Monday 14 November 2016 13:54, UK
Ian Holloway's feeling that he has unfinished business at QPR was what convinced the club's owners to appoint him as manager, according to Les Ferdinand.
Holloway signed a two-and-a-half year deal at Loftus Road on Saturday, 10 years after leaving the club, following the dismissal of Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink the week before.
The 53-year-old played for the Rs for five years from 1991 and managed them from 2001 to 2006, winning promotion to the Championship in 2004.
And Ferdinand told Sky Sports News HQ: "He knows the ins and outs of this football club, he knows what this club demands. He knows what the supporters want to see.
"He's very enthusiastic, but more importantly he understands where the club is right now, what we've got and how we're trying to take the club forwards.
"He knows the constraints in terms of the budgets, but he's excited about what he can get out of this bunch of players and for me and the owners that was the most important thing.
"His enthusiasm and the fact he feels he's got unfinished business here is what swung it for us."
QPR are currently 17th in the Championship with 20 points from their opening 16 games, but Ferdinand insists the club are still aiming for the play-offs this season.
"Can we go up as one of the top two? That's probably a little bit out of our reach, but it was always about whether we could get into the play-offs and perhaps that is why the decision was made with Jimmy," he added. "We still feel we've got a squad that could get there."
Ferdinand also denied reports that Hasselbaink was sacked in Nottingham immediately after the 1-1 draw with Forest.
"I spoke to him after the game and said 'I have to meet you at the training ground this evening.' We didn't sack him at Forest because we thought it would be unfair for him to climb on the coach with all the players, but the mere fact that I was telling him, he obviously knew what was going on," Ferdinand said.
"Jimmy has been in football a long time. He understands how football works."
