'I played in big-spending Premier League team – it was worst dressing room I've been in'
A big injection of cash after winning promotion to the Premier League isn't always what it's cracked up to be, as one former top-flight star revealed
by Ben Crawford · The MirrorChris Samba has revealed that the infamous 2012/13 Queen’s Park Rangers dressing room was the worst he’s ever experienced.
QPR owner Tony Fernandes put his hand in his wallet prior to the start of the 2011/12 season, bankrolling big-money deal after big-money deal with his newly-bought side having earned Premier League promotion. The influx of talent didn't pay off how he'd have liked, with the Rs surviving relegation by the skin of their teeth – so he went again.
The following campaign, the club's transfer total toppled £40million – with the likes of Loic Remy, Junior Hoilett, Ji-sung Park, Jermaine Jenas, and, perhaps most surprisingly, Champions League-winning Brazilian shot-stopper Julio Cesar all arriving at Loftus Road. Yet, to little surprise of those watching from outside the club, it once again failed to pay off.
The west London side finished rock bottom of the league that season and were duly relegated. Samba, who made 10 appearances that year, admitted that the chemistry among the cohort was just as bad as the results made it seem.
“Let me put it this way – that [QPR's] is the worst dressing room I’ve been in in football,” Samba told the No Tippy Tappy Football podcast.
“Harry [Redknapp was the manager]. I don’t think he lost the dressing room; I think the way the wages were being structured was not really good.
“You had a player on £10k playing with a player on £50k, and you’ll have someone on £20k that plays with someone who is on £100k. So, there’s a lot of resentment. Or, if that player played better than the one who is on more money on that day, he feels some type of way.”
Samba's time at Loftus Road was short and not particularly bountiful. Having moved from Russian side Anzhi Makhachkala in January 2013, the defender admitted he was unfit, which led to sub-par performances, an injury that sidelined him for the end of the season, and a swift July return to Russia.
“I wasn’t fit. Absolutely unfit,” Samba continued when asked why it didn’t work out at QPR. “When you finish in Russia, you finish around the 10th of December, and normally, you come back for preseason around the end of February or March.
“So, at the time when I came on the last day of the [January] transfer window, I’m on holiday. A big unit needs a lot of time to prepare, and that’s where my regrets lie a little bit. I feel like if I came in the summer and had a proper pre-season, I could have shown who I really am.
“When I arrived, I remember a simple drill in the week, 20 seconds end of the pitch, 20 seconds rest, 20 seconds back – I couldn't do it. I couldn’t do it. But at the weekend, I played, and we didn’t lose, by the way! We drew. So, I’ve been asked, ‘Where do you think you are physically,’ and I responded, ‘15-20 per cent.’ I've been told, ‘That’s good enough!’
“At that moment, I was like, ‘I will play, I will play’, and obviously, over a couple of games, you feel your body just quitting on you, and it is not who I was.
“It was difficult because I was still an individual with pride and work so hard to have a certain level. People knew me as Chris Samba, not as that half-player that you see, so it was difficult, it was difficult.”
Join our new WhatsApp community and receive your daily dose of Mirror Football content. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. If you're curious, you can read our Privacy Notice.
This article contains affiliate links, we will receive a commission on any sales we generate from it. Learn more
Sky Sports deal
Sky Sports launches discounted Premier League package
£46 (was £56)
Sky has slashed the price of its Sky Sports, Sky Stream, Sky TV and Netflix bundle in an unbeatable new deal that saves £240 and includes 1,400 live matches across the Premier League, EFL and more.