Football League World
·31 July 2024
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·31 July 2024
FLW's QPR fan pundit is excited about the prospect of signing Sporting Gijon midfielder, Jonathan Varane.
This article is part of Football League World's 'Terrace Talk' series, which provides personal opinions from our FLW Fan Pundits regarding the latest breaking news, teams, players, managers, potential signings and more…
Queens Park Rangers look set to boost their midfield options ahead of the 2024/25 Championship campaign.
The Hoops have, so far, seen five new faces walk through the door as Marti Cifuentes builds his squad for his first full season in English football after taking over from Gareth Ainsworth last season.
Cifuentes is one of the hottest prospects in terms of current Championship managers, so QPR will be hopeful of a positive campaign. Last season was hugely disappointing as the West London club came rather close to suffering relegation to League One, but eventually Cifuentes steadied the ship and led them to a 17th-placed finish.
The Hoops have seen a number of players depart this summer, including the likes of Chris Willock, Andre Dozzell and Sinclair Armstrong, but Cifuentes is looking to reinforce his squad. A new central midfielder from the Spanish second division has been on his radar for a while, and it appears that a deal for said player is due to be finalised.
The half-brother of Champions League and World Cup winner Raphael, Jonathan Varane has been the subject of interest at Loftus Road in recent weeks. As per El Comercio, QPR have already seen a bid for the midfielder rejected, but that did not put an end to the pursuit.
Spanish outlet, Marca, have now reported that a deal, which could amount to a fee in the region of €1.5 million, is due to be agreed in the coming days between the Hoops and Varane's club, Sporting Gijon.
Marca revealed that Sporting Gijon had lowered their demands for the player, allowing QPR to swoop in. The 22-year-old is unknown in the English game, but he has lots of potential and also received interest from Ligue 2 Metz.
€1.5 million seems a sensible fee for a 22-year-old midfielder in today's market, so QPR may well end up having a bargain on their hands. They currently lack midfield options, so Varane will be welcomed with open arms.
As mentioned, the West London club are hoping for an improvement on last season, and with the new campaign fast approaching, it is key that Cifuentes has his squad set. Varane could be an important part of his plans, so he will want to get that deal concluded as soon as possible.
FLW's QPR fan pundit, Louis Moir, was full of praise for his club for identifying the midfielder and looking set to conclude a deal.
Speaking exclusively to Football League World, he said "I'm very excited by this signing. I've never heard of him, but after looking into him and seeing what he's about, you can't not be excited by him. It seems we've struck a very good deal; not overspent on him.
"He's only 22 aswell, which is massive, because if he reaches the potential he so-called has, he could be an unbelievable signing. We've lacked a midfielder that can drive with the ball, that sort of box-to-box midfielder, and after looking at him and watching videos on him, he looks exactly that.
"He just looks very all-rounded and that's something we've been missing for a few years really in midfield.
"We could argue that we may need one more [midfielder], but he looks very, very good. I'm really hoping it works out, and he settles in and adapts quickly, because if he does, I think we could have a real player on our hands.