x

McCarthy: QPR Are the Team to Beat - Ipswich Town News

Boss Mick McCarthy believes Saturday’s opponents QPR will be the team to beat in this year’s Championship. The Blues manager expects last year’s three relegated Premier League sides — Rangers, Wigan and Reading — all to be contenders come May.

He says QPR ought to be right up there with the players that they have: "Very much so. They’re arguably the best squad, although some might argue that Reading, Wigan, Bolton, Nottingham Forest also seem to be putting good squads together.

"And, of course, in Harry Redknapp they’ve got arguably the best manager, the most experienced.

"I’m not saying the most experienced of the Championship, but he has the most experience in all his dealings wherever he’s been. And he’s been very good at it, Harry.

"You’ve got to put them as one of the favourites to get promoted, but that doesn’t mean to say that they can’t get beaten on Saturday.”

Despite the likes of Scott Parker being linked with moves to Loftus Road, McCarthy says he’s not jealous of Redknapp’s far greater spending power: "Scott isn’t going to make it any worse, that’s for sure. I think he’ll enhance any squad.

"My job is my job and I love doing it. There’s no point in being envious because it doesn’t get you anything.

"Harry will be under more pressure than some of the rest of us to get to where everyone wants to get to, back to the Premier League, because of the squad he’s got.

"With that squad you’ll get pressure, but we’re all under it. There’ll be some of the lads at the bottom of the league at the end of the season who will be under pressure and they won’t have anywhere near the squads of Wigan, Reading and QPR.

"We’ll see, but I just think they’ve got everything there that can get them promoted.”

The Town boss says the relegated sides could make up the top three this season and expects to see them all in the top six at the very least: "I think so.

"It would appear to me that it hit QPR harder than anybody at the time when they were going down because of the money that they’ve spent.

"But they’ve started well and it doesn’t appear to me that there are too many negative stories coming out of there. OK, some players will leave, but they seem to have plenty of money to replace them.”

What to read next:

[Podcast] The Naked Football Show - Listen Again
This week's Naked Football Show is now available online.
Luongo Out For Season With Ruptured ACL
Former Town midfielder Massimo Luongo, now with Millwall, has been ruled out for the rest of the season having ruptured the ACL in his right knee.
On-Loan Boatswain Red-Carded
On-loan Town striker Ashley Boatswain was sent off as Woking beat Fulham’s U21s 2-0 in the National League Cup last night.
Ipswich Town 0-3 Charlton Athletic - Highlights
Highlights of last night’s 3-0 home defeat to Charlton Athletic.
Jones: Proud of Performance
Charlton Athletic boss Nathan Jones said he was proud of his side’s performance following their 3-0 victory over the Blues at Portman Road.
Young: Changes Will Be Talked About But It's a Squad Game
Town full-back Ashley Young has dismissed suggestions that seven changes to the Blues’ starting XI was a step too far after the 3-0 defeat to Charlton Athletic at Portman Road.
McKenna: Our Reaction Was Nowhere Near Good Enough
Boss Kieran McKenna admitted the Blues’ 3-0 home defeat to Charlton Athletic was a “terrible result” and that his team’s reaction to going behind was “nowhere near good enough”.
Palmer Set For Scans
Town boss Kieran McKenna says keeper Alex Palmer will undergo scans on the injury which forced him off in the first half of this evening’s 3-0 home defeat to Charlton.
Ipswich Town 0-3 Charlton Athletic- Player Ratings and Reports
If you saw the match, please give us your player ratings and a mini match report.
Ipswich Town 0-3 Charlton Athletic - Match Report
Town suffered their biggest home Championship loss since April 2018 as newly promoted Charlton Athletic netted three times in the second half to shock the Blues 3-0. The home side had been the better side in the first half, albeit with the visitors having two of the period’s three best chances, but the Blues fell apart in the second after Sonny Carey had given the Addicks the lead on 52 with Macaulay Gillesphey and Miles Leaburn adding goals on 55 and 64 to inflict the Town’s first Portman Road defeat of the season and their biggest Championship loss on their own turf since the 4-0 loss to Aston Villa more than seven years ago.