Ellerslie Echo

Winning Ugly

Championship Matchday 12: Swansea City (A)

Swansea away is one of those fixtures that just fills me with dread, every time. Not always through fear of defeat – Rangers actually won there in 3 of their last 5 visits going into this, all three being 1-0 – but it just always feels like such a cagey fixture. Both either mid-table or hovering around 10th to 7th keeping an eye out for any narrow gap in the top 6 that might eventually open up. However, after seeing how we played in our harsh-but-fair home defeat to Millwall, I backed us to repeat that 1-0 score line again this time out. 

And don’t worry, I hadn’t forgotten about last season, where we all sat around the Christmas tree hungover (apart from those nutters who decided to spend their Boxing Day travelling over) and watched Liam Cullen spoil everyone’s Christmas.

But for the first time this season, I actually predicted a QPR score bang on. I didn’t think it would come as early as October! I was unable to feel much joy from this small win though, as I came away, like many, feeling that it probably should’ve been 3. 

Just like Saturday, it started pretty well. An even game at first, but the better chances fell to Rangers. Burrell and Saito were both caught offside in the first five minutes but we were getting forward, more than the home side can say. 

There were some moments of poor quality – plenty of fouls, crap passes and strange decisions. Jimmy Dunne booting a short throw straight off the pitch was one that stuck out to me. Madsen put a good cross in which landed on Kone’s head and ended up behind the goal. 

Madsen then pounced on a poor clearance from Burrell’s ball across the box, testing Laurence Vigouroux with a first time shot. Not a bad effort, but I couldn’t help but feel he should have laced it rather than side footing it – regardless, it forced a good save and won us a corner. 

Madsen would be involved in almost everything of note for the remainder of the game. We’ll get to his performance in more detail in the player ratings. There was a brief moment of panic when Mbuenge lost the ball attempting a risky turn in a dangerous area, and Gonçalo Franco drove forward with Yalcouye as support. 

This counter attack probably wouldn’t have gotten anywhere in the end, as it was 2 on 4, but Madsen made sure of it with a phenomenal tackle which would kickstart our next surge forward. His tackle became a clearance which was picked up by Kone in the centre circle, who carried it forward whilst waiting for the right moment to play it to Saito. 

Then, upon looking up for options, Saito was probably surprised to find Isaac Hayden, with his arm in the air, using every bit of power in his legs to make a run into the box. Saito cleverly knocked it round the full-back for him, and with his first touch, Hayden played a lightly-lofted ball to the front post, which was met by his Jamaica team mate, Burrell, to volley past the keeper from a tough angle.

Everything about this goal was good. Madsen’s tackle, Kone’s slow but calculated drive forward, Saito’s vision, Hayden’s run forward and first-time ball in, and most of all, the finish. It’s not a 30-yard screamer or a free kick so it won’t get the recognition it deserves, but to volley that in, with your weak foot, from that angle, and knock it past the keeper into the far corner, whilst pretty much sandwiched inbetween two defenders, is seriously impressive. 

Such a clever, technical finish from Burrell. He had to get the exact amount of power and the right direction on the ball for it to beat the keeper – really not an easy finish. This was, apparently, Hayden’s first assist since 2019. But it was Burrell’s third goal of the season – bargain of a signing so far. The two Jamaicans linked up well to put the Rs ahead after 18 minutes. 

Swansea lost their heads after this, and began trying to cheat their way back into the game. The Swans’ first attempt at fooling the ref into giving a penalty came from Ji-Sung Eom, who jumped onto the ground in the same way I jump onto my bed after getting home from a full day’s work. Arms and legs spread, head down, sink into the pillows. Except his head was obviously turned instantly over at the ref. There was obviously nothing in it, and I’m not sure why that wasn’t a booking for a dive. But I’m not here to talk about the rules on diving. 

It was Yalcouye’s turn to next, when Kone dared to stand near him on the edge of the box and apparently fouled him (ref wasn’t fooled). Then, whilst QPR went up the other end, off camera, Steve Cook went over to let the kid know what score he’d give him for that dive.

He obviously felt it was too low and so, 19 year old Malick Yalcouye fancied himself, squaring up to, and pushing his head into to 35 year old experienced Premier League centre-half Steve Cook, who played him like a fiddle, going down like a sack of spuds from very minimal contact. 

If you don’t know what the rules of this game are anymore and what’s a foul or not, fair enough, i don’t either. But one thing that is guaranteed, if you go in with your head like that, and slightly push it forward, you’re seeing red. There’s no exceptions. It’s a headbutt. Soft or not. 

It was refreshing to see these kinds of dark arts from a QPR player. We’ve all been saying for years how we’re too nice. We get bullied, sucked in and wound up by things like this all the time, especially at Loftus Road. So it’s good to finally be the ones bringing a bit of gamesmanship/shithousery to a tough away fixture. Naivity vs experience. 

For some reason, when QPR are given a man advantage, they take offence to the suggestion that they need the ref’s help, and prefer not to use it to their benefit. You know what, next time just let him stay on. With an extra man in midfield and the momentum on our side, you’d expect us to kick on, and maybe even get one more before the break.

As is often the case with any red card though, the game died. Franco came off for Josh Key at half time as Swansea formed a back 5. I’m not sure why you’d add a defender when you have nothing to defend, but I guess they’re thinking about their goal difference. Swansea didn’t seem to have any intention of letting the game unfold anymore than it had for that brief 20 minute spell in the first half. 

What followed was 45 minutes of infuriating football from the winning team as they strolled their way to full-time as if they were 4-0 up. The back four were outstanding, and Madsen was playing like prime Sergio Busquets – tackling, blocking, pinging good passes about, just everywhere on the pitch. Even Field and Hayden were having solid games in the middle. Going forward though, there was no urgency, everything was slow, sluggish and the end product was absolutely honking. 

Swansea got forward a few times but couldn’t break down the back line who probably had their best collective game of the season. Couldn’t really tell you one defensive error that was made all game. 

The first Rangers sub came at 60 minutes when Paul Smyth (probably our weakest performer) was swapped for Dembele. Kaddie’s first highlight was a quite frankly embarrassing long-range effort on goal, in bags of space, under no pressure, which was both high and wide. Wouldn’t have even been a conversion. 

The 71st minute saw the Jamaican duo hooked for Jonathan Varane with the long-awaited and warmly welcomed return of Ilias Chair. These switches definitely had a positive impact, particularly from our number 10 who, in the 20ish minutes he was on, covered a serious amount of ground and saw a lot of the ball. It was like he’d never been away, with the normal dropping deep, driving forward, looking to create that we always see from Ilias. 

Rangers went up a gear for a brief period, having a few shots on target but nothing that really tested the goalkeeper. It did look like we were finally going to get a second though as we pushed Swansea heavily onto their back foot.

However, both of the 71st minute substitutes each fumbled golden opportunities to put the game to bed. I honestly can’t say which one is worse. The first one came when Dembele played a cheeky through ball to Chair, who, 1v1 with the keeper, hit a pretty pathetic attempt straight at him.

It’s something the little man’s never been good at. Potentially it’s why he’s remained at the club for so long and not had his big move. He’s not the best finisher in a general sense but it’s particularly bad when it comes to being one on one. Such a frustrating miss, has to score.

At least Ilias had a keeper to beat. The same can’t be said for the next chance, when Jimmy Dunne’s shot bounced off the post and  fell to Varane’s right foot in the middle of the box. Varane, with enough time and space to consider every possible section of the open net he could’ve aimed for, opted for a nicely finessed shot wide of the post.

Should have been 3-0. Nothing else to say. We lost on Saturday, against a good team, partly because we didn’t take our chances. We got away with it here because we were the better side and got an early goal. But you cannot continue to miss chances like that if you want to get somewhere. 

Whilst it was cagey at times, with Swansea getting forward and occasionally making us work, the home side didn’t get their first shot on target until the 91st minute. Thankfully Paul Nardi had decided to have his best game of the season and pulled off two great saves in the dying minutes to keep all three points in our hands.

Swansea’s best chance, though, was one that anyone watching would’ve been scratching their head at how it remained 1-0. Ronald, who came on for the absent Inoussa, put a ball straight across the box on the half volley which only needed someone to breathe heavily over and it would’ve gone in. Somehow, Zan Vipotnik managed to miss the ball completely and the ball flew past him. That might explain why he hasn’t scored for 9 games. Big chance, big let off. That probably sealed it. If they couldn’t score that, they probably weren’t going to get their goal.

At last, after only three painful minutes added on, the whistle blew. Rangers were back to winning ways and up to 8th. Many, myself included, came away disappointed with the post-red card performance but upon reflection, you have to give the lads credit for what was a strong win on the road, that we had to work hard for. I can’t complain about that, as much as I may have wanted to.  

Player Ratings:

Paul Nardi – 7/10

His best game this season. Two huge saves at the end but still just looks shaky and flappy when given the ball at his feet. Probably secured us the three points so can’t be too critical of his performance. 

Jimmy Dunne – 6/10

Contrarily, Dunne’s weakest performance of the season (bar the obvious). Shocking on the ball but still contributed to a comfortable clean sheet where he wasn’t bothered much. Apart from, of course, allowing Ronald to hit that ball across the box. Not necessarily bad, but one of the weaker players on the pitch. 

Amadou Mbuenge – 7/10

Crucial to this win. Driving forward (he may have given the ball away in risky areas a couple of times through not releasing it early enough) but also winning his aerial duels and cleaning up his defensive area. It is just those risky decisions that someone just feel like they could go awfully wrong for him/us. 

Steve Cook – 8/10

Phenomenal from Cook. There’s something about Swansea away that Steve just loves. Maybe he’s got a mistress that lives out there. Who knows? Cook just seems to have such a good game every time he plays here (he was absent on Boxing Day, before you go there). 

Scoring the winner last time we won there, and playing a crucial part in winning us the game this time out. That’s not even taking into account the dark arts to get a man sent off. Warrior’s performance from Cookie. Commanded his defence like a captain. 

Sam Field – 7/10

I’m sure many were probably perplexed to see Field’s name on the team sheet but he did well for himself here. Defended well, made some good tackles, namely darting back to save Mbuenge from one of his errors. On the ball, he was okay, but there wasn’t much of a challenge in midfield, obviously, after the red card. It helped that the ones who remained had absolutely shocking games.

Isaac Hayden – 7.5/10

Had a little shift out on the left-wing for whatever reason. Got himself an assist through a run from deep into the box – a nice move well rewarded. Worked his socks off along with his midfield companions and played an important part in dominating that midfield. 

Nicolas Madsen – 8.5/10

Another man of the match performance. There’s no way this is the same Nico Madsen that I was watching last season. On Saturday I thought Madsen was one of our best players but defensively absent, here he was far from it. 

Madsen had control of that midfield in a way that I’ve not seen for years at QPR. The Dane made some crucial tackles, interceptions and clearances, but also got forward, whipping in crosses and having shots of his own. 

Madsen has probably been our best player so far this season but if he plays like he did today then I don’t see a reason he can’t carry us to some kind of success, or at least a strong league table finish. 

Paul Smyth – 5.5/10

Definitely the weakest performer for the winning side. Didn’t do anything of note and just couldn’t contribute to the attacking play. Most memorably running directly at defenders and losing the ball instead of playing Kone through on goal, Smyth just wasn’t at the races. Even if that move did win us a free kick (that’s one thing you can never deny his ability to do – win fouls). 

Koki Saito – 6.5/10

Fairly quiet from Koki, but can’t let his involvement in the goal go uncredited. Good hold up play to wait for Hayden to make his run and play him in just at the right time. Good pre-assist. Other than that, and a couple of early shots, Saito was pretty redundant. 

Richard Kone – 6/10

Attacking wise, another Wednesday away level performance from Kone, but played a key role in helping the defence, both from the front, and dropping deep when needed. Could have scored from his header in the first half but other than that, pretty absent in the box.

That’s the sacrifice we’ve had to make through playing Kone as a second striker. It’s working for now but we all want to see him play as a 9. That’s where we’ll get goals out of him. He’s doing fine though. 

Rumarn Burrell – 7/10

What a bloke. Superb finish for the goal – his second in five days. Great work rate again but after the goal, wasn’t very involved. Burrell wasn’t given any service but, in fairness, was marked out of the game by the Swansea back line after the goal.

 Substitutes:

• Kader Dembele (60’) – 6/10 – Deserved an assist for Chair’s missed sitter but also took one of the worst shots I’ve seen for a long time. A frustrating weekly occurrence from Dembele. Didn’t impact the game much. 
• Ilias Chair (71’) – 7/10 – Looked very sharp, ran the show for the period he was on. We looked a much better side with it being played through him. Absolutely shocking finish but forgiven for the work he put in. I’m very excited to see if a midfield including both Madsen and Chair is a possibility. 
• Jonathan Varane (71’) – 6.5/10 – Didn’t play badly since coming on but also missed a horrid sitter. Not a lot was asked of Varane but he did his bit, winning a couple of headers. Not much more to say. 
• Michael Frey (88’) – N/A

Man of the Match: Nicolas Madsen – 8.5/10

Sergio Busquets-esque performance from Madsen. Midfield general. Probably the first time I can say that about him, even since his turn around in form. Madsen ran the show both defensively and offensively. Sweeping, tackling and driving forward.

Every time Madsen gets on the ball at the moment you have a feeling that something will happen. 

I have an immense amount of trust in his capability with his feet. If he defends like that going forward, he’ll make a pretty complete player. 

Donkey of the Day: Jonathan Varane

Three stand out nominations for donkey here. Ilias Chair’s pathetic attempt whilst one on one with the keeper, Kader Dembele’s air shot and Varane’s open goal miss. Any time someone misses an open goal though, it has to go down as donkey. That’s a stinker. Sorry Jon. 

Swansea star player: Josh Tymon

Hard to pick a stand out player for a team that had to sacrifice any entertainment value from their game after going a man down. Can’t blame them, but it really wasn’t pretty from Swansea. They did defend well, and Josh Tymon was the man who I noticed was involved more than most. 

The left back got forward and created a few (pretty non-dangerous) chances for his side. He also won the majority of his duels, shut Smyth and then Dembele out of the game and had a very good all round game. Definitely the best performer from Swansea’s bunch.  

Up Next:

Championship Matchday 12: Derby County (A)

Score Prediction: Derby County 0-2 QPR

One to Watch: Carlton Morris

Despite being one of the teams we quite often get the better of, Derby is another fixture that I don’t look forward to. They played us at their ground at a really good time last season, when we seemed to have just given up on remaining a championship club completely. 

However, the reverse fixture was one of the best games we’ve had at home for a long time. It wasn’t quite Leeds United levels of blown away, but it was still a very convincing 4-0 victory. A chair brace, eith Edwards and Saito also scoring. 

I don’t think expecting more of the same is a million miles off with the style of football we’re playing at the moment, but it just stinks. Derby on terrible form, us on very strong form and near the top 6, what more do you need to know? This could go terribly. Especially after getting their first win of the season, albeit against a quite frankly woeful Norwich side.

But I won’t be that cynical. I’m gonna back us again. 2-0 win – Kone and Saito. As for Derby’s one to watch, there can only really be one, and that’s Carlton Morris. I wanted to go for Patrick Agyemang purely for the name, but I’m going for Morris.

Premier league experience, physicality, and a good finishing ability, Morris will be a problem for our centre halves. Scoring 4 in his first 4 games, Morris hasn’t scored in his last 7. So it makes even more sense for him to bag one here. Hopefully not, if my score prediction is anything to go by. 

Championship Gameweek 12 Predictions:

No time to round-up last week’s predictions this time. But here’s this weekend’s:

• Preston North End 1-2 Sheffield United
• Coventry City 3-1 Watford 
• Ipswich Town 1-2 West Bromwich Albion
• Portsmouth 1-1 Stoke City
• Blackburn Rovers 0-2 Southampton 
• Bristol City 1-1 Birmingham City
• Hull City 2-2 Charlton Athletic
• Middlesbrough 3-0 Wrexham
• Millwall 1-0 Leicester City
• Sheffield Wednesday 0-2 Oxford United
• Swansea City 2-0 Norwich City

An ugly win. But I’m sure you all remember a famous Ian Holloway interview which I won’t quote. See you Saturday. 

You R’s.