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* QPR announce appointment of Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink
* David Oldfield also joins as Assistant Manager
* Les Ferdinand welcomes pair to Loftus Road and thanks Neil Warnock
* QUEENS Park Rangers Football Club are delighted to announce the appointment of Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink as the club’s new Manager.
The 43 year-old Dutchman has today (Friday) put pen to paper on a rolling contract at Loftus Road and will be joined at the club by David Oldfield (Assistant Manager).
The former Royal Antwerp boss arrives in W12 having carved a fantastic reputation for himself during an outstanding 13-month stint at Burton Albion.
Arriving in November last year, Hasselbaink guided Burton to League One for the first time in their history, clinching promotion in some style, five points clear of their nearest rivals.
And that fine work has continued this season, with Hasselbaink leaving the Brewers in great shape at the summit of the third tier.
In total, Hasselbaink – who enjoyed playing spells in Britain with Chelsea, Middlesbrough, Charlton Athletic and Cardiff City – won 33 of his 54 games in charge of the Brewers.
The former Dutch international told www.qpr.co.uk he is relishing the opportunity to manage QPR, commenting: “It was not an easy decision to leave Burton, but when you get the opportunity to come somewhere like QPR, with the club where it is and the squad we have at our disposal, it was something I couldn’t turn down.
“I feel that this is a club on the up – it has an exciting feeling about it. And I want to keep that feeling going by taking more positive strides forward.
“I am happy to get the opportunity here at QPR, to lead the QPR family, be at the front of it all, put my stamp on things and take the club forward.
“This is an incredibly proud moment for me and I will give my all to represent the badge of the club.”
Following a thorough and extensive interview process, where the club spoke to no fewer than a dozen candidates, Director of Football Les Ferdinand expressed his delight at Hasselbaink’s appointment.
“We went through a very meticulous recruitment process that generated a lot of excellent candidates. We gave ourselves a real selection headache with the high level of candidates we spoke to, but Jimmy was the best of the best, without any doubt,” Ferdinand told www.qpr.co.uk.
“We have been hugely impressed by his work at Burton. Having won League Two, he leaves them at the top of League One, which is an incredible achievement.
“He has that fire in the belly that you look for in all Managers, but not only that, he is also a strong, authoritative leader who commands the respect of all those he works with.
“He leaves no stone unturned in his work on the training ground and prepares his teams meticulously. He is a young manager who has a great knowledge of the game.
“We’re delighted he has agreed to join us and we’re all looking forward to an exciting new chapter at Loftus Road.”
In welcoming Jimmy, the club would also like to place on the record its thanks to Neil Warnock and Kevin Blackwell, who leave the club following their short-term, interim roles.
Ferdinand added: “We are grateful to Neil and Kevin for stepping in on an interim basis at a crucial period in the campaign.
“Having two experienced football men working alongside each other has allowed us the time we needed to go through the necessary process to make the right appointment.
“Neil's passion for QPR shone through in his short time back here and we are eternally grateful to him for the way he came in and helped us out on.
“He led us to seven points from four games, which speaks volumes of the impact he had here in such a short space of time.
“We thank him and Kevin and wish them both well for the future.”
Read more at http://www.qpr.co.uk/news/article/qp...wReABJzwsdh.99
