Dan Evans’ four takeaways from QPR’s 2-0 win against Hull City – Cifuentes may have found his best team as defensive improvements continue to underpin upturn in results
QPR moved within two points of Championship safety after a 2-0 victory against Hull City earned them three consecutive wins for the first time since October 2022.
Here are Dan Evans’ four takeaways from Loftus Road.
Defensive solidity provides the basis for Cifuentes’ success
Although much has been made of the changes that Marti Cifuentes has made in terms of how QPR play when they have the ball since replacing Gareth Ainsworth, it has been improvements out of possession that have helped him make a bright start at Loftus Road.
Rangers have conceded an Expected Goals total of less than one in all six of Cifuentes’ games in charge, keeping three clean sheets in the process to help pick up 11 valuable points.
Before Cifuentes’ arrival, QPR had an xG against total of at least one in all but two of their first 14 games of the season.
This trend continued against Hull, with the Tigers registering just two more shots at goal than the home side despite enjoying 65 per cent of possession.
Cifuentes has benefitted from the fine recent form of Steve Cook and the recent return to fitness of fellow centre-back Jake Clarke-Salter, but it is hard to deny that Rangers look a great deal more organised at the back under their new head coach.
Cifuentes might have found his best starting eleven
The new QPR boss has stressed that squad rotation is an important part of his approach, but this starting eleven against Hull looked like his strongest line-up yet.
Clarke-Salter and Cook are the two Rangers centre-backs who look most comfortable building attacks from the back, and both performed well against Hull on the first occasion they have started together under Cifuentes.
Most significantly, Cifuentes managed to get Ilias Chair, Chris Willock and Paul Smyth in the same team for the first time since his opening game against Rotherham United.
QPR have come a long way since then, with Willock in particular now looking a lot sharper after barely featuring under Ainsworth, and Chair and Willock combined to great effect in the Hull win.
After Chair set up Willock for Rangers’ second goal at Preston last time out, Willock returned the favour for the Moroccan international on Saturday, guiding Ryan Allsop’s misplaced clearance into Chair’s path before he slotted home.
Willock had already curled home a brilliant opener by that point to notch his third goal in three games after going more than a year without finding the back of the net.
Both players were given a standing ovation when they were substituted late on, and they appear well on the way to getting back to their best.
Having made at least one change between all of his six matches so far, Cifuentes could well buck the trend for the midweek visit of Plymouth Argyle.
Captain Begovic stands tall between the sticks
Asmir Begovic has perhaps seemed one of the members of QPR’s squad who is not particularly well-suited to the change in playing style under Cifuentes.
The experienced goalkeeper can be awkward with the ball at his feet at times, but he rarely looked flustered against Hull.
Most significantly, he made six saves against the Tigers – the most he has made in a single game since Cifuentes’ arrival.
Although a couple of them were straightforward stops, he crucially kept out both Liam Delap and Scott Twine early in the second half to maintain QPR’s one-goal lead, and he saved his best until last as he got a fingertip to a curling Sean McLoughlin effort in stoppage time.
The focus has been on the improvements taking place in front of the club captain so far, but he was deserving of praise for his display on Saturday.
Armstrong shows his worth as a super-sub
During QPR’s dismal start to the season, there was plenty of clamour for Sinclair Armstrong to feature regularly in the first team.
The 20-year-old causes defenders all manner of problems with his pace and physicality, and a goal and assist in an early-season win at Cardiff made it seem as though he could take the Championship by storm.
Armstrong has struggled with form and fitness issues ever since and is yet to start a game under Cifuentes.
He missed the last two games against Stoke and Preston after pulling up with an injury in the warm-up before facing the Potters but was back on the bench on Saturday.
His introduction in the 67th minute to play alongside Lyndon Dykes upfront was something of a surprise as QPR were a goal to the good at the time, yet the Republic of Ireland international more than justified Cifuentes’ substitution.
With Hull controlling possession and territory, Armstrong proved to be a useful out ball for Rangers, with his runs in behind stretching the visiting defence and disrupting any momentum they tried to build.
His most impactful moment came just six minutes after coming on, as his determined closing down pressured Hull goalkeeper Allsop into clearing straight to Willock who crossed for Chair to score and seal the win.
PICTURES: ROB AVIS