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DISCIPLINE and patience are the watchwords for Coventry City when they travel tomorrow to a previously favourable Loftus Road where they have won three times and lost once in their last five visits.
Sky Blues boss Chris Coleman is expecting a tough game against a QPR side packed with flair and pace but is confident his team can stand up to the test as they go looking for their first win in eight games.
“QPR play one-twos, there will be lots of running off the ball and they are patient in possession,” said Coleman, “so we have got to make sure our game plan is that we are disciplined in our shape and we are patient because we may be without the ball for long periods.
“That doesn’t mean to say we can’t do our job when we haven’t got the ball because that will be the key, to keep our discipline and shape and be patient when we haven’t got the ball and choose our moments carefully. And if we do that and stick to that we have got a good chance.
“They have got a lot of pace in the team and they will ask our defenders a lot of questions.
They will be running at us on the edge of our box and it will be how we live up to that. They will get in behind us and put crosses in the box and it will be a question of whether we mark our men properly, and when we clear the box, are we on the second ball first and reacting.”
Coleman believes three points could make all the difference to the club’s current situation.
“Sometimes when you are in the position we are you can’t see light at the end of the tunnel,” he said.
“We’ve been lacking confidence, not picking points up, not been scoring and we have been conceding, so every negative you can think of has happened to us in the last six weeks really, and slowly but surely we have got to start chipping away at coming out of it. And we will do that.
It’s whenever we get that next win, however or whenever it comes, I think that’s when it will give us that bit of confidence because I see us when we are on the ball at the minute, we are a little bit shy of making a forward pass and maybe we are passing it square too many times in midfield.
“We are taking steps in the right direction but we have been quite hard on the players again this week in terms of how we want to go about our business on Saturday.”
He added: “I have been there as a player when you can’t see where the next win is coming from, and this is the worst run we have been on since I have been at the club, and we are all going through a little bit of a negative twinge but we have got to be man enough to face it and come out fighting.”
City came away with a point at Loftus Road last year after playing much of the game with 10 men after Stephen Wright was sent off for a high and dangerous challenge.
“We have got to go there with the same mindset as last year when we should have won the game but conceded in the last couple of minutes,” said Coleman.
“We played very well and stifled them and they got frustrated and we have to have that mindset again tomorrow.
Sky Blues boss Chris Coleman is expecting a tough game against a QPR side packed with flair and pace but is confident his team can stand up to the test as they go looking for their first win in eight games.
“QPR play one-twos, there will be lots of running off the ball and they are patient in possession,” said Coleman, “so we have got to make sure our game plan is that we are disciplined in our shape and we are patient because we may be without the ball for long periods.
“That doesn’t mean to say we can’t do our job when we haven’t got the ball because that will be the key, to keep our discipline and shape and be patient when we haven’t got the ball and choose our moments carefully. And if we do that and stick to that we have got a good chance.
“They have got a lot of pace in the team and they will ask our defenders a lot of questions.
They will be running at us on the edge of our box and it will be how we live up to that. They will get in behind us and put crosses in the box and it will be a question of whether we mark our men properly, and when we clear the box, are we on the second ball first and reacting.”
Coleman believes three points could make all the difference to the club’s current situation.
“Sometimes when you are in the position we are you can’t see light at the end of the tunnel,” he said.
“We’ve been lacking confidence, not picking points up, not been scoring and we have been conceding, so every negative you can think of has happened to us in the last six weeks really, and slowly but surely we have got to start chipping away at coming out of it. And we will do that.
It’s whenever we get that next win, however or whenever it comes, I think that’s when it will give us that bit of confidence because I see us when we are on the ball at the minute, we are a little bit shy of making a forward pass and maybe we are passing it square too many times in midfield.
“We are taking steps in the right direction but we have been quite hard on the players again this week in terms of how we want to go about our business on Saturday.”
He added: “I have been there as a player when you can’t see where the next win is coming from, and this is the worst run we have been on since I have been at the club, and we are all going through a little bit of a negative twinge but we have got to be man enough to face it and come out fighting.”
City came away with a point at Loftus Road last year after playing much of the game with 10 men after Stephen Wright was sent off for a high and dangerous challenge.
“We have got to go there with the same mindset as last year when we should have won the game but conceded in the last couple of minutes,” said Coleman.
“We played very well and stifled them and they got frustrated and we have to have that mindset again tomorrow.
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