QPR should have attempted West Brom transfer hijack for Premier League player | OneFootball

Chris Mepham might prove to be a missed opportunity for the R's

Queens Park Rangers should have made a serious attempt to hijack West Bromwich Albion's transfer for Wales international defender Chris Mepham.

Prior to the Baggies switch, the 27-year-old had been at the Vitality Stadium since 2019, barring a loan move to Sunderland in 24/25, and made 121 appearances for the club across all competitions.

Mepham is the sixth summer signing for Ryan Mason's side and the fee paid to bring him to the West Midlands is reportedly believed to be around £1m.

The centre-back played 40 times in the second-tier last season (including playoffs), helping Sunderland get promoted to the Premier League - and perhaps he should've been on QPR's radar.

Queens Park Rangers are crying out for better centre-backs

By the end of the third matchday, QPR had conceded a whopping ten league goals, and they shipped in seven against Coventry City. That's even without mentioning letting in three against League One Plymouth Argyle in the Carabao Cup.

It's no surprise, then, that the R's have failed to keep a single clean sheet across any of their opening games - and it's clear their backline requires urgent attention.

Yes, Rhys-Norrington Davies has signed on loan from Sheffield United, but he's never played more than 28 league games in a season - and achieving that amount was in the National League with Barrow in 18/19.

While Steve Cook has been a reliable servant for the West London club since his arrival from Nottingham Forest in 2023, serious questions are being raised about whether the 34-year-old can continue to perform at Championship level.

Cook suffered a Plantar Fascia (foot) injury that sidelined him for several weeks last season in December, and ex-manager Marti Cifuentes admitted he was unsure whether Cook would feature again for the club in April as he was still struggling with it then.

Things don't get much better on the injury front with summer signing Amadou Mbengue. The 23-year-old Frenchman has suffered setbacks of his own - including a month-long knee injury when at Reading.

Chris Mepham is the bargain that got away for Queens Park Rangers

Mepham was part of a backline at Sunderland last season that managed 17 clean sheets, and he personally won 185 duels - 75 more than Steve Cook.

So, perhaps most frustrating for QPR is the modest fee involved in Mepham's transfer to The Hawthorns. The reported fee of £1m is very modest for a player of his quality and age in today's transfer market.

When considering Bournemouth originally paid £12m for his services from Brentford, this fee is a complete steal and a transfer Rangers should have hijacked.

Julien Stephan has, of course, spent quite heavily on attacking players this window, so there's no reason why he couldn't have put some of their funds towards quality central defenders as well.

Koki Saito re-joined the club after Mike McGrath reported QPR matched Derby County's bid for the 24-year-old Japanese winger, and Richard Kone was apparently signed for around the £3m mark.

Ultimately, these two signings do indicate that an offer for Mepham could have been tabled. Even though QPR were never officially linked with the Welshman, he might prove to be a missed opportunity if the R's defensive woes carry on.