QPR - The Verdict

AlGard

UTC Legend
First half:
Pass the prozac.
QPR first to most things, harrying us from the off.
Our defence with so many passes that went awry.
Bego with a couple of good saves.

2nd Half.
Started the same, impetus was needed.
Danjuma gave us that and we looked better.
Lewis Cook pulled out of a few 50/50's, which was strange for him.
Smithy ineffective.
We look tired already.
It was a far too comfortable point for QPR.
Still the "invincibles", but you won't get promoted with 40 draws.
 
Atrocious game
Got a point
Look knackered
FFS International break
If Danjuma is fit, why the hell isn't he starting
Solanke so frustrating
 
We couldn’t break them down today so our best chance was going to be from crosses, yet JT took Surridge off. We just needed to go for it switching to 4-4-2 and leaving him up top for that other option. It was so obvious Smith and Stacey just weren’t giving us enough on the wings.
 
Team looked tired and flat.

If we want to push for automatic promotion we really need King not to sulk from now to Jan. Can't see us getting more than 20-25 goals from Surridge and Solanke combined, they work hard but lack a cutting edge.

Positives were Bego, Rico, Mepham and no injuries.
 
We couldn’t break them down today so our best chance was going to be from crosses, yet JT took Surridge off. We just needed to go for it switching to 4-4-2 and leaving him up top for that other option. It was so obvious Smith and Stacey just weren’t giving us enough on the wings.
Ironically our only lofted crosses of the game came after we took Surridge off. Thats not Solanke's game, head like a 50 pence piece
 
First half boring, second half slightly better in places. Definite pro is Begovic looks solid which is a bonus having that settled for now. Defence looked solid too just silly passes putting us in trouble occasionally.

For me we have too much forward talent to be play 3 centre backs and 3 centre mids. It's one or the other unless you are just playing to be solid and not get beat. It puts a lot of pressure on the wing backs to provide which they struggled with today (two right footers another question with balance). Which leave two strikers with not a lot to feed off of.

Lets get a front 3 out there and pick to load up either defence or midfield you can't do both.
 
Team looked tired and flat.

If we want to push for automatic promotion we really need King not to sulk from now to Jan. Can't see us getting more than 20-25 goals from Surridge and Solanke combined, they work hard but lack a cutting edge.

Positives were Bego, Rico, Mepham and no injuries.

20-25 goals . They won’t make 20-25 passes for the season
 
I did warn everyone Dom and Sam won't score enough to get us promoted when everyone was trying to sell Josh.
 
Good job they didn’t seem bothered about scoring. Are we writing off Brooks as just the odd cameo in which case we need to keep Danjuma and Stan fit ? Hard to see where goals are going to come from, at least enough to keep us at or near the top. We’ll be punished by better sides for the kind of mistakes Steve Cook is still prone to. Still doesn’t hurt to dampen the early euphoria with a bit of reality does it.
 
At Cardiff and Watford our 4 best attackers need to be starting - King, Brooks, Arnie and Junior because they will be our toughest games yet.
 
One dimensional - no one holding and thinking about the next pass. Need a fit Brooks or a youngster - Kilkenny? Barely a mid-table performance.
 
--- Conclusions v QPR ----

Warburton did a number on JT today, particularly in the first half. One of the things to come out of the Coventry game was that we were relying on both wing backs to provide all the width for the team and it was a lot on their shoulders. At times they were looking for a player that wasn’t there to interplay with even though we dominated that match.

QPR set up to force them both back with wide forwards pushing right on them and thus completely nullify our threat down the flanks in the first half. It was very effective and something of which other teams will have taken note.

At the same time, the centre of the park was a congested mess. Nobody looking for that threaded ball through and close interplay often resulting in a stray pass giving away possession. The same could be said for the playing out from the back. We were lucky QPR failed to capitalise on those chances, although a hat tip to Begovic for being on top of the threats.

The second half we showed more ambition with Rico in particular getting forward to support on his side. If we want to persist with this formation it’s essential this happens more and on both sides. Having a wrong footed fullback is problematic when we want them to burst down the line and swing in crosses.

With none of the 3 CMs providing guile, two strikers that need service provided to them and little coming from wide we looked exceptionally poor going forward. The difference Danjuma made was marked in being a forward that can also create. It didn’t pay off but JT needs to learn from this.

The match as a whole was pretty insipid with an officious ref repeatedly helping to break up our attacks by calling things back to award us a free kick. The rest of our play wasn’t his fault but he certainly helped to suck any pace from the game.

QPR were midtable last season and I’m not sure I saw anything to show they’ll be anything more this season. A better team would have scored against us today. Having said that, their fans must be wondering how one earth we had ten points before today so maybe it was an off day for everyone.

Selected player comments:

Asmir Begovic
Smart off his line to snuff out a threat when we gave the ball away, down quick for a routine but important save from a snap shot. Great quick long throw to set up an attack. Looked completely assured at all times. A keeper reborn? Well we haven’t seen one of those point winning performances keepers at the top of their game sometimes produce but he hasn’t needed to do that as yet. Done everything that’s been asked for him and looking more and more confident by the match. Great to see.

Diego Rico
Becoming more and more essential to the team by the match at the moment. Mostly solid defensively and second half started to get forward. Although he’s made that LCB role his own, I think I’d prefer Kelly to go back in there and push him into the left wing back role to provide a better tactical balance for the team as a whole.

Adam Smith
His winger had him on toast for the first quarter of the match and he looked every inch a right back at left back. Improved after that but when he went to the right during the second half he looked so much more comfortable. I think this is a tactical rather than individual issue. We need a left footer in the left wing back role. Let’s hope Daniels is close to securing a contract as any scout worth his salt will have this marked as a weakness for the thick and fast games coming up.

Sam Surridge
Still early but I’m getting suspicious that he may have a problem. We know in ref briefings they sometimes single out players to watch and it’s starting to look like he’s somehow ended up on that list. For the second game running anytime he challenged for the ball a free kick was given against him. For the second game running anytime he was fouled it was waved away.

In the first half he was shoved by a defender and so went back in with a weaker shove but somehow had a free kick go to QPR. Then in the second a QPR player went to ground and kicked him and was somehow awarded a free kick in an, at best, egregious moment from the ref.

I’m not sure what he can do but it’s an unpleasant pattern developing for a young player in his first two league starts for us. You could see his frustration developing, I hope he can keep a lid on it.

Danjuma
Some silky skills but he needs to release the ball sometimes as well. He won’t beat every team single-handedly. I hope and expect him to start on Wednesday though.

Overall grade for today: D
All in all a pretty lifeless performance where JT was out-thought by his opposite number. A point is still a point but sometimes you look at the balance of play rather than the score for a more realistic picture. Sadly, I can’t say we deserved more than we got and we could almost count ourselves lucky to get that.

It’s a quick turnaround to Wednesday but one of King (if his head is in the right place), Brooks, Junior or Danjuma needs to start then since they’re the creative forces for the team and change how the opposition have to deal with us.
 
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