QPR assistant manager Mark Bowen says the club must look to improve next season after their final day Premier League survival.
Bhatia announces price freeze as Hoops reveal grand plans
QPR assistant manager Mark Bowen says the club must look to improve next season after their final day Premier League survival.
Bolton's failure to beat Stoke meant the Hoops escaped relegation despite conceding twice in injury time at the Etihad Stadium to hand Manchester City the title on the last day.
Things had looked even more precarious for the Loftus Road side back in March but Mark Hughes' men won their last five home games of the season to scrape their way through.
And Hughes' assistant believes that, having got through a difficult campaign, QPR can now kick on and prosper in the Premier League.
"This club can now make giant strides," said Bowen on QPR's
official website.
"Everybody involved realised what that final day was all about.
"If we had gone down, this time next year we could have failed to get into the play-offs, or even slipped up within the play-offs.
"But I can guarantee you that this time next year we will be in a lot healthier position.
"We are going to have a nice summer where we can relax, but we will look forward to returning now we're still in the Premier League.
"We have got a nice pre-season tour ahead of us to focus on next."
Ambition
QPR are showing signs of their ambition by pressing ahead with plans for a new, state-of-the-art training facility.
They are also investigating stadium options as Loftus Road currently has a restrictive capacity of just over 18,000.
That relatively low capacity makes it tempting for QPR to increase ticket prices at the west London club.
But vice-chairman Amit Bhatia insists the Hoops must reward their long-suffering supporters.
"Having seen our progression over the last few years I am thrilled that we can reward our fans by keeping prices frozen and allowing them the opportunity to come back and continue supporting their team," Bhatia said.
Importance
"I can't explain the importance of it. There are fans who tell me they have been coming for 40 years with their dads, and their grandads.
"They have supported QPR through all the lower levels.
"What's the point in supporting the club for all these years if then you can't have the joy of watching your side when you are playing in the Premier League?
"That's something that I just don't want to happen to us. We need to always try and be fair to our fans.
"A couple of times this season I heard commentators saying they had never heard a noise in football like they did at Loftus Road, and there is a reason.
"It's because we have long-serving, loyal fans that genuinely love this football club.
"It's what makes Loftus Road this fantastic environment, what drove us to five home wins in a row at the end of the season and, in my opinion, it is what kept us up.
"It is very important that we are always conscious that our fans are sensitive to prices and so we must always do the best that we can, to try and be fair and reasonable is all that they ask of us."
