One thing the QPR faithful at Newcastle won’t see is the famous Kazenga LuaLua backward somersault if he scores.
The Brighton loanee didn’t do it with his parent club, and he’s not about to start with Rangers.
His mum and dad will be just two of the 52,000 at St James Park, having trekked all of two miles from where they live in Gosforth on the city’s periphery.
What’s more LuaLua supports the Magpies, and it was there he started his career. And it was there he remained for four mostly fruitless years.
Denied the left-wing spot by Jonas Gutierrez, the Brighton loanee is determined to make up for lost time over the last two seasons as Seagulls also shoved him down the pecking order.
He was the only consolation from the drab 2-1 defeat to Burton at the weekend, and he would like nothing better than a goal and a muted celebration.
He said: “I honestly can’t remember the last time I played 90 minutes.
“When I knew QPR wanted me I spoke to my agent – and I’m glad – the lads here at Rangers have welcomed me and helped me settle in.”
LuaLua deflected any talk of a permanent move with a year left on his Brighton contract at the end of the season.
After all, if he shines at Rangers, and Brighton get into the Premier League, they might want him back.
“At the moment, it’s game by game,” he said. “Anything can happen in football. I’m 26 years old, and it’s good for me to play games. That’s what I want to do above all else.”
Rs boss Ian Holloway got lucky at the third time of asking when he got LuaLua earlier in the month.
Attempts to get the player, when Ollie was at Crystal Palace and Millwall, fell on stony ground.
“He tried three times at Palace and Millwall, and now I’m finally here.”
Keep up to date with the latest news in west London via the freegetwestlondonapp. You can even set it to receive push notifications for all the breaking news in your area.
Available to download from the App Store or Google Play for Android now!
