QPR future not at risk – Fernandes

Tony Fernandes insists QPR have made strides towards long-term security, despite relegation from the Premier League and the prospect of a Financial Fair Play (FFP) fine.

The QPR chairman is confident the club are in a better position than when they dropped out of the top flight two years ago, with that experience forming part of a steep learning curve.

A penalty of up to £58million is hanging over the club following FFP breaches in the 2013-14 Championship promotion season, with legal proceedings having been undertaken to challenge the sanction.

But Fernandes is feeling optimistic about QPR’s future both off the field and on it.

“We’ve always been chasing and desperate to get back up, but this time we will just stick to our guns and get players who have longer-term vision,” Fernandes told The Guardian. 

“We’ll see how it goes from there. We’re feeling good, actually. It’s strange. We feel like after four years we are finally in the groove.

“Last time we went down I was a lot more tense about it. I was worried about a lot of things. And yet we still got through it, we got back up.

“This time we go down in a much stronger position, with a better structure in place and better solutions to pursue with what we want to do in the long term.”

Fernandes also revealed that most of the squad had relegation clauses inserted into their contracts, which will enable Chris Ramsey – who is expected to be appointed head coach on a permanent basis – to work within a reduced playing budget more effectively.