With Bobby Zamora and Andy Johnson out injured, Harry Redknapp has moved to secure the services of Uruguayan veteran Javier Chevanton on a short term deal.

Facts

Former Uruguay international Javier Chevanton was released by Italian Lecce after a third spell with the club at the end of last season.

He began his career in his homeland - he has 22 caps and seven goals for his country — with local side Danubio with whom he bagged 49 goals in 57 appearances.

That sparked interest in Europe and he arrived for a first spell with then Serie A side Lecce as a 21 year old in 2001. Sadly his 12 goals in 27 appearances were not enough to prevent a relegation into Serie B but he netted 18 in 30 appearances at the lower level to help fire the team straight back at the first attempt.

He was the fourth top scorer in Serie A in 2003/04 with 19 goals, behind only Andriy Shevchenko (24), Alberto Gilardino (23) and Francesco Totti (20).

He moved to Monaco in 2004 but his first campaign was beset by injuries, and he managed just ten goals in 2005/06 — although he was still the club’s leading scorer.
Despite frequent knee problems will playing in France he moved to Sevilla in La Liga at the start of the 2006/07 season for a fee reported in the region of €8M, signing a five year contract. He scored four goals in the Europa League before opening his domestic account against Real Madrid in December in a 2-1 victory.

As fitness worries and age has caught up with him his appearances have become more sporadic and his moves more frequent. Two further spells with Lecce came either side of a stint with Argentinean side Colón de Santa Fe and he also spent time on loan at Italian side Atalanta. He scored ten times in 16 appearances for Lecce last season in the third tier of Italian football, where they’d been demoted after the country’s match fixing scandal.

He has penned a three month deal at Loftus Road after training with the R’s for the last few weeks.

Reaction

“With the injuries we’ve had to Bobby and AJ, we’re really short of options in that department. Javier has spent time with us and integrated into the group very well. He arrives with a good pedigree and gives us a much-needed extra option in attack.” -Harry Redknapp

“I am very happy to be here, working with a good manager like Harry Redknapp, for a team which is currently top of the Championship with huge ambitions to return to the Premier League. I am really looking forward to the challenge of playing in England. I have scored goals all around Europe and I am confident I can continue that record with QPR. When I was younger, I loved watching English football. The atmosphere here is great and when the chance came to join QPR, it was all I wanted. I have a great will-to-win and I can’t wait to do my best for the club and fall in love with the fans.” - Javier Chevanton

Opinion

It would be tempting to slap your forehead in mock-shock at all of this. What do you mean Bobby Zamora and Andy Johnson are both injured? Knock me down the tallest flight of stairs in the city with the smallest feather you can find.

The reason neither Andy Johnson nor Bobby Zamora are no longer at Fulham is because they are frequently injured, and a long way past their best when fully fit. It's the reason QPR were mental for entrusting the pair to score them the goals required for Premier League survival, and a big part of why that aim failed so spectacularly, but probably the only reason either would have considered joining QPR. To try and rely on them, both another year old, to fire the R's back to the big time this season brings to mind the old definition of insanity: if it didn't work the previous dozen times you tried it, chances are it won't now either.

So in a way having to go out and bring in a 33-year-old striker on a free transfer as cover for the pair of them just two months into the season is just another example of the club having to take its medicine for many past mistakes.

It's also a further indictment on QPR's continued policy of player recruitment as opposed to player development. Every problem that comes up has to be solved by another new player, rather than a player that the club has already paid money for and to.

It didn't need a trip to Yeovil on Saturday to bring home just how wide the gap is between the haves and have nots in this league, but an afternoon at Huish Park should certainly have highlighted the situation further. Yeovil Town could never in a million years afford the transfer fee and wages to bring in one of Andy Johnson, Bobby Zamora and Charlie Austin. The idea of having all three, and being able to go out and sign a player like Chevanton when two of them get injured, would be incredible to them. For the vast majority of teams in this league, losing two of Austin, Zamora and Johnson to injury would be tough shit, to QPR it's merely a cue to dip back into the transfer market.

Rangers do have the players to cope without additions. The squad at their disposal already lends itself far more to a system with one striker — which Charlie Austin showed at the weekend he's more than capable of being — and five midfielders rather than a conventional two man forward line. The R's have more midfielders than they know what to do with — again, most teams in this league would laugh at the idea of being able to take out Joey Barton, Karl Henry and Shaun Wright-Phillips and bring in Tom Carroll, Jermaine Jenas and Armand Traore. Then there's Ale Faurlin, Niko Kranjcar, Matt Phillips, Junior Hoilett and on and on and on it goes. It's the dictionary definition of an embarrassment of riches for the level QPR are playing at and it's more than enough to muddle through while Johnson gets fit again.

Then there's the fact that the short term signing of a 33-year-old pushes the up and coming junior players at QPR further down the pecking order. What must Tom Hitchcock, who has done nothing but score for the EDS squad in pre-season and the start of this campaign, and already has a first team goal to his name this season, be thinking today? At most other clubs injuries to two of the three senior strikers would see him thrown in, but then this isn't most other clubs.

But then, to be fair to Harry Redknapp and QPR, this could turn out to be a shrewd move with few risks. Redknapp brought neither Zamora nor Johnson to Loftus Road , and has little hope of getting rid of either of them. Zamora wouldn't pass the physical for life insurance never mind another football club and the one sniff of interest in Johnson at the end of the transfer window was eagerly seized upon but came too late for a replacement to be loaned in.

It's certainly not Redknapp's choice to start the season with those two as his only options bar Austin. What would be really gratuitous is if QPR had signed a couple more strikers on top of them, leaving Johnson and Zamora kicking their heels on God knows how much a week. The fact the rest of the division can’t afford such luxuries is not a reason for QPR to turn down the chance if they can — we’re not working with a golf handicap system here.

And while Tom Hitchcock has looked promising, he's a product of a system at QPR that, as I've said before, isn't conducive to producing first team talent — given the standard of opposition it plays at youth and reserve level — and throwing kids in too early and too often helps neither them nor the team. Hitchcock is no child at 21, but he's learning his trade and was previously released by Blackburn, and not even selected to start every week while on loan at Bristol Rovers last season. One close range strike against Ipswich doth not a great white hope make.

If Charlie Austin were to get injured this weekend then QPR would be left with nothing, so the chance to bring in a very experienced striker with a decent goal scoring record in some of Europe's best leagues, for free, on a short term contract, looks like a bit of a no brainer.

In many ways not automatically handing out a three year deal to an ageing, injury prone player might suggest QPR have learnt a lesson or two. Baby steps.

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georgiosfs added 05:07 - Sep 26 We certainly needed a experienced striker with injuries so this makes sense. Also on the plus side not that many years ago we would of given Chevanton a 2 year deal so slowly slowly (very slowly) our club is going about business the right way.
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QPR_ARG added 05:39 - Sep 26 All of this does nothing but reminding me of how Harry went on to say: "We don't need Duvan Zapata" (even if a lot of people keep saying he didn't join us because he failed his work permit application, which he didn't, or at least we will never know because QPR didn't send anybody to the hearing -so claim the other party-). It goes without saying we did need him then and more so now. Chevantón is over the hill and not even close to the level of performances Zapata would have given us. I like Crunchy, but it's clear this is an emergency signing and the way we are playing these days, we could have Messi up front but with the kind of service our striker (singular) is getting...I doubt he could do anything special. Now it's just a case of Chevanton being better than nobody else at all. At least he's a player who knows where the goal is. Fingers crossed he stays out of the infirmary for three months.

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DesertBoot added 08:18 - Sep 26 This is a sensible signing. Experienced striker on a three month deal. What I like the most is Redknapp had a chance to assess him first hand and took him on board - Zapata was rejected under similar cicumstances. A necessary addition rather than a player signed just fir the sake of it. Throw in Kranjcar and Phillips who are still off the pace, there are goals on the horizon.

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Spiritof67 added 08:37 - Sep 26 Thank goodness Austin failed his medical at Hull!
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danehoop added 08:39 - Sep 26 Seb, Zapata didn't seem to qualify for a work permit under the UK rules. The club could have got into a process of putting together a case, and maybe running through a whole appeal process too, but the chance of success was very low. I suspect the club considered how he fitted in and took a a look at him in training and then decided to cut their losses once the work permit situation became apparent. Expect to see him playing in Spain or Italy in a few years and being brilliant. That West Ham came to exactly the same conclusion, albeit without seriously looking at the player up close as we did, probably speaks volumes. Must confess I do wonder sometimes who advises the club on these issues because even a cursory look at the work permit requirements would probably have saved everyone a lot of time.

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YorkRanger added 08:56 - Sep 26 Sensible piece of business. Austin cant play 90 minutes in every game, so to support we have got on board a striker with a good goalscoring pedigree, who we have had a chance to have a good look at first and initially are only committed for 3 months. Nothing not to like about the deal.
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danehoop added 09:16 - Sep 26 Don't worry Spirit of Gregory or Holloway will I am sure find something.
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derbyhoop added 13:37 - Sep 26 Sensible signing for an emenergency situation - albeit not one of Harry's making. Chevanton's record suggests he obviously knows where the goal is. The doubts are whether, at 33, he can stay fit. But for a 3 month deal on sensible wages, there's very little downside. From the outside, I'd have liked to see Hitchcock get a chance but accept that the management see him every day. His goals at the end of his loan spell at Bristol Rovers, plus his exploits for the EDS team this year, suggest he is improving rapidly. He may still get a chance but, more likely, he'll be sent on loan to a L1 side, which will be a step up from the Reserves.

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R_Madrid added 22:46 - Sep 26 I'm a little surprised by this but don't feel it is a bad move.. like Clive says in the article and others comment, it is a no-lose situation really... but Harry, who may not have purchased Zamora and Johnson himself, did CHOOSE to sell, Mackie, Cisse, Bothroyd and loan Remy... let's not forget that.... oh poor Harry with no strikers!
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Antti_Heinola added 13:24 - Sep 27 dane - why on earth did the club go through all the time and expense of shipping Zapata over, agreeing a deal etc etc and only then come up against the work permit issue? It doesn't make sense. I have no idea whether this signing is sensible or not as I haven't seen this guy play lately. If he can do a good job short term, then fine, but we're only in this position because Harry placed far too much faith in Zamora who's patently been injured for months. Harry knew this. He let Cisse, Bothroyd, Mackie, Taarabt and DJ leave (can't blame him for Remy) and then pi$$ed about signing a fourth left back and two more midfielders on deadline day when it was obvious we needed a striker and cover at CB. Anyone could see that. So this isn't really sensible - it's desperation brought on by his own poor decisions in the summer. I think he was probably right to get rid of the players he did, but all teams need 4 strikers in a squad. That's standard, surely?

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RonisRs added 14:53 - Sep 27 Hello, other than Mackie why would we keep Cisse, who was so lazy and was far more ibteretd in his appearance. as for DJ and Bothroyd, I havent seen them making goal scoring headlines elsewhere. i think as a short term deal, it makes for good business.
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Antti_Heinola added 15:14 - Sep 27 Ron, read what i wrote again mate! Last line is key!
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Metallica_Hoop added 16:08 - Sep 27 I forgot to read this but agree with you.
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TacticalR added 18:27 - Sep 27 Hard to get excited about this, but we can only hope for the best.
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Phenting added 22:21 - Oct 3 Signing Chevanton is smart with Zamora and Johnson injured. Relying on injury-prone players isn’t ideal, and throwing in youth players too soon can hinder their growth. Chevanton’s experience could stabilize things until the regulars return.
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