What Now For The R's?

Another Saturday has come and gone leaving me with a sense of what if. Nine games into what was going to be a defining season for the hoops, a season where we would establish ourselves as an up and coming force in the Premier League, now sees us rock bottom of the league with no wins and only 3 points to our name.

Going to Arsenal on Saturday was a genuine chance to pick up 3 points. They were in poor form, losing to Norwich and Schalke in the space of a week and not only losing but playing poorly and lacking confidence. In my mind there was only one way to approach this game. Attack. We had to go for the jugular, show a ruthless side to our game. We needed to counter Arsenal's passing game with a high tempo high energy performance. We didn't. Instead we went to the Emirates seemingly looking for nothing more than a draw.

With Ji Sung Park missing the game through injury it seemed like the perfect opportunity to welcome back the massively talented Alejandro Faurlin to the starting lineup. Keep the same shape that looked strong for large parts of the game against Everton. It's important to match a team like Arsenal who look to dominate possession and control the midfield areas with a mirrored midfield setup. With Jack Wilshere returning for the Gunners there was no doubt some much needed quality returning to the Arsenal side, however after being out for so long through injury there was no doubt that we should go with 3 central midfielders and put him under real pressure. The worst thing we could've done was to allow ourselves to be outnumbered in the midfield department and give Wilshere the time and space to strike up an understanding with his new midfield partners Arteta and Cazorla which in turn would allow them as a trio to take control of the game. However, for reasons unknown Hughes decided to leave Faurlin on the bench and start Shaun Wright Phillips, whom has shown nothing but average to poor form during his time at Rangers.

This decision just didn't make sense for numerous reasons, firstly why change the shape of the team when we have been crying out for consistency all season? Secondly why choose Wright Phillips? For all his effort and enthusiasm he has never shown ability to match. He's not scored a league goal for us since he joined at the start of last season and his end product isn't dissimilar to that of a blind carpenter. If Hughes was looking for someone to put in a shift on the right hand side of midfield while still posing a goal threat then surely Jamie Mackie was a more obvious option? As it was it was plain for all to see that lining up the way we did left us exposed in the middle of midfield and gave us no real extra attacking threat.

As the first half played out I struggled to stay awake and felt that the game lacked noteworthy action. Arsenal as predicted enjoyed the bulk of possession as we showed the odd glimpse of causing a threat without actually creating any chances. The one positive to take into half time is that we defended reasonably well. The second half started with Arsenal continuing to have the bulk of the ball, with Jack Wilshere looking like their biggest threat. The time and space afforded to him was all to predictable, as Granero and Diakite worked hard but just couldn't cover enough ground. Our creative outlets were never able to get into the game because we could never really get a foothold on the game. We created a few more half chances as the game seemed to be meandering towards a 0-0 draw. To be honest with the amount of possession we had surrendered in this game, I was happy taking the draw at this point and the clean sheet would be welcomed with open arms. Then without doubt the moment that changed this game. An absolute moment of madness.

A corner swung into the QPR area and harmlessly rolled away towards the corner flag opposite, chasing the ball were Thomas Vermaelen and Stephane M'bia. As they came together to challenge for the loose ball M'bia went down and was awarded a free kick, then M'bia swiped a long, gangly leg out at Vermaelen. I screamed "What are you doing?" in the knowledge that as the referee approached the scene of the incident, that M'bia was a goner. The referee wasted no time in producing the red card just as M'bia wasted no time running off the pitch and disappearing down the tunnel to jump into an early bath. I sat there watching the replay of the act of madness in utter bemusement. What was he thinking of? Just like Joey Barton's episode at Man City at the end of last season, this was another thoughtless and selfish act by a player that should know better. Only M'bia will know why he did what he did, an inexcusable act.

The sending off caused a reshuffle of our pack. Jamie Mackie who had only recently been brought on now had to fill in at right back while Jose Bosingwa tucked in as a centre back. What ensued saw the last 10 minutes of this game deliver more in terms of action than it had in the previous 80 minutes of football. Julio Cesar earned his man of the match performance with some outstanding saves made, 1 in particular from the backside of Nedum Onouha that seemed to defy gravity as he scooped the ball away with his left hand when it had seemingly passed him.

As it was the game was decided by an offside goal. A number of Rangers fans have since been bemoaning our luck in conceding a goal that shouldn't have stood, but in reality it was a very difficult decision for the linesman to make in real time. The goal stemmed from the sending off, with Jamie Mackie getting beaten far too easily by Andrei Arshavin, allowing the Russian winger to deliver a ball that eventually, at the 3rd time of asking and after another brilliant save by Cesar, saw Arteta tap in the ball from a yard out to nick an undeserved win for Arsenal. That isn't to say that QPR deserved to win. We didn't, but a draw was a fair result. However, what was really disappointing aside from the manner of the sending off and the way we lost after defending pretty well for most of the game, was the attitude and manner in which Hughes sent the team out to play. We should've taken the game to Arsenal. The flurry of chances we created in the last 5 minutes showed that they were there for the taking. We showed them far too much respect and paid the price in a painful way.

This game highlighted to me that we are lacking a goal scoring threat, especially with Bobby Zamora looking like he couldn't give two hoots about scoring or getting into scoring positions at the moment. Cisse seems to have lost his fire he seems disinterested, while Hoilett and Taarabt for all their quality are not out and out goal scorers. Hughes is now not only getting his tactics wrong and not changing them soon enough once they aren't working but he also seems to be lacking the motivational aspect required of a successful manager. The players don't look like they are fighting for him and this is worrying. We face Reading next in what now seems like an absolutely massive game if we are going to get out of this rut we are in and not picking up points.

From watching Reading this season, one thing is for sure they will be up for the game. If Hughes cannot motivate the players that he has to put in a performance and once again fails to deliver tactically, then I think to add to the games and players he seems to be losing we may well see him lose his job. I desperately want to see him turn it round but he can only do that by looking at the mistakes he has made week after week this season and admit that they are mistakes. Only then can he understand where he is lacking and begin to deliver what is required to the club and the fans. It's make or break time Mr Hughes, you now need to deliver because the ice below you is becoming ever thinner.

1 Point Gained or 2 Points Lost?

The international break has finally passed, us football fans can now enjoy 3 months of glorious, uninterrupted Premier League football. For the QPR fans amongst us this comes with a disclaimer that this may or may not be so glorious but at the very least it will be uninterrupted.

It's safe to say that no game seems like an easy game on current form, but an in form and on fire Everton team was far from an ideal opponent to get the season underway with a first league win. To be honest before the game a first league win of the season seemed as likely to happen as a presidential campaign party being thrown for Barack Obama in Serbia. The news then filtered through of the starting line ups. At last, a starting line up without glaring weak spots. A 5 man midfield consisting of the returning Samba Daikite, Estaban Granero and our captain Ji Sung Park but more importantly and excitingly both Adel Taarabt and Junior Hoilett both starting as foils for our lone striker Bobby Zamora. Defensively, we all breathed a collective sigh of relief when we saw that Clint Hill wouldn't be tormenting us with another start at left back as Armand Traore returned. This had the look of our best starting eleven, a team Hughes could play week in and week out.

With the rain steadily teaming down onto the lush Loftus Road surface, the game began with Everton forcing the issue almost instantly. "Just don't concede an early goal again Rangers" was my mantra for the first 2 minutes of the game. Then from an Everton corner which was cleared by Julio Cesar, Junior Hoilett won a 50/50 challenge and broke into wide open space in his own half. He turned on the after burners and was running directly at the heart of the Everton defence. I screamed "Pass it to Adel, pass it to Adel!" but Junior only had one thing on his mind. He just kept running and with the Everton defence backtracking he worked the ball onto his right foot and from 20 yards out drilled a low shot which took a wicked deflection off Leighton Baines and looped over the despairing Tim Howard. A dream start for the superhoops and a slice of luck that Junior Hoilett's direct and clinical breakaway deserved, Loftus Road was buzzing and the relief the goal had brought so early on in the game was very welcome. Now we needed to hold on to this lead and then build upon it. I certainly wasn't going to be comfortable with a slender 1-0 lead for the rest of the game.

Our midfield were pressing higher up the field than usual, a tactic that was throwing Everton off their usual attacking game and with no Marrouane Fellaini in this game for them they looked lacking up front, this really was a huge chance to take the first 3 points of the season and begin our ascent up the league table. Granero was controlling the game, spraying passes to whomever he wanted to with an unerring accuracy. Samba Diakite was as bruising and enthusiastic as ever, but he looked more controlled and focused. His direct running also gave us another attacking outlet. We looked like the side we had shown glimpses of throughout the start of this season. At this rate our only concern was just how far up the table we were going to climb, the optimism and swagger that playing well and winning brings was back. Then, out of nowhere after giving away a sloppy free kick, Leighton Baines delivered an average ball into our box and somehow the 6ft 4in Sylvain Distin was left completely unmarked to head the ball down towards the bottom corner of Julio Cesar's goal, only for the ball to cruelly hit the post and hit the backside of the Brazilian shot stopper for Everton's equaliser. Who was picking Distin up? It's not like he creeped into the area unnoticed, he is a beast of a man and should've been priority number one to be marked for the set piece. It almost happened in slow motion as the ball floated in I had enough time to scream "Who the hell is marking him? Someone close him down!" but nobody could answer my cries. It was another schoolboy error to add to the multitude of schoolboy errors we have made this season. To say I was disappointed was an understatement, after so much promise of a fresh start we had slipped back to our defensively lacking ways.

We were momentarily rattled. Everton almost instantly nearly scored again from another set piece, this time a corner that found Phil Jagielka in acres of space only for his header to crash against the Rangers crossbar to safety. We were the proverbial boxer on the ropes, legs wobbling, eyes unfoccused ready to be set upon again by an unforgiving opponent. Fortunately we rode the short lived storm, and retaliated with some counter punches of our own, albeit lacking any real sting or purpose.

The second half lacked the fluidity of the first. The referee was trigger happy with his whistle and really didn't let the game flow, blowing up constantly for free kicks, some justified and some not. Then an opportunity was handed to Rangers, as Steven Pienaar received a second yellow card for what seemed like an innocuous foul on Jose Bosingwa. As the South African was given his marching orders, the sense of expectation flowed back into Loftus Road. However, it was Everton that created the best chances after this point although QPR had the bulk of possession, with Julio Cesar denying Phil Jagielka from close range to ensure we got at least a point out of the game. It was massively disheartening to see how little we were able to create after Everton went down to 10 men, but that was not only down to our lack of attacking prowess but also to some superb defending in particular by Phil Jagielka, who on numerous occassions put his body on the line to thwart any potential goal scoring chances.

So, was it 1 point gained or 2 points lost? Pre game, if you had told me we would've dominated most of this game and got a point against an in form Everton side, I probably would've taken it, but in the context of the game we really should have taken all 3. I see from the forums and social media sites that there are again a number of fans calling for Hughes to be sacked, but when you break it down was it really his fault we didn't get the win today? He picked a team that the majority of Rangers fans including myself wanted him to pick, he instructed the team to press high up the field and put Everton under pressure early on, which had the desired effect. The substitutions he made, bar Cisse, were forced upon him due to lack of fitness and injuries. He clearly didn't intend to bring on 2 defenders in a like for like swap while Everton were down to 10 men. No, today was definately 2 points lost but it was down to individual player errors rather than poor team selection and management that had lost us previous games. What we need now is to keep playing the starting eleven that played today. For the most part, we looked defensively solid, creative and hard working in the midfield area and reasonably threatening in parts of the game up front. Yes we are lacking an true goalscorer but we have to work with what we've got and what we've got is a good team that are looking like they may begin to fulfil the promise and potential that their names conjure on a teamsheet pre-match. So take your talks of Harry Redknapp and use that energy to continue supporting and backing the people we have at the club, today's result was disappointing but it's something to build on. One man does not make a team and 7 games do not make a season. I honestly think we can take something from Arsenal on Saturday and then get our first wins at home against Reading and Southampton, which are already shaping up to be proverbial 6 pointers. Patience is a virtue and true stability of the club will take time. Keep the faith. Come on you Rs.

West Brom And The Slippery Slope

It's taken a few days for the pain to subside and my thoughts to rebalance so that I can write this without the frustration I had in me after our latest loss away to West Bromich Albion on Saturday. The game itself summed up the season so far for me. Moments of brilliance and inspiration, outweighed by moments of naivity and nervousness. The goals we scored were stunning, truly stunning. Adel Taarabt's goal was technically perfect from the inch perfect chipped pass from Granero to the chest control and instant unerring finish which gave Ben Foster no chance. The goal highlighted exactly why the vast majority of the Loftus Road faithful have been so vocal in previous weeks about wanting the magic Moroccan in the starting eleven for Rangers. Yes he can be frustrating and he isn't a grafter, but he's just got ability in abundance, he's a real QPR player in the ilk of Bowles and Marsh. A proper number 10.

Estaban Granero's goal wasn't bad either. For me he was our man of the match on the day. His vision and ability to bring others into the game coupled with his top level experience really have shined in most of the games he has played in. He really deserved his goal and took it so well, it was almost a noncehlant finish, caressing the ball into the top corner with the swagger of a world class footballer, again leaving Ben Foster in the West Brom goal absolutely stranded. But we still lost the game and that's all the record books will show, for all the promise and moments of magic we may produce we still have to remember just what a results orientated industry football is and we simply aren't producing the results.

The question has to be why aren't we getting results? Is it because the players we have aren't playing well enough? In part, yes. We have signed some excellent players the likes of Esteban Granero, Julio Cesar, Junior Hoilett and Ryan Nelson all look like they will become firm fan favourites, for the most part impressing when they have put on the blue and white hoops. But there are players that simply haven't been good enough so far this season. Djibril Cisse was a huge factor in ensuring our survival in the Premier League last season, but he looks like a totally different player this season. He looks completely bereft of confidence and when a confidence player like Cisse isn't in form, he is more of a hinderance than a help. For all the furore surrounding Anton Ferdinand this season, he simply hasn't been as accomplished as Ryan Nelson has and his mistake for West Brom's 2nd goal was simply poor judgement. "Terrygate" seems to have had a detrimental effect on his form, which has caused his performances to resemble a rollercoaster from Blackpool beach - a bit all over the place and at times very shaky. There has also been a noticeably poor turnout so far this season from our captain Ji Sung Park. Whether it's the pressure of the captaincy or his unfamiliarity as a regular starter in a team after such a long spell of being a bit part player at Manchester United, he just isn't fulfilling the expectation we all had for him when he joined. I am beginning to question not only his ability and contribution to the team but also Hughes' choice to make him captain. He doesn't seem like a born leader and in times like these, born leaders are exactly what we need.

But it's not just poor individual performances that have led us to this point. The other major contributing factor to our underwhelming start to the season has been poor team selection. As I've mentioned in previous posts, the problem seems to be that Hughes doesn't know his ideal starting eleven. When other teams are turning out the same team sheet week in and week out, we are chopping and changing not only personnel but also styles of play and formation. One week we are playing 4-4-2 with two out and out strikers in Cisse and Zamora, the next we are playing 4-5-1 with Zamora as a lone target man and a midfield trio that could consist of a number of different player combinations. I understand injuries have played a part, but we aren't just covering injuries we are massively overhauling half of the starting eleven week after week. Inconsistency breeds inconsistency. We are continually changing our team and it's resulting in ever changing performances, some good but most so far below average. Once we see the same starting line up 3 or 4 weeks in a row, that is when I think we will see the performance become more consistent and more importantly we'll see the results change for the better.

I usually dread the international break, not having a QPR game to prepare for and be part of for 2 weeks is normally agony for me, but not this time. We need this break. The fans, the team and the manager. We're like a boxer that has taken too many big punches to the head far too early in a fight, we need the bell to sound and recoup, gather our thoughts and work on a new strategy so that we aren't dealt a knockout blow. Our injured players will return, Hughes will work out his starting eleven and he will stick with it week in and week out. We will climb the league table, possibly get to the heady heights of a mid table position and we'll all forget the worst start to a league campaign we've ever had. I want to believe this and for now I think I do. I don't want to believe otherwise. Keep supporting the team, because that's what differentiates us as QPR fans from the rest. Keep the faith and hope that the team repays us in points. The only way is up. Literally.

Hughes and The Hammers

Monday night seemed to take an age to come around. All the games played on Saturday and Sunday were simply warm up acts for my main event. The disappointment of losing to Reading in the Capitol One cup had flushed out of my system - "Who needs cup runs anyway? They only serve as a distraction, we need to focus on the league" was what I told myself when Pavel Pogrebnyak back-heeled our hopes of a decent cup run past Julio Cesar and into the back of our net. We now faced the challenge of newly promoted West Ham and from previous league performances I could see no reason why we wouldn't be picking up our first 3 points of the season. The stage was set, Loftus Road on a Monday night under the floodlights, the pitch as immaculate as the the fairways that saw the drama of a Ryder Cup victory for Europe against the USA hours beforehand. Now it was time for our first victory. Wasn't it?

The teams waited in the tunnel before being led out to the Loftus Road faithful, but it was at this point that I had a feeling that this might not go as planned. West Ham, led by the experienced Kevin Nolan, looked buoyant and jovial. They had a relaxed swagger about them as they waited to be given the nod from Mark Clattenburg to proceed up the tunnel and onto the pitch. Rangers on the other hand, led by the equally experienced Ji Sung Park, looked tense. Overly focussed. Full of nerves. This didn't bode well and as soon as the whistle blew they carried these negative feelings from off the pitch into their performances on the pitch. Defensively, we instantly looked shaky and within minutes we were breached. A miss hit Kevin Nolan shot somehow found it's way to Matt Jarvis at the backpost, and within minutes of the kick off we were 1-0. Now I know Matt Jarvis doesn't pose the same aerial threat as Carlton Cole or Andy Carroll, but who was marking him? Logic would suggest Nedum Onouha, (who didn't have his best game out of position at right back) lost his man and the West Ham winger found the back of the net.

We continued to meander through the first half with no real purpose and conviction, creating very little in the way of chances and losing out in most areas on the pitch. Granero's deliveries from set pieces were poor, almost Joey Barton-esque, barely clearing the first man. Then following some comical defending, which I didn't find funny, Ricardo Vaz Te's close range toe-poke flicked off Stephane M'bia on his Premier League debut and beat Julio Cesar at his near post to make it 2-0 to the Hammers. Fingers of blame were instantly pointed at Cesar for his part in the goal, in my opinion a combination of poor marking from M'bia and a slice of luck were the biggest contributing factors in that goal. West Ham deservedly lead at half time. 

I screamed and tweeted for the 15 minutes during half time about the need for changes. "Get Taarabt on.......get Park off........where's Kieron Dyer? Is he injured again?". But to my surprise, out came the hoops with the same line up that they had started with. Was Hughes happy with the first half performance? Surely changes were required if we stood a chance of getting something out of this game? There was no surprise that we started the second half the way we had floundered through the whole of the first half. West Ham looked like they were going to make it 3-0 very soon. Then the home crowd started to make some noise, possibly for the first time all evening. We seem to have a habit of making lots of noise for the big teams, but are far more subdued against the rest. This was hardly fortress Loftus Road. The noise however was that of anticipation and excitement. Adel Taarabt was warming up and readying himself to be reintroduced to the QPR fold, after his last lackluster performance against Swansea on the opening day of the season. Every time Taarabt plays, as fans we completely forget about what he did or didn't do in the last game he played, we all simply rejoice in the possibilities of what we know he can do. Just in case anyone had forgotten what he can do, with his first touch of the game he instantly controlled the ball, cut inside from the left flank, faked a shot and then in typical Taarabt style bent the ball up and over Jussi Jaaskelainen from 25 yards. As one we cheered and celebrated in awe of what the mercurial Moroccan had just managed to produce. Welcome back Adel.

Loftus Road was now buzzing with excitement, to a man we genuinely believed we could now get back into this. Some of us even dared to dream that we could go on and win it, and with Adel in this mood, anything was possible. This fire of belief was soon extinguished however, as the card happy Mark Clattenburg went on to book second half substitute Samba Diakite once and then twice to all but end the game. Samba was full of energy and running. His first challenge warranted a telling off, not a yellow card. His second challenge however, was reckless. It seemed that Diakite hadn't learnt much from his Premier League debut, and that the coaching staff perhaps hadn't worked on the timing of his tackling a great deal over the past 9 months. From this point onwards, we had a few half chances, Jaaskelainen making some decent saves, but in truth West Ham could and should have put the game beyond doubt and had it not been for the poor finishing of Carlton Cole, they would have. 

As it finished, it was clear from our first half performance that Mark Hughes had got the team selection tonight, all wrong. Some of his choices were forced upon him, notably in the back line with 4 absentees through injury. However, it was in the midfield that we lost the game. Faurlin and Granero are fantastic footballers. Gifted and blessed with a range of passing and vision that could match most in this league. However, against a Sam Allardyce team, you need more than that. You need strong, dominant midfielders who will work tirelessly to stifle their creative outlets and combat their strength and power. We didn't have that. Momo Diame had an absolute field day, constantly brushing our two central midfielders aside with his tough tackling and powerful running. This allowed Mark Noble to pull the strings for West Ham. We had no time on the ball and ended up lumping far too many aimless balls forward. The balance was all wrong.

If you can't select Taarabt or Hoilett in a home game against West Ham, then when can you play them? It baffled me that we opted for Park and Shaun Wright Phillips. This wasn't Man United away, this was a very winnable game had we got the balance of our team right. But we didn't. And we paid the price.

Am I gutted we didn't win this game? Yes. Do I still believe that the team and the manager can kick on from here and turn things around? Without doubt. But what Hughes needs is consistency. He needs to know who his starting eleven are and stick with them. We are away at West Brom next, for me it is clear that the changes we need to make is to ensure that one of either Taarabt or Hoilett starts, to give us that creative edge. If Traore is back fit, slot him into left back, move Hill back into his natural centre back position and put M'bia into the midfield to give us the steel we need because West Brom, like West Ham, have a strong midfield and unfortunately Faurlin and Granero alone just won't be able to stifle them. Then stick with this team. Consistency is the key.

Losing to West Ham is disappointing, but it's not the end of our season. Some of those calling for Hughes' head already, are simply living in an altered state of reality if they think that is the answer. We will achieve nothing by chopping and changing managers. Have we already forgotten about what was happening to our club before Neil Warnock took charge? We were a farce. We cannot and will not go back down that road with our new owners, they have created the whole vision of long term stability, and that vision does not go hand in hand with knee jerk reactions. Give Hughes time. He is a good manager that has made a few poor decisions. But he will get it right, we will come good and we will move up the table and be safe from relegation. Just try to avoid looking at the Premier League table at the moment, for a QPR fan it's not pleasant reading. Keep singing your hearts out on a Saturday afternoon, or a Monday night, and believe that we will achieve our ultimate goal of another season at the top table of English football. Onwards and upwards Rangers, onwards and upwards.