Couldn’t agree more about Claridge on 5live xtra last night. He certainly does appear biased against QPR. I noted down some of the things that he said; they’re not precise quotes but near enough:
• QPR haven’t got where they are because of a "team ethic"
• One player has got them where they are
• Following Nigel Adderley’s praise of a decent passage of play from Rangers, Claridge was dismissive of their “Tippy Tappy” football
• The quality is not good in the Championship this year – you can go on a bad run and still be in it
• There are no quality teams like Newcastle and WBA in the Championship this year
• Adderley praised Rangers’ defensive record and Claridge was straight back at him saying that the defence wasn’t that great, merely that the Rs keep possession well; Adderly compared them to Swansea here
• Taarabt is on the left because QPR can’t “carry him” in midfield
• Adderley remarked that Warnock had spent wisely and Claridge rounded on him, saying QPR were the biggest spenders in the division and could afford the luxury of getting Premiership players on big wages, whereas teams like Reading had to trawl the lower divisions
• When Routledge scored, Claridge cited that as proof of his point: that QPR are only where they are because they can afford Premiership wages; having this financial clout was the reason why QPR are top.
The positive impact of Neil Warnock on the club was not mentioned; conspicuous by its absence perhaps.
Does Claridge have some "history" with Warnock, I wonder?
Of course, none of this matters but it is intriguing and symptomatic of some issues that Claridge has with the Rs but cannot openly articulate.
(FakenhamRanger)
• QPR haven’t got where they are because of a "team ethic"
• One player has got them where they are
• Following Nigel Adderley’s praise of a decent passage of play from Rangers, Claridge was dismissive of their “Tippy Tappy” football
• The quality is not good in the Championship this year – you can go on a bad run and still be in it
• There are no quality teams like Newcastle and WBA in the Championship this year
• Adderley praised Rangers’ defensive record and Claridge was straight back at him saying that the defence wasn’t that great, merely that the Rs keep possession well; Adderly compared them to Swansea here
• Taarabt is on the left because QPR can’t “carry him” in midfield
• Adderley remarked that Warnock had spent wisely and Claridge rounded on him, saying QPR were the biggest spenders in the division and could afford the luxury of getting Premiership players on big wages, whereas teams like Reading had to trawl the lower divisions
• When Routledge scored, Claridge cited that as proof of his point: that QPR are only where they are because they can afford Premiership wages; having this financial clout was the reason why QPR are top.
The positive impact of Neil Warnock on the club was not mentioned; conspicuous by its absence perhaps.
Does Claridge have some "history" with Warnock, I wonder?
Of course, none of this matters but it is intriguing and symptomatic of some issues that Claridge has with the Rs but cannot openly articulate.
(FakenhamRanger)
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