QPR can entice world's best now, says Mark Hughes
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Your support makes all the difference.After a manic two weeks of transfer dealings at Loftus Road, manager Mark Hughes is convinced that the team he has built now offer a "great option" for some of the world's best talent, something inconceivable just months ago.
QPR have looked far and wide across Europe's top leagues for their crop of players, bringing in a mixture of experience and raw potential to bolster a squad that narrowly avoided relegation last term. Their 12 acquisitions were one of the biggest stories of the transfer window, not merely because of the number of signings, but rather the magnitude of international quality for a side that were playing in front of an average gate of 12,700 just two seasons ago.
The raid of Premier League title winners Jose Bosingwa and Park Ji-sung will give the back line and engine a much-needed facelift, while Junior Hoilett's transfer from Blackburn, despite interest from elsewhere, surprised many.
To call it a day there would have left fans with a feeling of real progression, but the capture of Champions League winning goalkeeper Julio Cesar on Thursday, followed shortly by the arrival of Real Madrid midfielder Esteban Granero, has brought excitement levels in W12 to a new high. Hughes believes this new-found attractiveness is testament to the work he has done this summer, giving the club no limits in going forward.
"What we are doing at QPR is having an impact on players," Hughes said. "It is probably true to say that if we had approached certain players three or four months ago about joining the club, the suggestion wouldn't have been entertained. But people now know we are serious and we are trying to do something different here."
The Welshman, in charge for nearly 10 months, now has the difficult task of gelling together a squad that has a wealth of top-flight familiarity and honours. At an average age of 27, Rangers' signings have cost the club around £20m, something Hughes believes sends a loud message to targeted players.
"That message is out there now which is why we are able to sit in front of quality players and, once we are given that opportunity, we feel we have a good story to tell them. That's why players are deciding that QPR is a great option."
QPR summer buys
Robert Green (West Ham, free)
Julio Cesar (Internazionale, free)
Sam Magri (Portsmouth, free)
Ryan Nelsen (Tottenham, free)
Fabio da Silva (Man United, loan)
Jose Bosingwa (Chelsea, free)
Stéphane Mbia (Marseilles, to be confirmed)
Park Ji-sung (Man United, £2m)
Esteban Granero (Real Madrid, £9m)
Samba Diakité (Nancy, £3.5m)
Andrew Johnson (Fulham, free)
Junior Hoilett (Blackburn, free)
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