Warburton’s anger is overdue – QPR must find a way to get some momentum back
Mark Warburton is almost always measured and rational in his post-match press conferences, never getting too high or too low regardless of the situation his team is in.
But even he couldn’t hide his frustration following the 2-1 home defeat by Cardiff City on Saturday.
“I don’t lose my rag often but that was not us in the second half. We can’t be that. We can’t accept that,” he said.
“We just dropped to testimonial pace and that’s not acceptable. There’s no excuses.”
That type of reaction was perhaps overdue.
For a while now, performances have not been at the level needed to secure a play-off spot.
Since the 4-0 win over Reading, QPR have won just one out of eight games.
There have been glimpses here and there of the earlier-season form –the second half against Hull and superb comeback against Blackpool – but for the large part, performances of late have been pretty poor.
Rangers remain the third highest goalscorers in the Championship this season, but across the last eight games they have managed only six goals.
That is not just down to missed chances, which has often been a key factor behind spells of poor form under Warburton, but also a lack of chances being created.
Absences have not helped, with Lyndon Dykes and Charlie Austin both missing game time recently, but much of these struggles relate to a lack of pace, purpose and creativity with the ball against teams which employ a defensive approach.
QPR dominated possession against Cardiff – with 72% of it – and while Andre Gray could have added to his one goal, Rangers did not exactly cause Alex Smithies the kind of problems you would hope for a team which had possession almost three quarters of the time.
Similarly, Rangers enjoyed 64% of the ball against Barnsley and 69% against Hull City but won neither match. Keeping the ball is not an issue, but there is no point in having that much possession while failing to make it count.
Warburton’s comparison between the pace his team played at for much of the second half against Cardiff to that of a testimonial was an exaggeration, but it summed up his frustration.
Breaking down a team whose primary focus is to frustrate is an incredibly difficult thing to do and requires a lot of quality in key areas, but as the season has gone on and weaker teams have become more aware of the challenge posed by QPR, and how they can potentially be stopped, that task has become much more of a challenge – one that Rangers have often failed to meet.
For much of the game Cardiff were poor but posed a threat through long balls forward. Lapses in concentration among the QPR back-line allowed the away side’s attackers too much space, and ultimately led to the two goals conceded.
At their best, QPR under Warburton move the ball with purpose and exploit overloads in wide areas to create chances, often peppering the opposition goal thanks to a relentless willingness to take risks.
Whether it’s tiredness, a loss of confidence, or something else, QPR just have not attacked with the same drive and eagerness to take risks in recent weeks.
Perspective is needed, and QPR deserve much credit for the position they have got themselves into with 11 games remaining.
From a financial point of view, teams like Nottingham Forest – who swooped to secure the signing of Steve Cook with a better offer after QPR had a deal agreed – Sheffield United, Middlesbrough and West Brom should be much more outraged at the prospect of missing out on a play-off spot.
But Rangers have shown that they are good enough this season to get into the top six, and anything less at this stage would of course be a massive disappointment.
QPR simply have to find a way to push the pace again. This opportunity might not come around again soon.
