QPR boss Cifuentes reveals secret behind penalty shootout success in Luton EFL Cup win

 Practice on the training pitch helped QPR overcome Luton Town on penalties in the second round of the EFL Cup, according to Rangers boss Marti Cifuentes.

Rangers scored all four of their spot-kicks following a 1-1 draw at Loftus Road, with goalkeeper Joe Walsh saving from Cauley Woodrow before Tahith Chong hit the crossbar with his effort for the visitors.

And Cifuentes thinks that regular penalty-taking in training was partly responsible for the success.

“We take a lot of penalties because we do internal competition with the players,” he said.

“Every time there is a draw in a small-sided game, we take penalties.

“The pressure is not the same at the training ground as it is here, but they were very good shots and Walshy made a good save.

“Xavi [Calm, assistant head coach] was with me in the last minutes of the game. He could see what was going on and was preparing the list [of penalty takers].

“I’ve done a lot of things in the past. Unfortunately, I’ve got mixed results. I lost a cup final in Sweden after preparing everything – all the small details – but still we lost it.

“We didn’t prepare as deep as that but we asked the players if they were confident and they did great.”

Second-choice goalkeeper Walsh ended up being one of the heroes of the night, saving Luton’s first penalty from former Fulham striker Woodrow to give his side the upper hand.

The 22-year-old had already made impressive stops from Carlton Morris and Elijah Adebayo in open play, and Cifuentes was pleased to see his progress continue.

“I’m very happy for him,” he said. “Since I came [to QPR] last season, he had two experienced keepers helping him in Asmir [Begovic] and Jordan [Archer}.

“They helped him a lot in his development. He took big steps and that’s why we wanted to prolong his contract. I’m very happy that he’s here.

“When I see his performances since pre-season he’s been showing, and already last season at Coventry [in the last game of the season], he was so calm and so cool.

“I think he is a fantastic keeper and it is very nice to have him and Paul [Nardi] in the goal.”

PICTURE: ROB AVIS