'Sir Les' to head QPR football

London - Former England and QPR striker Les Ferdinand has answered his former club's call on Tuesday and agreed to become head of football operations in a bid to help turn around the fortunes of the Premier League's bottom club.

The 47-year-old, whose previous coaching experience was as assistant to Tim Sherwood at Tottenham Hotspur last season, will be involved with coaching all the different QPR teams and act as a go-between on the footballing side between the coaching staff and the board of directors.

Ferdinand, who scored 80 goals in 163 appearances for QPR from 1987-95, joins the team with them having lost five of their seven games so far, although they are just two points off fourth-bottom Everton.

The club said in a statement his task would be to 'oversee the structure of the footballing side of the club, focusing on improving the footballing philosophy at all levels'.

Ferdinand, the cousin of QPR defender Rio, said he did not hesitate when he was approached over the job.

"When the opportunity to return here in this role came up I jumped at the opportunity," he told the club's official website.

"There's nothing I want more than for QPR to be successful in the short, medium and long term and I'm excited about the challenge ahead."

Manager Harry Redknapp, who is the bookmakers' favourite among Premier League bosses to be sacked next, said Ferdinand's ties to the club made him an invaluable asset.

"Having someone like him involved with the club, someone who understands the history of it, can only be good for QPR," Redknapp said.