Queens Park Rangers are already making moves in the transfer market opening next week and have reportedly opened talks with a defender.
Marti Cifuentes’ side have struggled to maintain a consistent pairing at the heart of their defence this season, with Jake Clarke-Salter and Steve Cook both succumbing to injuries this season. The latter was a recent casualty of their game against Preston North End, which saw the club extend their unbeaten run to seven games.
R’s Open Talks With Italian Captain
According to Italian football news site TuttoMercatoWeb, Queens Park Rangers have identified the 25-year-old Marco Imperiale as a transfer target and are already in talks to sign him. The defender is the current club captain of Serie B side Carrarese, a club he has been with since 2020, playing just shy of 150 games for them.
Carrarese is embarking on its first season in Serie B after winning promotion last season after finishing third in Group B. They are currently 10th in the division, having picked up very strong results against solid sides such as Palermo and Frosinone. Former goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon is a minority shareholder and supporter of the club.
QPR are currently 14th in the Championship and face a Boxing Day trip to Swansea City with only two fit senior centre-backs, with Clarke Salter making his first appearance post-injury against Preston.
Writer’s View
QPR do need a centre-back this window as the flexibility and depth having a fifth senior option will bring can solve plenty of headaches. This could be a brilliant early-window move should it progress and should be a cheap signing to make. The main question will be how long it can take for Imperiale to adapt to life and football in England, but with the support of the rest of the club’s defenders, he, fortunately, won’t be thrown in at the deep end immediately.
