QPR backed to beat Rangers & Celtic to Sheffield Wednesday transfer - "we're an attractive club" | OneFootball

QPR have been backed to beat a number of Premier League clubs to the signing of one of Sheffield Wednesday's best players...

QPR's goalkeeper situation is something they are likely to want to address this summer, with Ben Hamer making seven appearances while Paul Nardi and Joe Walsh have shared the rest of the games.

Walsh is only a young goalkeeper at 24 and could yet develop, but he has struggled somewhat. Per FotMob's Goals Prevented data, only three goalkeepers have had worse seasons. The QPR man has a -6.5 figure in that respect and it's no surprise they have been linked with other options.

Cardiff City and QPR both want Pierce Charles, as Football League World exclusively revealed. The 20-year-old is a former Man City academy product and has been with Sheffield Wednesday for a few years now, but this has been his breakthrough season despite some fitness struggles.

In the last two years before 2025/26, Charles had made 15 appearances for the Owls. He has 20 games under his belt this term, which would have been much more were it not for shoulder injuries keeping him out. That said, it is clear to see why Championship and Premier League clubs are eyeing Charles.

The QPR view of signing Pierce Charles from Sheffield Wednesday

There have also been links to Celtic and Rangers, with talkSPORT reporting that the pair of Scottish giants are monitoring his situation. But Charles is certainly on QPR’s radar, even if they’re likely to face competition from a lot of clubs for the young Northern Ireland international.

We asked FLW's QPR fan pundit, Louis Moir, about QPR convincing Charles to come to Loftus Road and play regular first-team football, and how much of a boost would he provide in between the sticks. We asked if they have any chance of landing a deal this summer.

Louis told FLW: "I think we've shown in the past that we can beat so called 'bigger clubs' to signing players of quality. When there were rumours of Kwame Poku and Richard Kone, I'm convinced other clubs would have been closely looking at them.

"Same with Ronnie Edwards, for example, as well. With what we have going on at QPR, it's an attractive club to join and you can see why younger players especially would want to take up that opportunity.

"If we were to sign Charles up from Sheffield Wednesday, he is a top keeper right now. Even so young, he's a very good talent. Again, it would be one of these signings that maybe Sheffield Wednesday fans especially would not see happening with him coming to us.

"But why not? We've shown we can sign these high calibre players. We also desperately need a new number one.

"If it's true, I'm sure the club would try and convince him to join. Potentially, I don't see why we are out of it completely if there are other big clubs in for him, that's for sure."

QPR may have serious potential in 2026/27 if they can land Pierce Charles

Louis then explained his feelings if more players like Charles join QPR this summer, adding: "I'd say there's a fairly good chance we could end up signing him. He's a top goalkeeper. Sheffield Wednesday fans are saying that he'll probably end up in the Premier League or at a bigger club than us.

"I'm sure people would've said that about other signings in the past. So, yeah, it would be really exciting. I think, so far, the season's not already done and we're being linked with players like him and Harry Amass.

"If these are the players we obviously need in the missing positions, then they are in key areas. If we were to fill those key areas with players like that, I don't see why we can't kick on next season with this current crop of players we've got.

"We just need to add a few that we are missing and we'll be looking at a really good position. That's why Charles would be an excellent signing. To have him in goal, well, it would be 10 times the upgrade on what we've currently got."

There is likely going to be top flight English competition for Charles' services now Wednesday are set to be a League One club. West Ham were keen last summer, whilst BlueCo-owned Strasbourg were also lurking and submitted a bid in January that was snubbed.

If QPR were able to land Charles this summer, it would be a significant coup, but Wednesday may be able to start an auction for the stopper's services if there's enough interest.