This article is part of Football League World’s ‘The Verdict‘ series, which provides personal opinions from the FLW writers regarding the latest breaking news, teams, players, managers, potential signings and more…

QPR have emerged as an interested party in Bournemouth defender Steve Cook, as per a report from Football Insider. 

The report states that the R's have joined Watford with an interest in the vastly experienced central defender.

According to The Sun, Newcastle United are also in pursuit of securing a deal for the 30-year-old, with former Cherries boss Eddie Howe at the helm at St James' Park.

 

 

Cook has been restricted to just 236 minutes of Championship action so far this season, with the defender just 13 Bournemouth appearances away from 400.

Three of our writers here at FLW have shared their thoughts regarding this potential deal...

Chris Thorpe

I think it would be an interesting signing for the R’s but I’m not sure if Cook would be a regular starter.

He is now into his 30s, so would potentially be a back up option when everyone is fully fit and available.

However it has to be said that he has impressed since breaking back into the Bournemouth side recently under Scott Parker.

This has perhaps convinced QPR that he could be worth a punt, so it will be intriguing to see if the player himself chooses to see out the season with the Cherries or not.

Overall this could be a smart, low cost option for the West Londoners to pursue.

Alfie Burns 

It probably wouldn’t be a bad idea QPR signing a touch more experience in the January transfer window.

Mark Warburton’s side has a good balance right now and they’ve got themselves into a strong position heading into the second-half of the season. However, there’s never a bad time to add someone of Cook’s calibre.

The centre-back has bags of experience, not just at EFL level, but he’s also played in the Premier League.

He’d want to play more football than he has been doing at Bournemouth, which might be an issue. Apart from that, there’s no denying he’d add something to the QPR squad.

As January deals go, it won’t be the biggest or the most talk about, but it’s still a positive agreement for QPR to look to wrap up.