Redknapp sticking to what he knows with QPR’s latest targets

Harry Redknapp has rekindled his interest in two old flames with the transfer deadline drawing ever closer.

His obsession with Peter Crouch hasn’t dwindled any if reports are to be believed, while a big money move for Christopher Samba – a man he’s tried to sign in just about every transfer window for the past three seasons – is also thought to be in the pipeline.

Crouch has found himself on the sidelines at Stoke in recent weeks after Kenwyne Jones stumbled across his shooting boots when he was clearing his garage out and Redknapp is keen to pair him up with Loic Remy in the R’s attack.

Amazingly, should he push through a move for the England international – who is thought to welcome a return to the nation’s capital – it would represent the fifth time they’ve teamed up across their careers.

It would take a substantial offer to get Tony Pulis to part with his record signing; possibly a full reimbursment of the £12m Arry squeezed out of the Potters at the end of the 2011 summer window.

Another big target that could be making a last-minute switch to west London is former Blackburn stopper Samba.

The Congolese behemoth was priced out of a move to White Hart Lane when Redknapp was at the helm before made to settle for deepest, darkest Dagestan in his desperate bid to escape Ewood Park.

It’s believed an offer of £10m might tempt Anzhi to cash in Samba though, of the two players, it’s his services who are more urgently required at Loftus Road than those Crouch will bring to the party.

There are plenty of attacking options at Redknapp’s disposal – ok, some of them aren’t that great – but after allowing Anton Ferdinand to move to Turkey and Ryan Nelsen set to follow him out the exit door, their already weak defence will be considerably weakened, at least in terms of numbers.

Samba would be a more than adequate replacement for either player and has proven his reliability in a relegation dog-fight situation from his Rovers days; he is undoubtedly the target upon which Redknapp should be focussing the bulk of his energy.

As it stands, QPR are priced at 13/8 to go down but, should they pull off one or both of these massive coups, expect to see these odds shorten in the not too distant future.

All odds and markets accurate as of publication’s time and date