Anzhi Makhachkala director German Tkachenko believes Queens Park Rangers “lost their minds” when they signed Chris Samba.
Samba moved from Anzhi on the final day of the transfer window after QPR triggered the £12.5m release clause in his contract and agreed a basic wage, not including bonuses, of £65,000-a-week.
Tkachenko claims Samba, who was on £100,000-a-week at Anzhi, was devastated to leave and has questioned why QPR spent so much on the 28-year-old.
He said: “At QPR he’ll earn almost as much as he did at Anzhi. In my view, QPR have lost their minds.
“When they agreed to pay his release fee we wept. He wept. Everybody says that he ran away from the club, but that’s not true.
“He didn’t put any pressure on the club until we received an offer from QPR for £12.5m.”
Rangers were desperate to sign a centre-half having been rooted to the bottom of the Premier League for most of the season and seeing key defender Ryan Nelsen leave to take charge of Toronto FC.
When asked about the family reasons which played a key part in Samba (above) returning to the UK, just one year after joining Anzhi from Blackburn, Tkachenko said: “It was linked to the threat that he would lose contact with his children. That was a big blow. He was a guy who loved all of us. And besides, he is a very good defender. He is one of the top five defenders currently playing in Europe.
“If we are successful and playing in the Champions League, I dream Samba will play for Anzhi again.”
QPR, who do not have a game this weekend, today left for a training camp in Dubai.
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