I’m writing this on the final day of the 2026 summer transfer window in a hopeful, as opposed to expectant, mood.
I’m honestly struggling to think of a City manager I’ve seen whose teams play better and more entertaining football than BBM’s does, he’s clearly recognised throughout the game as a very accomplished coach and, as of now, his record in terms of a win/loss ratio is up there with the best out of the managers we’ve had – what is there not to like?
Well, transfer windows under BBM have tended to be very dull. This is the third one and, to be fair, it could be said thatthere were mitigating circumstances with the first two. For example, he was newly in charge of a squad he rated for the first one and, as someone who extolled the virtues of a small squad, he was, understandably, reluctant to make wholesale changes.
Second time around, the reason for the tumbleweed nature of our January transfer window could be explained away by the term “if it ain’t broke don’t fix it’. We were top of the league, extending the lead over third place and generally playing well – steps were taken to strengthen us in the area where we were weakest, left back, and, besides bringing in a reserve goalkeeper, that was the end of our January business – in truth, you could understand the logic behind the thinking.
However, I can’t quite put my finger on why it should be, but I reckon the default setting for supporters of any side is that, although they may be running away with the league or are overwhelming favourites to win it, you still want to see your side bringing in one or two exciting new arrivals. The thing was though, at this new higher level, in a league often described as the most competitive in the world, we needed new players more than we did at any other time under BBM.
In the last three weeks or so, even BBM has acknowledged that we need reinforcements- especially with the number of injuries we’ve had at centreback. However, although there have been four signings made and all of them look to be good additions to the squad, it is a fact that two of the positions generally identified as areas of higher priority months ago are still not filled. A pacy winger and a striker to provide a rival to Yousef Salech were seen as desperately needed back in May and the general consensus is that, if there are two signings today, they will be in these positions.
A further potential problem though is that with somewhat contradictory claims by the manager and player as to where Krystian Bielik is to be primarily played, it might be that we still need a number six to challenge Alex Robertson in a role where he was, to some degree, responsible for both Sheffield United goals on Saturday..
Throw in rumours of someone coming in to provide cover for Perry Ng at right back and it may be we’re looking to make four signings today. Now, if that is really the case, then I’m afraid that, despite all of the talk about about there being no intention of making panic buys, and the quality over quantity talk, scrabbling about for four signings in the final hours of a window does strike me as a mite panicky. Mind you, if we do sign four today, one thing it won’t be is boring!
On to the quiz then, the answers to which will be posted on Thursday.
60s. From late November until into May in one season during this decade, four QPR players scored five league hat tricks between them. Can you identify the players from these clues. The scorer of the first two hat tricks had five other members of his close family (i.e. a brother, two sons and two nephews) who were professional footballers. The third hat trick was scored against the jacks with the scorer again having an unusual family related quirk – he later played for Spurs. I think the next hat trick scorer is the toughest to get of the four. He became a bit of a cult hero at Loftus Road when, as a central midfielder, he scored a hat trick of headers in a game against Hull – something that the Tigers’ prolific marksman at the time, Ken Wagstaff said he was incapable of matching. The hat trick scorer went on to play for Oldham, Reading, Luton and Cambridge United. The final hat trick was scored by a winger who had a family connection to another sport – he also had three separate spells with QPR.
70s.Honest, yet shady lawyer!
80s.Lad railing against his luck becomes international full back. (3,7)
90s. Forward impersonated by John Virgo!
00s. What has to be the most notorious second tier match of the 21st century featured a manager who would later take charge of QPR and two of its most prominent on field protagonists were a current manager who, for now, has a sort of connection with QPR I suppose. This bloke scored a great goal in this match and seemed to be a target for the opposition despite him not doing much wrong as far I could see. The other protagonist only made a fleeting appearance on the pitch as he seemed more intent on settling an old score with a member of the opposition and was red carded within a minute or two of coming on with his mission accomplished. This player never played for the club he represented that afternoon again, but he did turn up at QPR a few years later, playing around eighty times for them. Who was the future QPR manager, the current manager and the future QPR player?
10s. Currently strutting his stuff at the McLaren enclosed ground, his eighteen year career has included nineteen clubs from five countries as well as a year spent at his Majesty’s pleasure. Cardiff and QPR are among those nineteen clubs, but based on his stats, I’d say it was the wurzels who came the closest to seeing him fulfil his undoubted potential. Who am I describing?
20s. In a transfer that shows that City still haven’t fully got over their old problem of turning very promising teenagers into twenty something’s knocking on the first team door, Cody Twose made his debut for Haverfordwest yesterday on a season long loan in a 2-1 win over Trefelin in the Welsh Premier League. Twose almost scored in his one appearance for our first team in a League Cup tie with Southampton. Which current QPR player was making his debut for Southampton that evening?
