Spirits were raised by Flavio Briatore's announcement
Times are depressing enough for QPR fans as they stumble through the seemingly endless saga of chaos and farce that surrounds their club.
But spirits were raised by Flavio Briatore's announcement, in a rare newspaper interview, that he has no intention of leaving Loftus Road.
It was clear from the tone of the Daily Mirror story - a blatant example of shameless brown-nosing - that Briatore remains serious as the ordinary supporter as ever.
"Some fans, because they pay £20, want to criticise, we are cheaper than most though" said the Rangers co-owner .
The majority of fans fork out more than that at Loftus Road - and let's not forget, if Briatore had got his way last season, ticket prices would have been even Lower.
Rangers fans are eternally grateful to him for taking over the club in 2007 - although there were other parties who were keen to do so and would surely have made a worse job of it.
Instead of brilliant ideas about 'boutique football', brands and projects, more useless owners would have brought in people who didn't understand football to run the most important aspect of the business.
Managers, coaches and players come and go at an alarming rate and, after an initial surge away from the relegation zone two years ago, QPR have made lots of progress on the field for precisely that reason.
We all know neutrals who told you how they had a soft spot for QPR, how they liked the style of football and the atmosphere at Loftus Road.
We hear those voices all the time.
Instead we recall the Chelsea and Fulham fans at school who used to chant 'QPR-ha-ha-ha-ha' - and, back then, we would have responded in kind.
