A dispiriting home draw means Hughes’ side have gone without a win for the first ten matches of the season. What are the main points QPR will come away from the game with?
Play from the first minute. It wasn’t until the 40th minute that QPR really started coming into the game. A strong second half showing looked more like the side that has performed well in recent matches, but given their lack of a clinical edge upfront, allowing the other side a 40 minute head start makes it very hard for them to turn games around. That said, they very nearly did take the points at Loftus Road, and but for McCarthy’s two excellent saves from Granero and Taarabt they would have won the match. This makes their start all the more frustrating, had they played half as well in the first half as they did in the second, you have to feel QPR would have won the match.
Traore and Bosingwa. QPR’s are full backs are undoubtedly fast, and going forward they can look dangerous, Bosingwa demonstrated this by providing the assist for Cisse. However both look unconvincing at the back, and their frequently poor positioning leaves their central defence exposed.
Samba Diakite. I have criticised Diakite many times in the past, his penchant for needless fouls and yellow cards can make him detrimental to his team’s efforts. However he was perhaps the best QPR player on the pitch against Reading, with his powerful forward runs creating openings for the likes of Taarabt and Hoilett to exploit. If he can produce this kind of display more frequently, he can become an important part of the side.
Adel Taarabt. Taarabt is another player I am unconvinced by. For all his flair, he can slow down QPR’s attacks and is often wasteful with his shooting. Today Taarabt came within a whisker of a goal when his trickery left him one on one with McCarthy, only for the keeper to deny him at point blank range. As always he’s a hard player to analyse, he still doesn’t look like the controlling creative force QPR need him to be, but was a threat on occasion. The question remains whether a more balanced and industrious, if less talented, midfielder would serve QPR better.
Be better without the ball. QPR’s passing can be a joy to watch, but their players are too easily pulled out of shape when they don’t have the ball. Some players press, some player stand off, and some just mill about, with the result that the opposition have plenty of space to work in. However they approach defending, the team needs to work together to limit the opposition.
image: © wonker
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