41. Dan Shittu

Danny Shittu is a tall and powerful defender who has become something of a legend at QPR over the last decade.

He earned a good reputation during his loan spell at Blackpool in the 2000/01 season and in the reserves for Charlton. Shittu though struggled to get into the Charlton first team and joined QPR on loan in October 2001 making his debut the same day at Peterborough. Shittu impressed during that game but was sent off and his suspension restricted the amount of games he could play for the club.

Danny was then given some time away from the club after his father passed away shortly after he joined us. Shittu appreciated the gesture shown by QPR and a month later he was given his home debut against Swindon. It didn't take long for him to become a big favourite with many fans comparing him to former defender Bob Hazel.

His loan was extended for another month and he grabbed his first goal for the club at Chesterfield with a great header. The Rangers fans wanted him to stay and as his loan came to an end the Winton brothers stepped forward again. This time they have paid the initial £250,000 fee for Shittu.

Shittu made his debut for Nigeria in March 2002 and was put on standby for the Nigerian World Cup squad after he just missed out on a place in the final 23.

Shittu started the 2002/03 season reasonably well but looked a lot stronger when Clarke Carlisle came into the team and the pair of them produced a solid defensive partnership. During Rangers bad run in November, Danny Shittu’s confidence hit a massive low.

The QPR fans begun to get on his back after some poor performances and following some barracking by QPR fans and some awful racist abuse by the Luton fans, he left the pitch in tears after a 0-0 draw against Luton.

Shittu's form was not to blame for our bad run but his no nonsense style forced criticism upon him from QPR fans. Ian Holloway defended his man saying that he doesn't pay Shittu to pass the ball just to get rid of it and do his defensive job.

As the season wore on Shittu seemed to grow in confidence as his hoofs were greeted by some groans but he was doing his job in getting the ball away from our goal and helped build a number of clean sheets and solid defensive displays.

Those groans soon turned to cheers when the forward began taking chances and Shittu’s no nonsense defensive displays began to look far more impressive. As the season wore on Shittu looked almost unbeatable in defence as he won everything in the air and came forward to chip in with seven goals.

His performance in the playoff semi final against Wayne Andrews and in the final against Robert Earnshaw was quite simply sensational as he proved what a superb player he is and showed why he was so highly rated by Ian Holloway.

The following season he started where he let off dominating opposition forwards and got better with every game. His performance against first division Sheffield United showed what a good player he can become but sadly injury struck him down just as he was producing some of the best football of his career.

A knee ligament injury was picked up at Sheffield United and ruled him out for two months. He returned to a heroes welcome in the home game against Plymouth. With Rangers 1-0 up and needing a boost, Shittu came on to a huge ovation and helped inspire the team to 3-0 win and take us top of the league.

He was soon back in the first team from the start and performances got better as he kept top strikers of the time like Leon Knight as quiet as a mouse as Rangers stayed in the contention for promotion.

A loss of form had the critics on his back but he seemed to be struggling with his knee again before disaster struck and his cruiciate ligament in his knee was torn leaving him out of action for nine months.

QPR fan Paul Lovell set up a website to offer messages of support to Shittu and the big defender was said to be delighted by the response of the fans which made him desperate to get back to full fitness.

Shittu made his long awaited return to the first team in a low key way. He played for half an hour against Swansea in the league cup first round before returning to the reserves.

His first taste of Championship football came late in the win over Brighton and since then he never looked back. Shittu quickly proved his quality looking one of the best defenders in the division as he gained more confidence the more he played.

The 2005/06 season was a strange season for Dan Shittu. He won the main player of the year awards from the players and the fans, was given the captains armband for almost half of the season but never really reached the peak performances that we knew he was capable of.

It all started well enough for Shittu with solid displays in the first three games as we went joint top of the table. At Coventry though he was exposed time and time again as he let his emotions get the better of him after a row in the tunnel with Dele Adebola.

Shittu was eventually sent off and banned for three games. He returned against Southampton with a goal and a much better performance and was back to the Shittu we all know and love.

His whole season though was one of frustration. He only ever looked comfortable alongside Matthew Rose in the heart of defence and spent most of his time trying to do not only his job but cover for mistakes of team mates.

His own game appeared to suffer with the added pressure of being captain and he appeared to grow frustrated that his own heroics in defence were being wasted by other peoples mistakes and a complete lack of protection from the midfield.

Shittu was always a threat at set pieces but his bizarre decision to try and take free kicks from 30 yards out become somewhat annoying by the end of the season as he smashed shots high over the bar whilst better set piece takers stood and watched.

He did hit a few on target and the sight of him bringing the ball from his own half and then smashing a 40 yard shot just wide or straight at a bemused keeper was one of the few highlights of the season.

He left QPR in the summer of 2006 and joined newly promoted Watford and it did fill me with a sense of pride seeing him perform at the highest level and he did reasonably well in helping Watford to an FA Cup semi final but sadly in the end was relegated from the top flight. He was a star man for them back in the Championship though helping them to the playoffs and he looked their best player whenever I watched them on TV that season.

He left Watford to join Bolton but found first team football hard to come by for the next few years. He featured for Nigeria in the World Cup facing the likes of Messi in South Africa but out of contract he struggled to find a new club before Millwall offered him a short term deal. After impressing for them he moved back to QPR in January 2011 which proved to be a popular move. His second debut for QPR came against Ipswich Town and he was outstanding that night, winning headers, getting blocks in and was probably our biggest attacking threat. He gave everything that night and looked very emotional at the end as he kissed his QPR badge and thanked the fans for their support.

He featured in the next few games as Rangers kept clean sheets in his first three starts but he was sent off in the defeat at Millwall and struggled to get back in the side. A poor performance at Scunthorpe saw him back out of the side he returned at Watford when we needed him most and after a shaky start he was superb for the team and helped us clinch promotion.

In what could well prove to be his final game for QPR he was brought on as a sub against Leeds United as a forward and almost scored in front of the loft.

Shittu has been an excellent servant to QPR and a wonderful ambassador for the club always willing to speak to fans and pose for pictures and will be a player and a person that will never be forgotten by QPR fans.

Click here to go back to the Defenders Page