Queens Park Rangers captain Adel Taarabt was voted The Championship’s Player of the Year for 2010 /11 at the Football League Awards ceremony at The Brewery in the City on Sunday night.
The Moroccan magician, signed from Tottenham Hotspur in the summer after a season spent on loan at Loftus Road, has already scored 15 goals over the course of this campaign and has created countless opportunities for others, as he slowly begins to refine the rougher edges of his game and grows into the role of leader, to which his manager has clearly attributed his talents.
Rangers’ midfield orchestrator and architect was bullish when asked about his feelings upon reflection at receiving the honour, stating: “I had a tough time at Tottenham…I want to go back to the Premier League”.
However, his tale took a tragic twist today as news emerged that he was withdrawn from Saturday’s game against Doncaster Rovers as a result of a family grievance, the 21-year-old having learned that his cousin had been shot and lost his life in Marseille, by a phone call on the morning of the match.
Taarabt has lauded his manager, Neil Warnock, in the past for wanting to “treat me like his son”, claiming “I work best with affection” and on Sunday night said "Sometimes I think God has brought this guy to me", so he would have again been pleased at Warnock’s insistence that he take the maximum amount of time off to be with his distressed relatives, rather than take part at the Keepmoat Stadium at the weekend. The former Crystal Palace trainer may feel that his star man will be more than worth the wait if he can return in time to lead his charges in one final shunt towards promotion.
Swansea City’s Scott Sinclair, formerly of Chelsea, QPR, Crystal Palace and Charlton, came in third behind Taarabt and Grant Holt of Norwich City for the evening’s most prestigious prize. And there was further cause for celebration in the Capital as Watford-born Craig Mackail-Smith bagged League One’s top gong as recognition of his impressive 27-goal tally this term for Peterborough, ahead of Glenn Murray of Brighton and Hove Albion and Charlton’s ever-improving Bradley Wright-Phillips. Ex-QPR caretaker manager Gareth Ainsworth, 37, was nominated for League Two Player of the Year but missed out to Bury’s Ryan Lowe, while Leyton Orient’s Dean Cox was unfortunate to be edged out by Oldham Athletic’s Dean Furman in the Mitre Goal of the Year competition, despite being acknowledged for his stunning strike against Huddersfield Town in September.
Finally, former Chelsea assistant Coach, Crystal Palace and Wimbledon manager and Leyton Orient youth Coach, not to mention one-time Sutton United and Tooting and Mitcham United defender, Dario Gradi, received a special accolade for his contribution to league football, following a 24-year stint at Crewe Alexandra, to where he has since returned in order to continue coaching. Fulham’s Danny Murphy was among the admirers as tributes predictably poured in from all over the country.
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