Ever-present Barbet hopes Hoops can be fast starters
FEW players put their body on the line more than Yoann Barbet – the centre-back has played every minute of QPR’s last 62 league games. The Frenchman was on the pitch for the entirety of last season’s Championship campaign, adding to a run that begun in 2019-20 and hopes to be an ever-present again and help the Hoops back to the Premier League.
He puts that endurance down to little more than healthy dieting and sensible living. ’Off the pitch I do a lot of work with the physio,’ Barbet says. ‘I try to sleep well but it is not always easy with a 16-month-old child.
‘Now I have done an entire season once I would like to do it twice.’
Now established in London, the 28-year-old began at Bordeaux but made his breakthrough at Ligue 2 outfit Chamois Niortais before making a beeline for Brentford in 2015.
‘It was always the dream to come to England,’ he adds. ‘I was always a big Arsenal fan because of all the French players there.
‘I really enjoyed my time at Brentford and played a lot of games. Every season we had great teams and the way we were playing football was brilliant.
‘That’s why I joined, I didn’t want to join a kick-and-rush team, that wasn’t my style. It’s the same at QPR – we play really attractive football.’ Rather than casting at envious eye at the Bees as they make their first Premier League bow this evening, Barbet believes the side he joined in 2019 can follow their neighbours’ example.
‘I just hope we can do the same as they did last year,’ he says. ‘We should take them as an inspiration. They stuck to their style of play.
‘Each time they lost players they got ones who were as good or even better.’
The Hoops came from behind to earn a 1-1 draw with Millwall in Saturday’s season opener and Barbet loved having the fans back in the Kiyan Prince Foundation Stadium, even though boss Mark Warburton felt it affected his players during a ‘loose’ opening spell.
BARBET WAS THE ONLY OUTFIELD CHAMPIONSHIP PLAYER TO FEATURE IN EVERY MINUTE LAST SEASON AND HAS MADE 76 APPEARANCES FOR QPR
TIMES BARBET PLAYED IN FOUR SEASONS WITH BRENTFORD, HE WAS A MAINSTAY OF THE SIDE WHEN DEAN SMITH WAS MANAGER
‘We could feel the tension but it’s a good pressure, the adrenaline, you look forward to it,’ the defender said.
‘It gives you confidence, it is so good to have the fans back. It is pure football, that’s why we play.
‘It’s good not to lose the first game and we can build from there.’
After a ninth-placed finish in the Championship last term their pre-season form suggests exciting times lie ahead, having beaten Manchester United 4-2 and drawn 3-3 with Leicester – a game in which Barbet scored.
‘We have an old stadium with the fans really close to the pitch and we know how positive that can be,’ he says.
‘United didn’t have their strongest XI but they had a good team and I think they were surprised by our quality.
‘It was the same with Leicester who had a strong XI.’
The serious business continues tomorrow with QPR visiting a Hull side who marked their return to the Championship with a 4-1 win at Preston.
Barbet knows the importance of getting early points on the board.
‘We want to finish higher than last season. We had a very poor first half of the season which cost us getting into
the play-offs but we showed what we are capable of,’ he says.
‘We finished third in the second part of the season, only the teams that went straight up got more points than us. We know how good we can be – but we are in a league where everyone can beat everyone.
‘The good thing this season is we don’t have a lot of new players so everyone knows each other already. This can be the key.
‘QPR should be back in the Premier League because of the history of the club. It has everything needed.
‘Hopefully we can do it this season. But it is easy to say and hard to do.’