QPR set for 'new beginning' if mega-rich trio flex some muscle

EVEN in the good old days, when Stan Bowles and Gerry Francis were lighting up Loftus Road with their fancy feet and feathery mullets, it was hard to imagine Queens Park Rangers ever stealing top billing from the Olympic Games.

But, as the new season looms and the sporting project hailed by QPR chairman Flavio Briatore as Europe’s most exciting moves into its next phase, the buzz around Shepherd’s Bush could power the floodlights.

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The installation of Rangers as pre-season favourites for promotion owes more to the personnel in the boardroom than the dressing room.

They are dubbed the world’s richest club thanks to the spending power of owners Briatore, Bernie Ecclestone and Bhatia’s father-in-law Lakshmi Mittal, Britain’s richest man.

Everton chairman Bill Kenwright claimed this week that a club must find a billionaire backer if they want to reach the Champions League. Well, Rangers have two - Mittal (£27.7bn) and Ecclestone (£2.4bn) plus Briatore’s £120million, although the message from the owners is all about unhurried growth and promotion to the Barclays Premier League in ‘three to five years’.

For vice-chairman Amit Bhatia, the anticipation is so great he has delayed a trip to Beijing to see the new campaign kick off against Barnsley.

‘This is a new beginning for QPR,’ he declared from the Mayfair offices of his investment company.

‘Our involvement began in the second half of last season but this is our first full season. It is a completely new club. We have strengthened our squad and we have great hopes this will be a great season for us.’

‘Like any other fan, I wish we will be promoted next season,’ said Bhatia.

‘But to make it in one year would be unrealistic and unsustainable. We would not be building the club on foundations that are solid. We are building from the ground up. That’s important.’

New sponsorship deals have been struck with Gulf Air and shirt manufacturers Lotto, a new badge unveiled and renovations made to Loftus Road aimed at improving hospitality boxes and opening a restaurant. New players have arrived and a partnership has been struck with Real Madrid which has seen their teenage midfielder Daniel Pajero arrive on loan.

‘Real Madrid president Ramon Calderon is a good friend of Flavio and of my father-in-law,’ explained Bhatia.

‘I have met him on numerous occasions and he invited us out to watch Real Madrid v Barcelona last season with him.’

The ability of QPR’s owners to strike such deals thanks to their A-list friends prompts questions about Iain Dowie’s role in the managerial process. Rumours are already swirling about a row between the former Charlton and Crystal Palace manager and Briatore.

At a glance, it looks like an argument waiting to happen - headstrong Brit with a lifetime in football v flamboyant Italian businessman with big plans for the club after great success in Formula One.

‘We all have an equal voice,’ said Bhatia.

‘We respect Iain’s opinion as our manager. When he makes a suggestion, everyone has to pay attention. When we have a recommendation, we go to him. We are very conscious of the fact that we employ professional football people who can make wiser decisions than us.

‘We realised we needed an English manager, someone who knew Championship
football because it is a unique division. We needed someone who had experience and success at this level.

'We had a series of conversations and we landed on Iain. It will be a great day for him when he takes charge of his first game against Barnsley.’