QPR v Leicester player ratings

By

QPR were unable to find an equaliser after Jamie Vardy’s first-half goal and ended the match with 10 men following the dismissal of Joey Barton. Here’s how we rated the players in their 1-0 defeat against Leicester.

Rob Green: 6
Didn’t have much to do and had little chance for Leicester’s goal, which was a fine finish by Vardy.

Danny Simpson: 6
Showed plenty of commitment without managing to make much of an impact going forward from right-back.

Richard Dunne: 6
Neat and tidy for the most part but was caught flat-footed for the goal, allowing Vardy to squirm away from him.

Clint Hill: 6
Will be disappointed to have been beaten in the air in the build-up to the goal. Had gone close to scoring shortly beforehand.

Benoit Assou-Ekotto: 5
Has been able to coast through games in the Championship, where teams very rarely have real attacking quality in wide areas. It was a different story against Leicester, whose quick pressing gave the left-back problems. Not a good day for the on-loan Tottenham man, whose crossing was also poor – as Charlie Austin was quick to tell him in the first half.

Matt Phillips: 7
Effective in the first half, setting up Gary O’Neil with a low cross and offering a goal threat himself. Should have equalised before the interval though and had less of an impact in the second half.

Tom Carroll: 6
Has ability on the ball and showed it at times. Off the ball he has much to learn though and is much less comfortable in a two-man central midfield.

Joey Barton: 7
Competed well in midfield before being sent off. Covered lots of ground and tried to keep the momentum going for Rangers when they were beginning to run out of ideas in the second half.

Gary O’Neil: 6
Reads the game well and is reliable, but not as useful playing on the left. Replaced at half-time.

Niko Kranjcar: 6
His disappointing form continues. Has plenty of ability and creates openings with his passing and skill, but still looks a yard off the pace.

Charlie Austin: 7
Missed a decent late chance. But he worked hard to try to make things happen up front and never gives up.

Junior Hoilett: 6
Had his moments after coming on at half-time, including one great turn to get away from his man. Another player who isn’t really firing though.

Yossi Benayoun: 6
Found it hard to get into the game after coming on for his debut with 20 minutes to go. That was hardly surprising given his lack of match action this season.

Leicester
Nigel Pearson’s side were resolute and able to frustrate Rangers after going ahead. Varny’s finish was superb and former Brentford loanee Liam Moore had an excellent game at the back. Leicester are definitely strong contenders for automatic promotion.

Man of the match
Liam Moore

Follow West London Sport on Twitter
Find us on Facebook