Exclusive: Paul Nardi talks "perfect" QPR move, why Marti Cifuentes' signed him, and replacing Asmir Begovic | OneFootball

Paul Nardi has been speaking exclusively to FLW

QPR will have a new number one between the sticks when they take the field for Saturday's Championship opener against West Bromwich Albion and summer signing Paul Nardi will be fulfilling a "dream" when he faces the Baggies at Loftus Road.

The 30-year-old Frenchman has lined up alongside Kylian Mbappe, faced Lionel Messi, and played in the UEFA Conference League but the call from the Hoops was one that he could not resist.

Paul Nardi turned down other offers to join QPR

With Nardi's contract at Gent expiring in the summer, he had offers in Europe but joining Marti Cifuentes' project in W12 became his priority as soon as he heard the R's were keen.

"Because QPR is a big club," the French keeper explained in an exclusive interview with Football League World. "When I heard 'QPR', just 'QPR', it meant a lot to me. It's England. It's a dream for me to play in England so when QPR called my agent, it was very clear in my head and when I had discussions with the board and the coach, the goalkeeper coach, it was an easy decision.

"I had some other offers – a lot in Belgium and one in France – but to move to England at 30 years old, it's a good choice for me."

A chat with Cifuentes helped seal the deal, with the Spanish coach making it clear that he saw Nardi as the solution to his goalkeeper problem following Asmir Begovic's exit.

"He just said he wants a goalkeeper who can play with his feet," the former French U21 international said. "I think he saw that in me. I can improve, I'm not the perfect goalkeeper, I have to improve because when you're a goalkeeper you always have to improve. Football changes every day so you always have to adapt.

"I had a lot of good discussions with the coach about other things. I'm 30, I have a lot of experience. I can help the team to be the best."

Nardi added: "I really believe in this project. I believe this is a really good move for me. When you are happy and you come every day with a smile, ready to work hard and give the best of yourself, it's a perfect move.

"I'm a player that likes to train, to work hard, and to improve. I am very happy with this move, which I think is the most important thing."

Paul Nardi feels no pressure to replace Asmir Begovic

In the departing Begovic, who signed on a one-year deal last summer and was a mainstay under both Gareth Ainsworth and Cifuentes, the R's new keeper has big-name boots to fill but he doesn't see that as an issue.

"I don't feel pressure," he said. "I don't think I have to replace a big goalkeeper with a big name. It's true, before it was a very big goalkeeper, big name. He played for big teams but QPR is a big team. I don't have to look at what he has done. I have just to be focussed on my football."

In truth, Begovic is no longer the keeper that he was in his younger days and that he finished 2023/24 with the third-worst goals prevented (-7.8 as per FotMob) in the Championship suggests that a change should benefit Cifuentes' side rather than hurt them.

Nardi's profile makes him a better fit for the style of football that the R's boss wants to implement at Loftus Road and supporters can expect to see him playing a bigger part in build-up play than his predecessor.

"I am a dynamic keeper," the Frenchman said of his style as a keeper. "I like to play high on the pitch and try to help my defence a lot. I try and I like to play.

"It depends on the game, sometimes you can be high and sometimes you can't. If a guy is free not far from you, you have to drop, drop, drop.

"Just in the building position, if maybe we are in the middle zone building then I can be higher to be an additional player. Maybe when there is a counter-attack but I have to feel if there is a ball on for the runners and if I can cover that or I have to get distance.

"I like to play high but it's not like I always play in the middle of the pitch. I am first a goalkeeper but I know the coach wants a keeper that is very connected with the rest of the team."

However, it is not lost on Nardi that commanding his box is going to be important in a division where teams are not afraid to go direct when needs must – with long throws something he's playing particular attention to.

On what he's expecting from the Championship, he said: "I heard a lot and I've seen a lot. Kick and rush football, a lot of boom boom, a lot of crosses, in England more than other competitions. For a goalkeeper, I expect a lot of crosses and balls into the box. In Belgium, there is a lot of the same.

"The long throw-ins I've seen in pre-season, crazy, but all the players told me every game is like this. It's a little new but you do see that in Europe, in France and in Belgium, that some teams do the same. I have to adapt."

Given his struggles on the pitch at times last term, it may be that the impact of the exit of Begovic, who has played for Chelsea, AC Milan, and Everton in a career that has spanned nearly two decades, will be felt most in the dressing room and amongst the younger goalkeepers but Nardi is confident of what he can offer in that regard too.

"I already take this position," he said on being a leader for the R's trio of young shot-stoppers – Joe Walsh (22), Matteo Salamon (20), and Murphy Mahoney (22) – to follow.

"It was also for the club a goal. I really want to help the young guys, like I want to improve also. We have to work a lot for all four keepers to be the best. I am older than the three boys but they speak a lot with me, they have some questions and I have some for them. We have a very good group of goalkeepers for the moment so I'm very happy to have these guys with me."

Paul Nardi excited by what 2024/25 Championship campaign may bring

Saturday's game will be the 30-year-old's first taste of competitive English football. He came through the academy of French side Nancy before securing a £2.5 million move to Monaco in 2014.

He struggled to make an impact for the Ligue 1 outfit, featuring just twice in a four-year spell that saw him play most of his football out on loan. A permanent move to Lorient in 2019 proved a success, however, as he helped them win promotion to the French top flight before moving onto Gent in 2022.

Two years on, the shot-stopper prepares to make his Championship bow and it's fair to say that he's expecting a raucous atmosphere at his new home.

He said: "Loftus Road was sold out for a friendly game. It's incredible. I don't think I've ever seen that in my career, it's unbelievable. I think all the players want to start the season for this feeling. It's very important to have our home very together and I think we can build some good things together."

There is plenty of optimism among the W12 faithful ahead of Cifuentes' first full season at the helm. He led a miraculous turnaround to help them avoid the drop after replacing Ainsworth back in October and now the Hoops want to compete higher up the table. The addition of Nardi should help with that aim but the R's could do with a few more attacking reinforcements.

The new number one is already singing off Cifuentes' hymn sheet, reiterating the party line that QPR are not getting ahead of themselves.

"It's clear our goal is to take it game after game," he said. "We're just going to try to win each game, to do all that we can to do that. We don't have a plan for the future, we're just taking it game after game. The first one is coming, a big one at home, and we have to try to win that game."