The summer of 2012 was certainly a season of change at Loftus Road. It speaks volumes about just what Mark Hughes thought of the players he was forced to work with the previous term, that he decided to go out and sign eleven first-team players at the end of the season. Amongst them were three Champions League winners, one Galactico and two potential number ones, so there were a few eyebrows raised when the newly-assembled Hoops lined out against Swansea City on the opening day. Following a shell-shocking 5-0 defeat at the hands of the Welsh side, it was probably no surprise that Hughes dived straight back into the transfer market for some new defenders. He may have been 34 years old, but that was hardly a deal-breaker for a QPR backline who wouldn't have looked out of place on an OAP starting XI. A Champions League winner for FC Porto in 2004, Ricardo Carvalho was an integral cog of Jose Mourinho's first successful stint as Chelsea manager, during which time they won five trophies together. Out of favour at the Santiago Bernabeu, QPR agreed a loan deal for the Portuguese stalwart, whilst simultaneously closing in on a £7.5 million deal for Spurs centre-half Michael Dawson, in a bid to shore up a leaky rear-guard. In the end, both players rejected the chance to join Hughes' revolution - perhaps wisely, considering how it all panned out. Carvalho spent another season on the bench in Spain before tying up a move to big-spending Monaco - the same side who his Porto side had thumped 3-0 in the Champions League final nine years previously.
Recent Journalism & New Media graduate. Insatiable thirst for all things football, and hopes to break into the field of sports journalism in the near future.
Have made a significantly insignificant playing career out of receiving several slaps around the head for not passing the ball.
