Battling, but Tony’s happy

Manila – Queens Park Rangers owner Tony Fernandes yesterday said the club would keep its squad and manager after four “great” games, despite the team languishing near the bottom of the English Premier League table.

Fernandes said he was satisfied with the players’ performance after a tough run of matches against the league’s top three teams that had sparked speculation of a shake-up.

“I’m very happy with how it’s going with QPR. It’s a tough league, but the boys have played well,” the Malaysian entrepreneur told AFP during a business trip to the Philippines.

Team manager Harry Redknapp (above) is “in good command”, he added, despite a recent public spat with forward Adel Taarabt over the player’s fitness.

QPR, who were promoted back into England’s top football league this year after being relegated in 2013, narrowly missed a win against Manchester City on Sunday after leading the champions into the last six minutes.

Fernandes said the club was also “damn unlucky” to lose against Liverpool in a dramatic match last month that saw four goals in the last eight minutes.

Chelsea got away with a “lucky penalty” in their November 1 win against the Hoops, who had beaten Aston Villa five days earlier, he added.

“I think we had a great four games. As chairman of the club, I am thrilled,” he said.

Asked what he intended to do in January to improve the fortunes of his team, currently a point above cellar-dwelling Burnley, Fernandes said: “We’ll wait and see. But talk is easy, we’ve got to get the points.

“All my life, the most successful businesses are stable businesses with the same management, the same structure,” he said. –