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Chery picked signing follows key Ramsey trends — signing
Tuesday, 21st Jul 2015 00:00 by Clive Whittingham

The £2.3m acquisition of Dutch midfielder Tjaronn Chery from Groningen offers clues to what Chris Ramsey and Les Ferdinand’s QPR side will look like, and continues several key trends of the summer transfer window so far.

Facts

Tjaronn Chery is a 27-year-old Dutch winger or attacking midfielder.

He came through the ranks at FC Twente, winning the Dutch youth championship and reserve league in the process, but initially found progress into the first team difficult due to his slight stature after making his debut at 20.

He spent time on loan with SC Cambuur and RBC Roosendaal in the lower leagues before being offloaded to FC Emmen in the second tier in 2010. ADO Den Haag brought him back to the Eredivisie in 2011 and were rewarded with 13 goals in 74 appearances.

He moved onto FC Groningen two years ago, initially on loan before completing a permanent €800,000 transfer. He hit his straps last season with 15 goals in 34 appearances from midfield culminating in a starring performance as Groningen won the Dutch cup final. No other Eredivisie midfielder scored more last season.

He’s a free kick specialist, and scored four from 27 attempts last season, a conversion rate of 14.81% and the fourth best in Europe.

Chery was named in the Netherlands squad for the first time at the end of the season ahead of the summer friendlies and European Championship qualifiers. In doing so he became the first FC Groningen player to make the national team squad since 1990 — Arjen Robben had to move to PSV before he was recognised at international level.

This time last year he scored twice in the first seven minutes of a friendly against Aston Villa as the Premier League side was whitewashed 4-1. Villa were said to be leading the chase for Chery’s signature this summer, ahead of the likes of Napoli and Lazio, but Chery has today signed a three-year contract at Loftus Road and moved for a fee in the region of £2.3m.

In doing so he leaves the Dutch cup holders and Eredivisie outfit as they prepare for a Europa League campaign, to play instead in the Championship with freshly-relegated QPR. Welcome to Loftus Road you mad head.

Reaction

“We’ve been trying to get this one over the line for a while now, so we’re delighted it’s finalised. There were a lot of clubs in for him, including some from the Premier League, so it’s pleasing that he’s decided to come here. He had offers to earn much more money elsewhere, but he’s chosen QPR because he feels he can progress here as a player and that’s fantastic. You hear a lot these days about players being versatile and we’ve certainly got that going forward now. Tjaronn is another one that fits in that mould. He can rotate across that front-line and is very effective in a central or wide role.” - Les Ferdinand

“Playing in England has always been a dream of mine and having spoken to Leroy (Fer), he said that QPR is a good fit for me. I know the passion of the English fans and how they like to see football played and I can’t wait to show what I can do here. It’s a really exciting move for me in the best years of my career.” -Tjaronn Chery

“Tjaronn is a very good technician, a fine player. He can play in a variety of positions in the top half of the field and will bring more pace to our squad, which is something I knew we needed after last season. We’ve had him watched at length and we’re really happy we’ve got him on board with a few weeks to go until the start of the season.” -Chris Ramsey

“Chery is a typical Dutch playmaker with quick feet, good dribbles and a fierce striker of the ball. He is a good goal scorer and a set-piece specialist. However, it should be noted that there seems to be a lot of mixed opinions about how good Chery really is. The view of many may vary, but I am quite convinced that Chery has the quality to play admirably in a mid-table English, German or Spanish club. It must be said also that there is a strong case for Chery to be given a call by Guus Hiddink. Wesley Sneijder could do with a decent goal scoring backup. I would however, agree with many other fans that players such as Adam Maher, Hakim Ziyech, Davy Klaassen and Georginio Wijnaldum seem to be the most likely candidates for the number 10 position in the near future. But if Chery makes the move to a big European league and turns on the style successfully, we could see him eclipse the likes of Davy Klaassen, Hakim Ziyech, Adam Maher, Jonathan De Guzman and even Ibrahim Afellay, for the back-up number 10 position in the Oranje. -Rio Rogers, TotalDutchFootball.com

“To finish a season training with the nation’s top players is a massive step forward considering that just months prior, he was willing to move to Al Ahli to get a bigger pay-check. In less than a year, the 27-year-old has re-ignited his footballing dreams after making peace with the fact that his main target should be ensuring financial stability.

“A switch in tactics in early 2014 unearthed the better in the suave playmaker. In a style more based on transition and pace, Chery started to develop more as a midfielder, aided by Filip Kostic and Richairo Zivkovic as thankful outlets for the rangy passing of the, by now, fulcrum of FC Groningen’s attack. As the season progressed, Groningen hit a hot streak with Chery as the main inspiration. They won their last nine games, with the creative star scoring five goals in that run, ensuring qualification for the Europa League in the process.

“To everybody’s surprise, he was still at Groningen come the beginning of the new season. And without his two favourite tools in Kostic and Zivkovic, 2014-15 could well have turned out to be a difficult one for him However, not only had Kostic and Zivkovic progressed, but by the time the Eredivisie kicked off again, FC Groningen seemed to have a bonafide class player in their midst in Chery. The ability to dribble was always there, his vision was undisputed, his shot a weapon, but soon it would turn out that Tjaronn was a more focused, physically stronger version of himself compared to the previous season.

“A first glimpse of his new found level was shown against Ajax. Facing the likes of Davy Klaassen and Thulani Serero on the opposite side, there was no question that Chery was the best midfielder on the pitch, elevating himself to another level than any other player out there. The Euroborg star set up both goals for Groningen as they went on to beat the reigning champion 2-0 and, whereas in previous years he had peaks followed by troughs, he continued on a good level in the months following.

“The vision to continually read the play, hardly ever being caught out in possession and the ability to accelerate play was recognised.One of the weak points in previous years had turned into one of his strengths, as Chery was now a physically full-grown midfielder with great stamina.” - Michiel Jongsma, Benefoot.net

Opinion

If two’s a coincidence and three’s a trend, then the arrival of Tjaronn Chery continues a number of patterns that began with the arrivals of Massimo Luongo, Ben Gladwin and to a certain extent Sebastian Polter and Jamie Mackie earlier this summer.

Firstly, and most basically, Chris Ramsey is addressing the fundamental problem QPR had last season with an ageing squad that simply couldn’t get around the pitch. He’s signing mobile players, and bringing the average age of the side down. As respected Dutch football blogger and Groningen regular Michiel Jongsma said on Twitter tonight, Chery thrives when the game is played at a high tempo. That’s in stark contrast to anything Rangers had at their disposal last season and should mean he doesn’t fall victim to the usual problem central European players find when they come to play in England where the sheer weight of fixtures, and the kick and rush style, is all too much — particularly during and after Christmas when they’re used to a winter break.

Secondly, Ramsey is looking for technical players as well as athletic ones. He knows his team needs legs, but he’s looking for technicians. There is always a risk that QPR are actually coaching their players to belt every attacking free kick straight into the middle of the defensive wall, and will subsequently drag Chery down to their level, but he had the fourth best conversion rate for direct free kicks in Europe last season and that’s in stark contrast to the drek served up at Loftus Road where all but two of the free kicks we were awarded within sight of goal last year were totally wasted.

Thirdly, Ramsey seems to have a thing for late bloomers, players who have perhaps been rejected elsewhere, or players in need of a second chance. Jay Emmanuel Thomas had a huge reputation but ended up in League One after failed stints with Cardiff and Ipswich, Gladwin was rejected by Reading and went into non-league, Luongo was sold cheaply by Spurs to Swindon Town, Mackie failed at Forest and so on and so forth. Chery has had a spectacular season with Groningen, but was previously bumped off into the lower Dutch leagues after being released by Twente because he lacked the physical strength for the highest level — it’s only now at 27 that he’s coming good.

It could be a risky strategy, they were all presumably shifted on for valid reasons, but what it does do is build a loyalty to the manager who gave them their second chance. More valuably given what has happened at Loftus Road over the last four years it gives you players who see playing for the club as a big deal, as a good move for them, and players who have seen the harder side of the game and are now grateful for what they have. It should, in theory, foster a much more harmonious, committed, hardworking dressing room.

And fourthly Ramsey, Les Ferdinand and the new look QPR really seem to be playing the numbers game. We’re not quite at Billy Beane, or even Matthew Benham, levels just yet but QPR are clearly crunching the stats, analysing the numbers and scouting Europe for those ‘Moneyball’ players who are available for a fraction of their actual worth to the team. Journalist Dave McIntyre, away with the QPR first team in Italy last week, said Chery was “porn” to the statisticians and video analysts who lock themselves away with videos of obscure Dutch football matches and spreadsheets all day everyday. It certainly makes a change from dusting off the client logs at Willie McKay’s or Kia Joorabchian’s at ten minutes to deadline to see whatever overpriced toad can be brought in at huge expense.

There are caveats and warning signs which perhaps, if we’re picking over the ashes of another train wreck come next May, we’ll say should have been heeded at the time. Some of those are merely paranoia brought on by the failings of previous regimes at QPR. Reading about Chery’s career, watching him in action, reading his stats… it all seems rather too good to be true to be getting a 27 year old with all this going for him for less than £3m. Whenever I’ve written the words “too good to be true” in signing articles for LFW before — Esteban Granero, Julio Cesar — it’s quickly turned into an unmitigated disaster.

Les Ferdinand says that Chery, and Luongo, turned down offers from Premier League clubs to come here. While most clubs would see that as a coup, at QPR I’ve come to worry about players who would rather play at Loftus Road and train on the Imperial College’s rented sports ground out at Heathrow than go to Aston Villa or Newcastle or Southampton or somewhere of that ilk. It makes me suspicious that we’re still paying massively over the odds in wages. While Filip Kostic and Richairo Zivkovic both got career furthering moves from Groningen last summer, Chery spent time trying to negotiate a mega-bucks deal with Al Ahli in the lucrative, but completely uncompetitive, Middle Eastern leagues. Why would a player who’s just broken into the Dutch national squad for the first time move out of the Netherlands and turn down interest from the likes of Napoli to play second division football in the UK?

Then there’s the concern about the hit and miss nature of players signed from the Dutch Eredivisie. Similar to buying players from Scotland, the step up is often too much to bear for players — although it’s a step up in pace and physicality, rather than quality and technique when they’re coming from the Netherlands. Alfonso Alves is the oft-touted example following his £12m move to Middlesbrough, which gives us a chance to give the “worst Brazilian since David Blunkett tried to shave his wife’s pubic hair” joke another airing if nothing else.

We’re told he struggled to make an impact through his younger years because of his slight physical stature. It’s not a Tuesday night, but we do have the obligatory cold afternoon in Rotherham on our schedule this year — will he cope?

So much hangs on departures still to come: keep Austin, Leroy Fer and Matt Phillips and Rangers have a wonderful looking side for the second tier; lose more than one of them and we’re shot on quality and goals. But overall Ramsey and Ferdinand — and it is very much a joint-manager type set up at Loftus Road at the moment — seem to be building an exciting QPR team for this season. One with skilful, physical, technical, quick, attack-minded players. Plenty of work still to do but it’s been a bold, exciting start to the new era.

The Twitter @loftforwords

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GetMeRangers added 00:56 - Jul 21
Well that has done nothing to temper my enthusiasm. Must be too good to be true...

Another second chancer is Blackwood, who may also come good.

All the signings so far seem to point towards a very attacking side but it does worry me a bit that we seem light on defence. Still, if we can out score the other side, then who cares. Far too excited by the coming season for my own good. Perhaps the Dundee United on Wednesday will bring a doss of realism .

Hope 'Sharon' or 'Cheer on' 'Cherie' gets a run out then.
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VancouverHoop added 01:03 - Jul 21
Do you suppose Leroy Fer's sales job on QPR's behalf suggests he might be staying? Or is that in-fer-ing too much?
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ozexile added 02:17 - Jul 21
So at least we now know we'll set up 4-3-3 or 4-2-3-1. I like it.
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YorkRanger added 06:29 - Jul 21
Looks like a decent signing. Not without question marks, but that is why he is £2.7m and not £20m...
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PunteR added 08:33 - Jul 21
Coming here for the money, giving it 100% and performing,is one thing. Coming here not performing is another.
I really hope its the former,but who can tell until he starts playing.
We're looking a really attacking side. Lets hope we don't ruin our long term ambitions and you know....get promoted..
Interesting Fer talked us up to chery. Regardless of how Fer did on the pitch he does seem to enjoyed his time at QPR .
1

GetMeRangers added 08:53 - Jul 21
@Vancouver. CR has said publicly that they have had no enquiries for Fer:
http://www.westlondonsport.com/qpr/qpr-transfer-news-leroy-fer-wls-football8443
Leroy has also spoken a bit about staying and being happy here. Given the encouragement of Sharon to come to LR and the description of the club, I think it is fair to say he is happy here. Perhaps others at the club that we expect to leave may now also think the same way? Eternal idiot that I am!
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stevec added 09:09 - Jul 21
Like your positive but slightly cautious approach. As you say, the club should be applauded for this seasons approach to signings, just a little worried the like of Sandro can be sidelined and essentially forgotten so easily which may suggest our manager is not so confident with bigger name players. Highly unlikely Austin will be here but our season will depend on how keen Ramsey is in keeping the likes of Fer and Phillips and the aforementioned Sandro.
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francisbowles added 09:14 - Jul 21
Maybe, just maybe, there is still big money being paid BUT the majority of it is in promises of bonuses, particularly if we return to the 'promised land' That would be a sensible and hopefully self financing approach.

Welcome TC.
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Myke added 09:49 - Jul 21
Interesting signing. Is he left-sided or right-sided. yet another 'no 10'. Like in previous seasons we seem to have over-loaded with attacking mid-fielders and no ball-winners/ holding mid-fielders. we also need at least one CB and a RB or are we going to give the likes of Furlong a real go? I hope we do, although with all these attacking signings I wonder if the likes of Manning will ever get a chance. We desperately need to off-load Hoilett too. Disappointed that McCarthy is leaving - he would have been my preferred first choice next season. Knowing our luck, watch Green pick up a long-term injury at Charlton! Have to say though, we seem to be going about things in essentially the right way, although we said exactly the same thing 12 months ago
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pedrosqpr added 10:16 - Jul 21
Pinch me have we really already done our business and the season hasn't started , we haven't sold anyone for a bargain price, no twitter spats ( and for the QPR fan in front of me at Hull away we did get rid of Barton ) and we are not shaping up to lump it up to Bobby either... and best of all we might be able to take a corner or free kick without hitting the first man worth the price of my season ticket alone.
More excited about this season than last and the drab HR at the realm.
Finally pleased to see Les Ferdinand on the training field .

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Antti_Heinola added 10:59 - Jul 21
Ferdinand is claiming Chery turned down more money elsewhere to sign for us. That may be a tactical line rather than the truth, but there's no real reason to disbelieve him.

I know Ramsey prefers a 4-3-3, but to me it feels like it might be more of an attacking 4-4-1-1 or a 4-2-3-1. Polti as the Helguson-like spearhead. Lots of options behind him now.
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fakekerby added 12:53 - Jul 21
Very excited about this signing, the videos look class - i'm not normally one to judge anybody by videos of his best moments, but you can't fluke some of stuff he's been proven to have done, and the Eredivisie is a reasonable standard, I would have thought better than the Championship.

For those questioning the price tag - "why so cheap if he's this good" - we paid a release clause that was set when he joined them two years ago - we could have got an absolute bargain and they may never have accepted anywhere near the price we paid without that clause.

I hope we stay patient with him, and some people lay off Fer, he's a great player and clearly has an affinity with the club - let's not turn away those players who feel as passionate we do.
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simmo added 14:02 - Jul 22
Not another bloody Tottenham player!
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