QPR laughed to the bank at Crystal Palace transfer decision | OneFootball

QPR's decision to buy Jordon Mutch in 2014 wasn't as bad as Crystal Palace's deal for the same player

QPR made a small loss on the fee they paid to sign Jordon Mutch but they will be glad to have made what they did in comparison to Crystal Palace.

The London outfit reportedly agreed a £6 million fee for the midfielder when he made the switch to Loftus Road in August 2014.

The then 22-year-old joined following the Hoops’ promotion to the Premier League in what was a busy summer for Harry Redknapp’s side.

Mutch was one of five big name permanent additions, along with Steven Caulker, Leroy Fer, Sando and Alex McCarthy.

Loan deals for Mauricio Isla, Jack Robinson and Eduardo Vargas showed that QPR were keen to bolster their squad in a bid to survive in the top flight.

But Mutch lasted just nine games and four months in the side before making the move to Selhurst Park in January 2015.

Jordon Mutch’s disastrous Crystal Palace stint

Mutch was unable to nail down a place as a key part of Redknapp’s first team squad in the first half of the 2014/15 campaign.

The midfielder started six of his nine appearances, with the team picking up just 10 points from those fixtures, while he contributed just one assist.

A 2-1 loss to Arsenal on 26 December proved to be his final time in the starting lineup, as he made the move to Crystal Palace in the following weeks.

It was reported that the Eagles paid £4.75 million to secure his signature, which meant that QPR made a minor loss on the player after four months.

The Hoops were still in the fight to stay in the top flight, sitting one point away from safety on 28 January when Mutch confirmed his move to Crystal Palace.

There were only four points between the two teams, but the midfielder continued to struggle for regular minutes even with the move to a club 13th in the standings when he arrived.

QPR were ultimately relegated, but they took some solace from the fact that Mutch never got going at Selhurst Park.

He made a total of 27 league appearances in his first 18 months with the London outfit, starting on only 11 occasions.

Jordon Mutch’s fall from grace at Crystal Palace

While he made 20 appearances in the Premier League during the 2015/16 campaign, he fell way down the pecking order in the subsequent season and was loaned out in January after playing just four times in the top flight.

But his time at Reading didn’t fare much better, as he still struggled for regular game time even with the step down to the Championship.

The now 34-year-old featured nine times for the Royals as they earned a third place finish in the table, narrowly missing out on promotion with a play-off final loss on penalties to Huddersfield Town.

But Mutch didn’t even appear in their play-off run, and his last appearance was a 52-minute start in a 7-1 loss to Norwich City on 8 April 2017.

This was the last time he played in English football, as his decline continued without any turnaround.

He again was loaned out in 2018, signing for the Vancouver Whitecaps, where he made 18 appearances.

This ended his time at Crystal Palace, who failed to recoup any of the £4.75 million they paid to sign him.