Bernabéu, had featured on a three-man shortlist drawn up by the QPR hierarchy as they search for a successor to Harry Redknapp. The third name on the list, Steve McClaren, worked briefly as a coach at QPR last season but is intent on gaining promotion to the Premier League with Derby County and has no interest in the position.
Clement, whose father, Dave, featured in 472 league games for the west London club between 1965 and 1979, is forging a fine reputation within the game having coached some of the best players in the world over the past few years, helping to win domestic trophies in England, France and Spain as well as last season’s European Cup, and does aspire to manage in the future in his homeland. The QPR chairman, Tony Fernandes, has admired his progress from afar and was keen to interview the 43-year-old but Clement believes the timing is not right for a move.
“I’m very flattered to be linked with Queens Park Rangers, a club I supported as a young boy and for whom my dad played,” Clement told the Guardian. “It would be a real honour to manage that club at some point in the future. But, at this time, I’ve got no intention of leaving Real Madrid in mid-season.”
The Englishman, like Ancelotti, is contracted at the Bernabéu until the summer of 2016 with Real four points clear at the top of La Liga and still hoping to retain the Champions League.
McClaren laughed off links with the QPR job, pointing to his reaction to being mentioned in connection with the head coach’s post at Newcastle.
“I answered that a few weeks ago, and it is the same answer now,” McClaren said. “Nothing changes. We laugh it off and move on quick. So let’s focus and concentrate on the job in hand which is trying to get Derby County into the Premier League.”
Sherwood’s position is therefore effectively strengthened as talks continue with the former Tottenham Hotspur manager, who had come close to taking jobs at West Bromwich Albion and Crystal Palace this season.
His candidacy is being championed by Les Ferdinand, who was promoted to director of football on Wednesday and will wield a considerable influence in the appointment of Redknapp’s successor. The pair worked closely together at White Hart Lane last season.
No permanent appointment is expected before the weekend when Kevin Bond and Chris Ramsey will take charge of the team for Saturday’s game against Southampton, with input from Ferdinand in the standsas QPR seek a first win in eight games. Both Joe Jordan and Glenn Hoddle have left Loftus Road this week in the wake of Redknapp’s resignation.
