Former Reading star Garath McCleary revealed that he would have retired were it not for new Queens Park Rangers boss Gareth Ainsworth.

'Wild Thing' was in charge of Wycombe Wanderers for over a decade and signed McCleary following his release from Reading in 2020.

Making over 200 appearances for the Royals, winger McCleary had fallen out of favour in Berkshire after eight years.

Now with over 100 appearances for the Chairboys and hitting some of the best form of his career, the 35-year-old wrote a special dedication to the new QPR boss.

On his Instagram account, he said: "Without him I would’ve retired, he’s seen me at my most vulnerable, given advice as a friend and managed to help me excel WAY younger than my years.

"It’s a bitter sweet moment but he definitely deserves his opportunity to lead a club of such stature."

A scorer of some great goals for Reading- including two against the Loftus Road outfit in the 2013/14 season- the veteran even made sure to send a message to the QPR fans on what to expect under the popular Berkshire resident.

"#QPR fans - as much as I’ve read he may not have a style everyone loves but one thing he can do (which many managers can’t) is bring a group together to fight, dig deep and run through any obstacle faced."