Premier League: QPR chairman Tony Fernandes hints at surprise choice of manager

QPR chairman Tony Fernandes says the club are close to appointing a new manager and hinted it may be a surprise choice.

Michael Laudrup - the former Swansea boss - has been installed as the new favourite (4/7) for the job by Sky Bet.

Harry Redknapp resigned his post earlier this mornth in order to have knee surgery, leaving Chris Ramsey as caretaker boss.

Former Tottenham manager Tim Sherwood had been favourite to take the Loftus Road job on a permanent basis but Fernandes’ message posted on social media suggests that may not be the case.

“Think I have got my dream manager,” he tweeted. “Not what anyone thinks. Take a while. Still a bit to go but I'm very happy. Press all wrong.”

Laudrup has been working in Qatar since last year, and he is now Sky Bet's favourite ahead of Mark Warburton, the Brentford boss, and former Schalke coach Ralf Rangnick. Sherwood has drifted out to 14-1, the same odds as Ramsey.

Sky Bet’s Chris Spicer said: “We added Laudrup to market by request at around 5.30pm on Tuesday and within two hours he was the odds-on favourite after a consistent run of bets.

“After being odds-on for a number of days, the money on Sherwood has well and truly dried up. However, we’re still receiving a few bets on Warburton at 6/1.”

Fernandes' tweet came on the same day Brentford issued a statement about the future of Warburton.

Warburton has guided Brentford from League 1 into the Championship and they are challenging for promotion to the Premier League.

Brentford's statement did not refute a report in The Times which suggested Warburton's contract may not be renewed in the summer. It read: "The club is aware of some press speculation about the future of our manager Mark Warburton.

“Given Mark’s increasing profile within the game, we recognise that he will deservedly have turned the heads of other clubs. As with every other sensibly run club, we plan for various possible eventualities.

“We are a progressive club who do talk to other people within the game to learn about other ways of doing things, and to consider novel strategic approaches to the game.

“Those conversations continue internally, and are part of a healthy dialogue. Football is sometimes called a village and, in any village, gossip and rumours can spread like wildfire, whether or not such rumours are true.

“It would not be in the club’s interests to disclose any of those discussions but Brentford FC do want to confirm that Mark Warburton remains our manager."