The ex-England manager’s spell at Loftus Road has got off to a shambolic start and has led to disquiet among supporters
“Shambles.” That’s the word QPR fans Simon, 58, and Reg, 70, quickly settle on when asked to describe the current state of their club. It is exactly the same word that springs from the mouth of 18-year-old Matthew, another supporter awaiting this fixture: a must-win game for the Hoops just four games into a fledgling Championship season.
It is a fair assumption this match will have done nothing to change their minds. QPR remain bottom of the championship after unravelling in the face of a persistent Bristol City. Matty Taylor’s ruthless opener was followed by a second-half double for Andreas Weimann, with both of the Austrian’s goals made far too easy for him by a shambolic home defence. There’s that word again.
Sometimes the mood can be unfairly volatile in football but QPR’s recent trauma has been worse than most. The club have had four defeats in their first four matches, the third a 7-1 walloping at West Brom for which Steve McClaren felt necessary to apologise in his programme notes.
This performance was not much better, but looming over the club are more existential concerns too. This summer the club accepted a £17m fine from the EFL over FFP irregularities and were put under a transfer embargo. That takes effect from January. In this window QPR have not spent a penny in transfer fees.
Pablo Hernández puts Leeds on top of table after draw with Swansea Read more
For Simon and Reg, the trouble lies at the top and a lack of accountability from the director of football, Les Ferdinand, and the chief executive, Lee Hoos. For Matthew, the immediate problem lies with McClaren. All three question the wisdom of replacing the previous manager, Ian Holloway, after he kept the Rs clear of the drop zone last season.
Sporting that familiar half-dazed expression, the beleaguered McClaren used his post-match remarks to reinforce the need for signings – whether on a free transfer or on loan – before the window shuts for EFL clubs at the end of this month.
“The next 10 days are big‚“ he said. “We have talent out there, we have potential, but right now we’re suffering. I believe, if we get the right players in, we’ll be ok.”
McClaren was asked for his response to the home fans who joined in with Bristol City chants of “You’re getting sacked in the morning,” whether out of gallows humour or otherwise. “That’s society now, it’s an instant reaction,” he said. “It’s not a good start [to the season]. Am I pleased? No. Am I angry? Yes. Disappointed? Yes. Am I determined to put this right? Yes.”
Bristol City have not enjoyed a great start to the season themselves and were yet to win in the league before this fixture. They took the lead in a first half of few chances after the former Bristol Rovers front man Taylor cut inside from the right, leaving full-back Jake Bidwell on his posterior, and fired low past Matt Ingram into the far corner.
Facebook Twitter Pinterest Matty Taylor drives in Bristol City’s deadlock-breaking goal at Loftus Road. Photograph: Joe Toth/BPI/Rex/Shutterstock
The visitors did not take long to double their advantage. Five minutes into the second half, Swedish winger Niclas Eliasson was found in space on the left of the QPR box. His cross was quick, accurate and found Weimann in lots of room. The former Derby forward had time to size up the situation, fling his head at the ball and place it beyond Ingram’s right hand.
It was at this point that the away fans began to sing at McClaren. Beneath them, in the School End, stood an empty tier of seats. Parts of the rest of the ground were sparsely attended too, a reminder that the problems QPR face have not sprung up overnight. Hoos said recently that the club would have to leave Loftus Road, their home since 1917, as a ground with a capacity of 18,439 could not “create a sustainable business”. The attendance for this match was 11,739.
The Fiver: sign up and get our daily football email.
As normal time came to an end Weimann tapped home a third after a bout of chaotic defending. “Why the hell are you still here?” sang the away end at those few home fans still remaining. “Where’s the money gone?” was another one. QPR’s settlement with the EFL was a reckoning after the club broke fair play rules on their way to promotion to the Premier League in 2012. Those days seem a long way away now.
QPR 0 Bristol City 3
Steve McClaren insists he is still the right man to manage Queens Park Rangers after another night of embarrassment where he was abused by his own supporters.
After four straight Championship defeats at the start of the season, fans turned on the former England boss joining in with Bristol City followers’ taunts of “you’re getting sacked in the morning” along with far more vulgar chants.
Matt Taylor’s first half goal and two from Andreas Weimann ensures QPR have now conceded 10 goals in the space of three days following the 7-1 defeat at West Bromwich Albion but McClaren remained defiant.
“Am I the man to turn this around? Yes absolutely,” he said. “I knew the situation when I came in.
“The abuse is society now, an instant reaction and this is normal. Am I pleased? No. Am I angry and disappointed? Yes. Am I determined to put this right? Yes. I knew this was a tough job and I knew coming in it wouldn't happen overnight.
“My message to the fans is patience, I'm certainly losing it, we need players, but we have support from the board to do that. The next 10 days are big. We have talent out there but at the present moment we are suffering. I believe if we get the right players in, we will be OK.”
Sebastien Bassong training with QPR after more than year out of game
Sebastien Bassong was released by Norwich at the end of the 2016-17 season
Former Tottenham and Newcastle defender Sebastien Bassong is training with QPR.
The Cameroon international has not played since March 2017 and was released by his last club Norwich in the summer that followed.
Bassong, 32, played an hour of QPR's U23 fixture against Nottingham Forest yesterday and is understood to initially be looking to gain fitness.
The game ended in a 3-3 draw with Deshane Dalling, Aramide Oteh and Ilias Chair scoring QPR's goals.
Rangers are bottom of the Championship having lost their first three league games - the latest a 7-1 defeat at West Brom on Saturday.
Patience in the QPR boardroom must be disappearing faster than Steve McClaren’s small island of ginger hair.
After facing the worst start to a season in the club’s history, and a 7-1 thrashing at West Brom on Saturday, they found no solace at Loftus Road, as Bristol City collected their first ever victory at the ground.
Looking to switch things up, McClaren made four changes, giving former Swansea captain Angel Rangel his debut, despite concerns over match fitness. The 35-year-old hasn’t had consecutive starts since December 2016.
The game was mostly played in the air to begin with. Every chance they got, QPR would pump hopeful balls forward for Conor Washington to chase, Bristol retaliating with the same style.
It was the home side that should’ve been ahead first on 25 minutes, when Rangel whipped a low ball across the middle of the six-yard box. As it fell to Washington, he fired straight at the keeper. Massimo Luongo tried the spectacular from the following corner, but his over-head kick from outside the box dropped just wide of the post.
QPR continued to push as the momentum carried through the first half, and the chances followed. An excellent ball from Luke Freeman found Pawel Wszolek in space on the left-hand side, but as he dribbled on into the box his shot was blocked easily. You could sense Freeman’s frustration as he mis-hit the follow-up.
The opportunities eventually faded as the Hoops failed to make use of them, and against the run of play, Bristol were suddenly ahead late into the first half. Josh Brownhill’s long, searching ball out to the wing was picked up by Matty Taylor on the break. Dancing past a slipping Jake Bidwell as he turned, the striker found space to curl a shot into the bottom left corner to stun the home fans into a mostly disgruntled silence.
While – if you were being kind – you might put the first goal down to a bit of bad luck, the second was all QPR’s embarrassing defending. As Eliasson broke down the left five minutes into the second half, he had time to spot Andreas Weimann, who had the freedom of Loftus Road to head home - without a defender for yards around him. The same silence followed, but now you could clearly hear the travelling Bristol fans' chants of “getting sacked in the morning” at McClaren.
Weimann then could’ve doubled his tally shortly after as he slipped in the gap between centre-backs Toni Leistner and Alex Baptiste. It was some shocking defending from the pair and the move summed up their lack of communication on the night. Desperate to make a change, off came last season’s player of the year for QPR, Luongo.
Rangers weren’t going down without a tussle, and just after the hour there was a chance to get back into the game when City keeper Niki Maenpaa came out of his box to meet Connor Washington. As the striker rounded him to the left, his ball across goal found Ebere Eze’s, whose shot was blocked agonisingly on the line. As they drove forward once more, substitute Matt Smith left Loftus Road pulling their hair out again, as he headed just over from close range, with 20 minutes to go.
Time was running out, and Bristol looked to kill off the game. Running into the box on the counter, Brownhill had time to control, shoot, and control again as it parried back off Matt Ingram. As he laid a low pass across the box, QPR left Weimann unmarked again to add his second, and Bristol’s third. The visitors had taken their chances tonight where Rangers handn't, grabbing not just their first win of the season, but their first away win of the calendar year.
While the chants of “getting sacked in the morning” were limited to the away section before, they’d now spread to the rest of the ground, as the home fans streamed towards the exits en mass.
In the matchday programme, McClaren had apologised profusely for their previous result against West Brom, branding it a “completely unacceptable” performance, and promising a reaction. But QPR are still glued to the foot of the table, with few excuses left to make.
Follow the Independent Sport on Instagram here, for all of the best images, videos and stories from around the sporting world.
