The Brentford defender was hoping for a chance at his beloved Queens Park Rangers.
Chris Mepham was told by Queens Park Rangers they couldn’t find a single attribute of his to work on – just years before Brentford rejected an offer of £6.5 million, plus add-ons, for him from Premier League Bournemouth.
Mepham has experienced a whirlwind six months, in which he has played 17 times for Brentford and won his first call up to Wales’ national team.
However, the picture wasn’t always so rosy for the 20-year-old, who was released by Chelsea and snubbed by Watford, before being dealt yet another blow by the club he’d supported since childhood – QPR.
Speaking to the Guardian on Wednesday, Mepham explained: “That’s my boyhood team. They had a meeting with me and said: ‘When we come to sign someone, we look at one thing which we might try and develop. But we can’t see anything we can work on with you.’
“That was very hard to hear. I remember my dad turned around and said: ‘He was at Chelsea for six years. There must be something there.’
“My mindset after that was awful; that took a massive chunk out of me.”
Discussing Bournemouth’s January offer, Mepham said: “I still can’t believe that sort of money was put on the table.
“I remember the day before deadline day I was having an afternoon nap and my dad came upstairs, and with a smile on his face said: ‘Your agent is on the phone.’
“When he told me what Bournemouth had offered, I couldn’t believe it. I’d only made eight league starts. It was so surreal. I just didn’t think that moment would ever come, especially five years ago.”
Mepham – who signed a new five-year deal shortly before stepping into Harlee Dean’s shoes at the heart of Brentford’s defence – is also said to have interest from Burnley ahead of the summer transfer window, while Bournemouth remain keen according to the Sunday Mirror.
And with QPR’s promotion hopes all but over for another year, Mepham looks a good bet to beat his boyhood club back to the Premier League.
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