1 Les Ferdinand

QPR’s head of football operations Les Ferdinand has assured the clubs emerging talents they have a chance of breaking into the first team at Loftus Road.

The Rangers legend is in charge of the club’s academy and he is well aware the west London side has struggled in recent years to blood any homegrown players.

Academy products Max Ehmer, Cole Kpekawa, Michael Harriman, Joe Lumley, Michael Petrasso, Jamie Sendles-White, Michael Doughty and Frankie Sutherland are all yet to make the step up after temporary spells away.

But Ferdinand insists there will be opportunities for the best new talents to break into Harry Redknapp’s first team once they have honed their skills out on loan in competitive environments.

“There is a pathway to the first team,” he told qpr.co.uk. “And going out on loan is part of that pathway – going out and learning to play men’s football.

“Hopefully the player then comes back and has developed enough so that I can be knocking on the manager’s door and saying, ‘Look, you’ve got to give this kid a chance.”