£800k QPR man endured three-year Loftus Road nightmare - it effectively ended his career | OneFootball

Hogan Ephraim made just two appearances at Loftus Road after QPR were promoted to the Premier League

Hogan Ephraim was a solid wide option in the Championship for Queens Park Rangers and was a good contributor to their eventual Premier League promotion in 2011.

The Englishman came through the West Ham United academy, but never made an appearance for the Hammers, instead being loaned out on two occasions as a teenager, to Colchester United in the 2006/07 campaign, and then QPR for three months the following term.

It was at Loftus Road where the youngster shone, and a month after his loan spell ended, in January 2008, the Hoops confirmed a purchase believed to be around the £800,000 mark for the 19-year-old.

Over the following few seasons, Ephraim established himself as a tricky winger who would be brought on to impact games. He was never truly the first name on the teamsheet and was even sent out on loan to Leeds United for a month during their promotion-winning campaign in League One in 2009/10.

So, when QPR made the unlikely jump back to the Premier League, despite only finishing in the top half twice in the previous six seasons, it would always be difficult to see the winger being used regularly in the top flight.

As it so happened, that promotion spelt the beginning of the end for Ephraim.

Hogan Ephraim's torrid time post-Championship promotion

The then-22-year-old Ephraim started each of the opening 14 Championship games in QPR's 2010/11 promotion campaign under Neil Warnock, but only made five more starts throughout the rest of the season.

Winning the Championship is a very joyous occasion, but for Ephraim, who had failed to make it off the bench in four of the final five games, it would have been a struggle to get regular minutes at Loftus Road.

The midfielder made two Premier League appearances during the first half of QPR's return season in the top flight, before going out on loan to high-flying League One side Charlton Athletic, and then again to Bristol City in the Championship, but he failed to make an impact at either side.

More loan spells followed the season after, as Ephraim made just three Premier League squads all season, leading up to a loan away to the MLS, where he made 11 appearances for Toronto. Meanwhile, QPR would suffer relegation back to the Championship, but the writing was on the wall for the former West Ham man at Loftus Road.

An uneventful eight-appearance spell at Peterborough United led to his eventual release at the end of the 2023/14 campaign. In the end, the number of clubs Ephraim played for since QPR's promotion was actually greater than his total appearances at his parent club for the final three years of his deal there.

Hogan Ephraim retired soon after QPR departure

Despite having cost QPR £800,000, the Hoops were happy to let Ephraim go for nothing, and Wycombe Wanderers were happy to take a chance on him, signing a one-year deal at Adams Park in October 2014.

It was the first time he'd played in League Two, but even there he couldn't make much of an impact. Starts were rare for the midfielder at the Chairboys, only making seven across the season (although one did come in their play-off final penalty defeat to Southend United).

Nevertheless, his time at Wycombe came to an end at the end of that season, and that was the end of his professional career. He signed for semi-professional side Whitehawk in March 2017, but then shortly retired altogether that summer. He was just 29 years of age.

Ephraim played just 54 competitive fixtures in the four seasons following QPR's promotion to the Premier League. His various short-term loan spells derailed him massively, and ultimately, he wasn't able to recover.