Getting into teams, how did you start off by becoming, which non-league club was it?

Chronologically, I was at a place called Vikings, which was seen as a non-league club.

Then I went to Southall, spent probably about three, four years at Southall.

Blimey.

So I was a youth team player when I went there.

Got into the first team quite quickly.

And then so I was playing sort of like men's football at the age of 15, 16.

So as a question, what made you go in this direction rather than management?

Who do you think, who do you think would take that role, then?

I feel like they need to move to a more conventional midfield with more legs.

And I think that Bruno Fernandes has been given the license over the last three or four seasons, and he's been be- Manchester United's best signing post-Fergie.

But I feel like with conventional midfields, like an Arsenal or like City's over the year, or over the years, you need players who've got legs and players that stick within a structure.

And I think Bruno Fernandes kind of breaks that structure.

I think we saw that in the first game of the season.

And I feel like with the signing of André Santos, a player like Kobbie Mainoo, um, and, and with a player like Palhinha, I think you've just got more legs in that midfield and more conventional for what Manchester-

But that's not the case, 'cause there aren't many players who are just as good as him.

What was he like? What was he like to play for?

I mean, in terms of playing for it, I just...

You know, you knew that Newcastle's style of play was...

Well, a great example is he'd come into a changing room and whenever he came into a changing room before the game, with the team, the opposition's players, he'd look at the sheet and he'd always wait for these words of wisdom.

Oh, this one's playing, that one's playing, this one's playing.

And all he'd do, he'd just screw it up.

Throw it on the floor.

it's just interesting Les I wanted to ask you you were at the game I was at the game at the week I'm sure you loved it it was end to end a tribute to Kevin Keane what did you think of both teams

Mm.

So they've just invited me back for a, uh, for a game.

Um, but yeah, I was, uh...

How that came about, I would, I'd, I'd sort of like...

I'd came, I came into, uh, QPR the back end of a season, which was 1987.

I came in round about the end of March, so there was two months to go.

So I, I managed to make my debut in, in that time.

Right.

You went in, obviously, director of football at QPR, you know, what was that

like? Did you enjoy that role? I did.

I mean, there's parts of it you enjoy and there's parts that you don't.

But seeing it from a totally different side, you know, as players, we go in every day and we expect everything to be in place.

Everything we want...

the club tries to adhere to.

But there's a cost to that.

You're going to

didn't you know

you were prolific out there as well it's funny on my way here just had a call they've just invited me back in March they play Galatasaray so they've just invited me back for a game but yeah how that came about I came into QPR the back end of a season which was 1987.

I came in around about the end of March.

So there's two months to go.

So I managed to make my debut in that time.

And then the following season, it was my first pre-season ever that I'd ever done and found it tough and kind of had a few niggles.

So I didn't have a particularly good year in terms of like, I picked up some injuries and stuff like that.

nah you think about like Roy Wegelly's on the bench and Les Verdunan's up front yeah It's a good

Yeah.

what they was offering, they were offering me far more than anybody else.

And when I say that filtered down in terms of when I was looking at players, and I mean, I spoke about this before, there was, you know, there was one player we had pre-season, doesn't come back for pre-season.

You know, what you used to do was you get to the end of the season and what we used to do, you send a letter to every player's house saying this is the day we're back and they have to sign for it.

So it's not something that gets posted through the door so they go, oh, I know it never came and I have to sign for it.

So you know everybody's got their letter.

The secretary will send umpteen emails.

One was Ray Wilkins, this was the second.