QPR: The Premier League transfer that could dictate if the R's stay in the Championship: Opinion | OneFootball

Highlights

Any QPR supporters who had even a faint twinkle of hope that the club's plight would pull to a halt heading into the 2023/24 Championship campaign have been in for a real shock.

The rot that has set in at Loftus Road now feels more consuming than ever before, and it's not exactly easy to pinpoint just how they'll scrape themselves out of this mess for a second successive season.

Indeed, many regard QPR as fortunate to have even preserved their Championship status for another year given the manner in which they dropped like a stone almost immediately following Mick Beale's controversial exit to Rangers FC, with Neil Critchley and Gareth Ainsworth both subsequently failing to inspire confidence and, crucially, results.

The latter still remains in charge, and that very fact has not been without opposition.

It's not all that difficult to see why, either.

To date, he's won just five of his 25 matches at the helm and currently has QPR in 22nd-place amid a run of four straight defeats, with little to suggest that improvement and change will be forthcoming, either.

And while there's no getting away from how accountable Ainsworth is for the R's struggles to a certain degree, you do feel that any manager who assumes the position will have an uphill task on their hands in stabilising the side and keeping them afloat for another year.

Because of that, QPR's potential saving grace could extend beyond just a managerial alteration, with a claim how much the West London outfit could pocket if former-playmaking star Eberechi Eze departs current club Crystal Palace for Manchester City.

How much money will QPR get if Crystal Palace's Eberechi Eze signs for Manchester City?

According to the Standard, QPR inserted a 20% sell-on clause in the deal that saw Eze move across London to sign for Crystal Palace three years ago.

It's believed that the Eagles are holding out for a £70m figure if they are to let the England international move on - and QPR will only be hoping that's the case.

If Palace's valuation is indeed met, QPR's sell-on clause percentage means they'd pocket at least a healthy £14m from any transfer.

The interest from Pep Guardiola's all-conquering treble-winning unit is pretty telling regarding just how the midfielder has performed at Selhurst Park, it must be said.

Alongside ex-Reading prodigy Michael Olise, he's proved a star turn in South London over the last few years and was particularly impressive in the 2022/23 campaign, racking up double digits for top-flight goals for the first time in his career and promptly forcing himself into Gareth Southgate's Three Lions thinking as a result.

Would QPR's Eberechi Eze sell-on clause be enough to ensure survival if he leaves Crystal Palace for Manchester City?

It all depends on what QPR do with it.

Some of it may not even be reinvested back into the playing squad, whereas the club have also spent recklessly in the transfer window in years gone by so fans have every right to fear that happening once again.

On the flip side, £14m could well allow QPR to push the boat out a bit and make some statement signings, which they could certainly do with if they want a fighter's chance of staying in the Championship.