ONTD FOOTBALL

SUNDAY 19 Oct: Redknapp rants about Taarabt after QPR lose to Liverpool

The former Tottenham boss slammed the 25-year-old after he was once again conspicuously absent from the QPR squad to face Liverpool at Loftus Road on Sunday

Harry Redknapp launched an astonishing attack on QPR misfit Adel Taarabt after his side were beaten 3-2 by Liverpool on Sunday, claiming that the Morocco international is “three stone overweight.”

Taarabt has played just 25 minutes of Premier League football this season and was missing from the squad for the clash with Brendan Rodgers’ side at Loftus Road.

When asked about the mercurial playmaker after the match, Redknapp claimed that the 25-year-old is both overweight and unfit, before slamming his attitude in a reserve match earlier this week.

“He [Taarabt] is not injured. He’s not fit,” he blasted. “He’s not fit to play football unfortunately. He played in a reserve game the other day and I could have run about more than he did. I can’t pick him.”

"I can't keep protecting people who don't want to run about and train, who are about three stone overweight. What am I supposed to keep saying, keep getting your 60, 70 grand a week but don't train?”

"What's the game coming to?”

Redknapp also challenged Taarabt to prove that he deserves a spot in his starting XI by excelling on the training field in the coming weeks.

“I pick people who want to try, who deserve to be at a good football club like QPR, who come in every day and want to work, train and show a good attitude,” he added. “When he starts doing that, if he ever can do it, maybe he’ll get a game.”

Two own goals, from Richard Dunne and Steven Caulker, plus a deflected Philippe Coutinho strike gave Liverpool victory in west London.




LATER IN THE EVENING: QPR owner Fernandes echoes Redknapp's comments on Taarabt, but later deletes his tweet




TUESDAY 21 Oct morning: Taarabt defends his fitness in an interview with photo receipts

‘He spends most of the time in his office but when he gets off the phone he comes down to watch for five or 10 minutes - he never takes a session,’ revealed Taarabt. ‘That’s when he said he had it in mind to start me against Liverpool.’
‘I am a professional - this is not about retaliation, this is about protecting my reputation,’ said Taarabt. ‘I played in that reserve game for 90 minutes and if he didn’t think I was running he could have taken me off. Maybe I didn’t perform like I could because it was a reserve team game and I was protecting myself.’

‘Just because we are losing games I am not going to kick the ball in the stands. My job is to create, bring goals to the team. Maybe he expects me to make more tackles. I am not this type of player. I can only get fitness playing Premier League. You can train six or seven hours, but you won’t be fit.’

Taarabt paints a picture of a chaotic training regime as QPR adjust to life back in the Barclays Premier League. When he arrives in west London for this interview straight after training on Monday, he announced his arrival by lifting his T-shirt. It has to be said he looks in good shape.



‘The training sessions aren’t the same standard as Milan, or what I would expect under another manager. They are not as intense, the players aren’t as motivated. It is the same as we used to do at Tottenham years ago. When we played West Ham he told the players “you’re not fit, you’re not this, you’re not that”.’

‘I said “but the problem is we don’t have any plan in the game, we don’t know how to press as a team. It’s not about just running around, you need to play with your brain”.’

‘I was thinking that West Ham didn’t have better players than us, but they were well organised.’

‘Almost every time we lose the ball the opposition score. We need to do something about it.

‘If you work as a team you run less. If somebody sprints 100 metres they play a triangle round him and you are never going to get the ball.

‘If everybody runs 10m, 10m, 10m, then you are in shape, but we never do that. He doesn’t understand that. The coaches don’t have any influence on Harry - none. They are there just to be there. Glenn Hoddle loves me, but I don’t know if Harry listens to him.

‘After West Ham he said all of the team is not fit. After Liverpool, because the performance was so good, he said everything was perfect - what, in one week, he changed the fitness? Impossible.’

Despite his exclusion on Sunday, he insists he has the backing of the club’s new director of football operations Les Ferdinand after talks between them last week.

Taarabt, 25, added: ‘I spoke with Les Ferdinand and he told me “what a player you are - you should be in the team every time. I followed you at Milan and you were fantastic”.

‘Les doesn’t speak to us in training, but he watches us and then goes to watch the kids as well. He knows me from my days at Tottenham so we have a good relationship.’

Redknapp insisted on Friday that Ferdinand has nothing to do with the first team. Although Ferdinand now attends first-team matches with chairman Tony Fernandes, the QPR manager says it is ‘a silly title’.

(more at the source)


IN THE AFTERNOON: Redknapp says Taarabt is the worst professional he has ever come aross

"The only reason he has lost weight is because he has had tonsillitis. That’s the only way we could get any weight off of him.”

“He is not fit to play a game, that’s the truth. He is the worst professional I have ever come across and I have been his only ally at QPR for the past three years. He doesn’t try and I have protected him for too long.”

“Even I could suck my stomach in for a picture and look OK.”


THIS EVENING: QPR chairman apologises for club fall-out

"I have spoken to them both personally," Fernandes said.

"Both have been notified of our disappointment regarding their handling of the situation."

The statement continued: "The club's entire focus is now on the Aston Villa fixture next Monday and hopefully, after a tough few days, we can turn a negative into a positive and build on Sunday's improved display."

this mess RME ... so embarrassing for everyone involved