Football League World
·2 August 2025
QPR will always wince at £100k-a-week signing that made only 10 apps

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Yahoo sportsFootball League World
·2 August 2025
The signing of Christopher Samba proved a disaster for QPR
QPR’s brief return to the Premier League from 2011 to 2023 saw the club spend a lot of money very unwisely and perhaps there is no better example than the arrival of Christopher Samba.
The centre-back left English football with a strong reputation, having been a key player for Blackburn Rovers prior to his move to Anzhi Makhachkala in a big money move.
But his time in Russia was short-lived, with it being reported that he made the move back to England with a switch to QPR in a £12.5 million deal, which also saw him paid £100,000 per week.
The defender arrived in the 2013 January transfer window, with the London outfit struggling for their survival in the Premier League.
It was hoped that his quality and experience could help Harry Redknapp’s team avoid the drop into the Championship, but they ultimately finished 20th in the table.
Samba made the move to Loftus Road with QPR sitting bottom of the table after 24 fixtures, having earned just 16 points.
Redknapp had taken over in November of that season, but the team was still struggling for form, and thus they utilised the January market to boost their survival chances.
Samba was one of several additions in the winter market, with Loic Remy, Jermaine Jenas, Seok-yeong Yun, Andros Townsend and Tal Ben Haim all arriving at Loftus Road as well.
But it was the £100k per week salary that the centre-back reportedly received that saw him stand out, especially as he had been a top performer for Blackburn over six seasons earlier in his career.
Samba had 161 appearances in the English top flight prior to his arrival at Loftus Road, but he managed just 10 games for QPR.
It was a disastrous spell for the club, and they were ultimately unable to turn around their form for the second half of the campaign.
Samba made his debut in a 0-0 draw with Norwich City on 2 February 2013, but that was the only clean sheet the Hoops kept with him in the team during his time at the club.
The now 41-year-old was dropped by the end of the campaign, missing their last four fixtures, including not featuring when their relegation was confirmed with a 0-0 draw against Reading.
QPR’s spending in the transfer market through this period was quite poor, with Samba being just the best example in a string of bad moves.
That he was also given a £100,000-a-week salary on top of the £12.5 million deal to sign him was just the cherry on top of the whole move.
Samba swiftly left QPR after their relegation, which was the only saving grace to this potentially ruinous contract at that cost.
The centre-back moved back to Anzhi in the summer of 2013, and didn’t appear in English football again until his move to Aston Villa in February 2017.
The likes of Remy, Jenas and Ben Haim didn’t work out at QPR either, but it was Samba that stands out to this day as the ultimate flop from the club’s return to the Premier League from 2011 to 2013.