QPR boss Cifuentes credits impact of substitutes in Luton win and explains Southampton loanee’s midfield role
A fortuitous deflection off Morgan Fox earned Rangers a fifth consecutive home win, with the decisive goal coming just moments after Cifuentes had made his first two changes.
Debutant Ronnie Edwards, Koki Saito, Jack Colback, Alfie Lloyd and Jake Clarke-Salter were all introduced to great effect as the west London club moved up to 13th in the Championship.
“It’s good news that there is competition,” said Cifuentes.
“It’s good news that when the guys come from the bench, they are performing at the level they did.
“For me, it’s one of the best news to see that everyone who comes in contributes in an extremely positive way.”
Edwards, who joined the club on loan from Southampton on New Year’s Day, was initially brought on in central midfield before dropping back to his natural position at centre-back.
Cifuentes revealed it was a decision made to help ease the 21-year-old into the game.
“We know that he is a very technical defender and he has played before in this number six role,” explained the Catalan.
“The reason behind it was he has been with us just a few days. It was a difficult game because of the way Luton play – very direct with a lot of players who can run in behind.
“It’s not easy to jump [from the bench] as a defender in that kind of game.
“Jonathan [Varane] had a yellow card so we thought it could be a good introduction for him to start some minutes in midfield to get the rhythm of the game and then drop him into his more natural position, and I think he did really well.
“I don’t think he put a foot wrong. He showed he is a quality player and will hopefully help us a lot.
“I know he had played there before, perhaps not a lot of games. But I know he has the quality to play there. I always try to take decision based on what I feel. Let’s see [if Edwards plays in midfield again].”
The forward replaced goal-scorer Michael Frey in the second half, and was unfortunate not to get his own name on the scoresheet.
A chipped effort bounced agonisingly wide after Lloyd had latched on to an under-hit back-pass before he later struck the post with an instinctive effort from the edge of the box.
“He’s developing a great ability by himself to create a lot of things around him,” Cifuentes assessed.
“Things happen around him. I’m just a bit sad for him because I think he definitely deserved a goal.
“It was difficult to take the decision [to bring Lloyd on] because Rayan [Kolli] as well has been performing really well.
“The good thing is that we have now three strikers that can play at the top with different qualities and then it is about making the right decision.”