Rangers axe Holloway and turn to McClaren
Ian Holloway has lost his job as QPR manager.
The club confirmed Holloway’s departure on Thursday afternoon and want Steve McClaren to take over at Loftus Road.
Holloway, who was in his second spell as Rangers boss, had a year left on his contract.
He succeeded Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink in November 2016 and this season guided QPR to a 16th-placed finish.
The former R’s midfielder, who also managed the club between 2001 and 2006, fulfilled his brief in terms of stabilising them in the Championship on a reduced budget and bringing in younger players.
But his managerial style caused consternation among the Rangers hierarchy, who have long been minded to make a change at the end of the campaign.
In a club statement announcing the news, director of football Les Ferdinand said: “We would like to place on record our sincere thanks to Ian for all his efforts.
“His enthusiasm and passion for the club can never be questioned and we are immensely grateful to him for helping us during his time here.
“He will always be welcomed back to Loftus Road with open arms.”
Former England boss McClaren is well respected at QPR, having had a brief spell on the coaching staff in 2013 during Harry Redknapp’s time in charge.
He left for the first of two spells in charge at Derby. He has also managed Newcastle, Middlesbrough, Nottingham Forest, FC Twente and Wolfsburg.
McClaren established himself as a coach during a highly successful stint as Sir Alex Ferguson’s assistant at Manchester United, prior to which he worked under former QPR manager Jim Smith at Oxford United.
11/05/2018 @ 9:53 am
”We played better and more attractive football than seen in years”, maybe at home but away and in the cups we are still shocking. I like Olly but his tinkering with a winning team just for the sake of it was very annoying and costly
11/05/2018 @ 9:17 am
So everyone loves Olly now he’s been sacked?!
I was always a fan and after hearing him speak about the club at a breakfast event there was blown away by his enthusiasm. He was trying to build something at QPR, to restore some pride in the badge and he hasn’t been allowed to.
Instead we appoint a known failure for instant gratification who won’t last more than two years.
That’s modern football I suppose.
11/05/2018 @ 7:08 am
This season made my dreams come true. No relegation – we were safe relatively early. Older player on high wages left. Younger players coming in – Eze, Smyth, Samuel, Furlong etc. And best of all, we played better and more attractive football than seen in years
10/05/2018 @ 6:49 pm
I had mixed feelings about Olly coming back, probably because I knew they’d disgrace themselves by sacking him again. What more could he have done? We played better football than under Hasselbaink who had Chery etc. We avoided the relegation dogfight. We finished 16th with probably about the 16th best group of players and we were looking to the future. My club upsets and embarrasses me over and over again. I wish Olly all the very best in his recuperation from his latest bereavement. His remembrance of his and Super Ray’s goals in that win over Spurs will always bring a tear to my eye. Thanks Olly.