Newcastle United assistant Jason Tindall contender for QPR manager job

Newcastle United assistant Jason Tindall is the latest name to be touted at the next QPR manager with the 47-year-old emerging as a potential frontrunner for the job over the past 24 hours.

The R’s put head coach Marti Cifuentes on ‘gardening leave’ on Tuesday evening after reports that the 42-year-old’s representatives had entered talks with West Brom over the vacant post at The Hawthorns. That came after the Baggies sacked Tony Mowbray last week.

The Sun reported that Cifuentes had a ‘breakdown’ in his relationship with QPR chief executive Christian Nourry in recent weeks and that Norwich City were also interested in his services. The R’s boss has helped the side survive two relegation scares since arriving in October 2023 and has regularly shared his frustration at managing an injury-plagued squad this term.

QPR place Marti Cifuentes on ‘gardening leave’

A club statement on Tuesday night read: “Marti Cifuentes has been placed on gardening leave. Assistant coaches Kevin Betsy and Xavi Calm will take charge of first-team affairs on an interim basis and prepare the squad for our final fixture of the 2024/25 campaign against Sunderland.”

Nourry also provided a statement and labelled the situation surrounding Cifuentes as ‘disappointing’. He said: “This is naturally a disappointing situation for everyone concerned. I fully understand and appreciate supporters’ frustrations at this time. As a club, we are working to ensure this matter is resolved as swiftly as possible so we can start preparations in earnest for the future.”

Former Wolves manager Gary O’Neil and Tottenham Hotspur assistant Ryan Mason were early frontrunners to take over from Cifuentes at Loftus Road. While the QPR head coach has not yet been sacked, all signs point towards a change in leadership this summer.

Former Lyon boss Pierre Sage, who led the French outfit to Europa League qualification last season but was sacked in January, and Leyton Orient head coach Richie Wellens have also been named as candidates, alongside Tindall.

The Newcastle United assistant is a name that has been put forward overnight. It comes after Tindall took charge of three Magpies fixtures with Eddie Howe fighting pneumonia. Newcastle United beat Manchester United 4-1 and Crystal Palace 5-0 before losing 4-1 to Aston Villa under Tindall.

The coach first worked as an assistant to Jimmy Quinn at AFC Bournemouth in 2008 and then began working with Howe on the south coach in 2009. Tindall then followed Howe to Burnley before returning to AFC Bournemouth in 2012.

When Howe left the club by mutual consent in 2020, Tindall took charge as caretaker boss and was then appointed manager a week later, signing a three-year contract. The manager was sacked in February 2021 after a disappointing run of form and eventually went to work with Howe at Newcastle United in November 2021.

Newcastle United assistant Jason Tindall known as ‘Mad Dog’

Tindall’s public profile has risen since at St James’ Park. He has become known as ‘Mad Dog’ for his character in the dugout alongside Howe. The Magpies manager is known for his cool head but his second in command boasts the opposite type of personality.

Tindall is the bad cop to Howe’s good cop and has clashed with Aston Villa manager Unai Emery and Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola in the past. Tindall was even shown a red card for his antics in a 20-man tunnel melee against Aston Villa in December.

Tindall has defended his character and recently told The Telegraph: “It’s not my intention to attract attention if that makes sense. People say I’ve got too high a profile for an assistant manager, how that has come about, but again, I don’t take any notice of it or think I’m going to do this to gain more attention.

“It’s part of my character, I don’t care what people think [including opposition managers]. I know who I am, the job I do and the influence I have over a lot of things. And the only thing I care about is doing my job the best I can for Newcastle United.

“I don’t care if I’m upsetting people along the way. People will probably judge the way I look, what I wear and how I behave. None of this is new to me. The reality is I do not give a s*** what people think and what people say because I’m confident in my own skin, I’m confident in what I do. If you don’t know me, what you think doesn’t matter in the slightest.”

In other news, QPR axe Marti Cifuentes after 'disappointing' links with West Brom and Norwich City.