5 QPR players are currently set to exit Loftus Road in 2026 - £30k-a-week star features | OneFootball

Steve Cook is among five players that are currently out of contract in the summer of 2026 at Queens Park Rangers.

When the turn of the year comes, out of contract players in the EFL will be able to negotiate a pre-contract agreement with clubs abroad - and Queens Park Rangers currently have seven players heading for the exit door as it currently stands.

As was the case with former Championship winger Tyrhys Dolan last summer, who joined Espanyol on a free transfer from Blackburn Rovers, the Hoops will be hoping to avoid any unwelcome surprises in the second-half of this campaign.

In order to do so, QPR’s attentions, at least within the club’s hierarchy, should soon be turning to those players that are currently set to depart Loftus Road on free transfers this summer.

Among them is former AFC Bournemouth and Nottingham Forest centre-back Steve Cook, but Julien Stephan will also have the headache of six others players currently heading for the door, aside from loanee Rhys Norrington-Davies, who is spending the season in west London on a temporary basis following a move from Sheffield United.

FLW takes a look through the FIVE players who are currently set to depart QPR next summer if no expiring contracts are signed between now and then.

Paul Nardi

31-year-old French goalkeeper Paul Nardi began his season on the bench at QPR behind Joe Walsh, but after the latter conceded 11 goals in four league matches, the former Monaco shot-stopper was brought back into the fold by his countryman Julien Stephan.

However, in their final game before the international break and after a run of defeats, the R's head coach again changed his mind and brought the experienced Ben Hamer in for Nardi for a goalless draw against Sheffield United at Bramall Lane.

Nardi has not really been done any favours at QPR by his compatriot Stephan, despite the two being at Rennes together in the mid-2010’s, and it does appear as though the former France youth international may head for the exit door in the summer - Transfermarkt suggests his contract expires then despite the club not officially announcing how long his deal was for when he arrived in 2024.

Steve Cook

A part of Eddie Howe’s magnificent Bournemouth side through the 2010’s, helping the Cherries gain promotions from both League One and the Championship before establishing himself as a Premier League centre-back, Steve Cook made close to 400 appearances across all competitions for the south coast club.

He then helped Nottingham Forest win the Championship play-offs in 2022 before becoming a key man under the management of Marti Cifuentes at QPR, helping them twice steer themselves clear of danger and into the middle-of-the-table.

He remains a regular starter at the back for an inconsistent R’s side but, now at the age 34, the Hastings-born centre-back - who is estimated by Capology to be on £30,000 a week - is just a few months away from the expiry of his contract with no new deal yet signed - could it be his last year at the club?

Ziyad Larkeche

Another defender that is currently heading out of the door at Loftus Road is left-back Ziyad Larkeche, who joined QPR from fellow west Londoners Fulham back in 2023.

Having spent time on loan in League One with Barnsley before his move to QPR, Larkeche has failed to ever make a lasting mark on the first-team with the R’s, spending last season out on loan in the Scottish Premiership with Dundee.

The 23-year-old six-cap France U20 international is another player who is yet to play a single minute or feature in a matchday squad for QPR so far this season, having suffered a knee injury in training all the way back in August, and he may go the entire campaign without appearing for the Hoops.

Isaac Hayden

Isaac Hayden came through the academy at Arsenal but has spent the vast majority of his career in the north east with Newcastle United, making 171 appearances for the Magpies from 2016 to 2025.

Having spent time out on loan at Norwich City, Standard Liege and Portsmouth, as well as with QPR in the second-half of the 2023/24 campaign, he finally departed St. James' Park after an agreement was made to cancel his contract, and as a free agent, he ended up back at Loftus Road.

With the likes of Nicolas Madsen and Jonathan Varane generally ahead of him in the pecking order, Hayden has been somewhat of a bit-part player for Stephan so far, with the 30-year-old defensive midfielder having only signed a season-long contract in August - he will need to do and show a bit more to get that deal extended.

Paul Smyth

Versatile and reliable attacker Paul Smyth, who has won 21 caps for Northern Ireland, initially joined QPR in 2017 from Linfield before loan stints at Accrington Stanley, Wycombe Wanderers and Charlton Athletic.

Having crossed the capital city on a permanent deal for Leyton Orient in 2021, Smyth returned to QPR in 2023 and has gone on to be in and out of the starting 11 under different managers, but he is certainly a useful, versatile player for Stephan to have at his disposal.

It was reported back in May that the 28-year-old was offered an extended deal despite having over a year left on his current three-year contract, but that has seemingly remained unsigned for now - could Smyth test the waters of free agency come the summer?