The questions QPR must answer..The Guardian merged Threads

[paulmason]

Theyre not his questions Jeffro.

Theyre Michael Hann's: http://www.guardian.co.uk/profile/michaelhann

Inspector Cluso, did you not see the link at the top of the thread ?

[Stanley]

did you not see the link at the top of the thread ?

Yes I certainly did.

A good read. The only thing he's wrong about is this:

Ishmael Miller, a loan signing from West Brom, has done nothing in the centre-forward slot yet to suggest he's any better than Hulse.

[Shania]

Hulse in the role he is playing is pony but he would be the perfect foil for Phillips but he would need to be allowed to play as a striker.

How can a striker play as a striker when he is told to do something else ?

In my view, THAT is the correct question to ask regarding Hulse!! Based on the matches I have seen, I fully agree with you on that one.

[QPR1976]

Actually a reasonable article making some good points.
I started off expected shoddy journalism, but he knows his stuff.

Of course we're not a 1 man team, Adel, does very little to help a defence that has most clean sheets and lowest goals conceeded.
Equally he needs Derry amongst others to help & cover him.

But he is a massive reason for our current position in the League.
His goals, assists and those he creates but not technically assists (penalties) amount to 30 out of our 50 goals in the League - 60%.

Without him, we could struggle. We might not, perhaps Buzz would step naturally into his shoes and blossom.
Perhaps we'd go 4-4-2 with Miller & Helguson up front and Smith & Routs out wide ?

And the point about Warnock and Strikers and his system is clear.
That's why Ambrose scored so many from midfield last season, until Neil left Palace. He's not scoring quite so many after that or this season (when fit).

[Bigdave]

why cant we just have no lump, and feed nobody, cos when we do pass to hulse he does nothing.
so get super kev, and tell the players to forget we have a striker and play like we have ten men, (cos its palying with ten men with hulse anyway) and just let phillips feed on scraps. cos thats what hes brillaint at, and i garuntee he would score odd goals to win games.
sod the system and get the ultimate poacher.
isnt it that easy?

You make good points GTP and i enjoy reading your posts (maybe its the Northolt brotherhood in us both) but this system has got us top of the tree in mid feb, cant see Warnock changing things too much at this stage of the season. The problem for players like Hulse and HH is our little gem Adel isnt suited to playing with a big lump, he could do with a nippy striker who makes runs for Adel to pick out. Hulse and HH are very static and wont make a run down the channel or hang on the defenders shoulder looking for a through ball, hence why Adel tries too many things on his own. Also this affects Routledge because he doesnt see enough of the ball because we ALWAYS look for Adel.
But and we have to remember this....................
















WE ARE TOP OF THE LEAGUE

[QPR1976]

Do you think that's why Routs spent so much time in Adel's shadow on the left wing 2nd half on Sunday ? To see more of the ball ?

I'd rather he'd gone right wing and Miller more central.

To be fair, Miller did OK, twice getting to the touchline and playing balls back but Routs would have done that and been much more effective cutting in and with crosses.

Overall, Miller tried really hard but looked lost as his close control and ability to beat the defender failed him on occasions. And I'd rather Miller had been in the middle to put those two knock backs away or get on the end of Routs cross or a rebound from him cutting in and shooting.

[SW20Ranger]

Good article

[qblockpete]

Guardian Article Raises Good Questions Surrounding QPR

http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/football-league-blog/2011/feb/15/qpr-nottingham-forest-taarabt?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+theguardian%2Ffootball%2Frss+%28Football%29

[paulmason]

http://www.wearetherangersboys.com/forum/showthread.php?t=90587

[QPR1976]

Already posted Pete under 'Questions QPR Must answer' !

[rockandroll]

team is not built around taarabt as they make you believe, taarabt is in the front picture because he is talented and top scorer + top assists.

for those who run out of idea for plan B, if I was NW, when team have 2 or 3 man marked taarabt I would play him as a STRIKER , put him near their goalkeeper area ONLY there, let him do his magic just there , rewards at least a penalty.


dnt forget adel played midweek international match+ travel to marrakesh in south of morocco, that influences little bit.

[acricketer]

Excellent article - Good read and Interesting comments

http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/football-league-blog/2011/feb/15/qpr-nottingham-forest-taarabt?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+theguardian%2Ffootball%2Frss+%28Football%29

[HammersmithR]

I refuse to read the Guardian. A mouthpiece for the BBC.

[G.T.P]

i cant click at work, but is that the story about dodi fayed and lady di who have just been involved in some sort of a car crash in france?

[Goddard]

Here:



The questions QPR must answer

Nottingham Forest's trip to Loftus Road could have been a title decider, but instead QPR still have issues to resolve.

Adel Taarabt is fouled and Radoslaw Majewski was sent off: QPR v Nottingham Forest Nottingham Forest's Radoslaw Majewski was sent off for this foul on Queens Park Rangers' Adel Taarabt Photograph: Nick Potts/PA

QPR fans went to Loftus Road at the weekend expecting to learn whether Neil Warnock's team really is set for automatic promotion. A win against Nottingham Forest – who'd won their six previous Championship games and are unbeaten since a 1-0 loss at Leicester in November – and the Rs would surely be mentally celebrating promotion. A loss and the race for the two automatic slots would have been wide open, and Forest would have become favourites for the title. But a 1-1 draw against a side who sat back and soaked up pressure after having a man sent off? It told us next to nothing.

Instead we're still pondering these questions:
1) Are QPR a one-man team?

Back in August I wrote on this blog that Adel Taarabt was so dominant it raised worries about where QPR would find inspiration in his absence. Astonishingly, he hasn't yet been absent, and his dominance has continued: he tops the division's assists table, with 12, and he's the third leading scorer, with 14, half of which could be used to compile a personal goal of the season contest. The QPR team is built to serve him, and he has rewarded Neil Warnock's faith in him a hundredfold. Inevitably, though, teams have decided that if they stop Taarabt, they stop QPR. Derby and Hull succeeded spectacularly at nullifying his threat on their own grounds, but they couldn't beat QPR – and for all the "wheels have come off" doom-mongering in December, Rangers have still only lost three. What's more, the loan signing of Wayne Routledge from Newcastle has given Rangers a second creative attacking option for the surprisingly few days when Taarabt's mind is elsewhere, and so far he's made a decisive contribution to two games, scoring the winners against Reading and Coventry (the latter assisted by something astonishing from Taarabt). Only a fool, however, would deny Taarabt's astounding influence on the course of the Championship this season. So, a one-man team? Sort of: but he couldn't be that one man without the work of the other 10, who understand their job is to help him shine.
2) Is Neil Warnock any good with strikers?

On the evidence of this season, no: or at least he doesn't play a system that allows them to flourish. QPR play a system with a lone forward at the front of a 4-2-3-1, and the 1 in that formation has scored just four goals, excluding penalites. Rob Hulse, who shares the position with Heidar Helguson, has started to draw the ire of the Loftus Road crowd. That's not so much because of his scoring record – just the one goal – but because he isn't winning the headers or holding the ball up in the way his physical presence suggests he should. What's more, his size encourages the team to hit the ball high and long, when the best football QPR have played was earlier in the season, with the shorter Helguson upfront. With a smaller target, the ball was played to Helguson's feet more often, enabling him to hold up play and bring the three midfielders into the picture. Jamie Mackie, in particular, benefitted from Helguson's presence. Ishmael Miller, a loan signing from West Brom, has done nothing in the centre-forward slot yet to suggest he's any better than Hulse, though he troubled Forest when moved to the right wing in yesterday's second half.
3) Is QPR's defence too brittle?

This is one that baffles the W12 regulars. Steve Claridge, on the BBC, has criticised the Rangers defence several times (in fact, he seems to make a habit of criticising QPR) – but it's the tightest in the division by far, with 19 conceded (Forest are the next best, with 24). Paddy Kenny has been revelatory in goal, and the four in front of him have been consistently solid. It's not that there are no issues: the central pairing of Kaspars Gorkss and Matt Connolly are decent on the ball, but lack pace and are too happy to let the ball bounce. They'll be punished in the Premiership. And the full backs – Clint Hill and Bradley Orr - will surely see their deficiencies exposed. In fact, we caught a glimpse of that in the home game against Portsmouth, when Orr was targeted as a weak link and given a torrid time before Rangers eased into a lead they then never looked like surrendering. But for the Championship? There's no question: this back four is by far the best in the division.
4) Can QPR afford to miss promotion?

In a word, no. The journalist Dave McIntyre, who supports QPR and has covered them for many years, recently offered a succinct explanation on his excellent blog. The long and the short of it is that QPR owe their owners £10m, and that money's due. Without promotion, there's no way to repay it. Still, we at Loftus Road have spent a decade and a half understanding that every silver lining has a cloud.