Four takeaways from QPR’s 2-2 draw with West Brom – Positive evening tainted by Kipre handball going unpunished

QPR boosted their chances of avoiding relegation from the Championship thanks to a 2-2 draw against West Brom on Wednesday night.

Here are Dan Evans’ takeaways from Loftus Road.

 CEDRIC KIPRE’S SAVE CATCHES EVERYONE BY SURPRISE

The major talking point that arose from the game was the failure to award QPR a penalty for a blatant handball on the goal-line by West Brom defender Cedric Kipre.

Whilst replays showed that Kipre had clearly pushed a goal-bound Sam Field header over the crossbar after it had beaten goalkeeper Alex Palmer, it was not entirely clear at the time of the event.

None of the QPR players appealed for a spot-kick after the West Brom man had palmed the ball to safety, and the majority of the Loftus Road crowd was still in shock following Michael Frey’s penalty miss not long before.

Marti Cifuentes admitted his frustration at West Brom briefly being allowed to play with ‘two goalkeepers’ post-match, but he went on to state that he understood the difficult job that referees have when officiating.

The slow-motion replays and outcry following the game makes it seem as though Geoff Eltringham’s decision was a serious blunder, yet it was an offence that was hardly spotted by anyone inside the ground in real time.

Cifuentes and QPR will be more willing to forgive and forget should they go on to avoid relegation from the Championship at the end of this season.

However, Kipre’s moment of deception might end up proving costly as the battle to avoid the drop looks set to be one of the most competitive ever.

SAM FIEL JOINS THE GOALSCORING PARTY

Field saved his first goals of the season for this meeting with his former club, yet the confidence with which he took his chances, and the positions he picked up to take them, made it seem as though he finds the net regularly.

The midfielder showed great anticipation to meet Lukas Andersen’s first-half cross after Ilias Chair’s shot had been spilled by Palmer, and he did similarly well as the ball broke loose for the late equaliser equaliser as he stooped to head home.

Field is now operating in a more advanced midfield role following the January signing of Isaac Hayden, with the Newcastle United loanee now the regular starter as QPR’s anchor in the middle of the park.

Hayden’s arrival initially left Field struggling for game time, but he has now started three of the last four matches and is showing other elements to his game alongside his usually reliable defensive work.

The 25-year-old regularly made off the ball runs in support of striker Michael Frey against West Brom, and could even have ended the night with the match ball had Kipre not controversially kept out his header.

Field passed up big opportunities to earn points with misses from close-range in games against Norwich City and Sheffield Wednesday early in Cifuentes’ rein, yet he went a good way to making up for it against West Brom.

LUCAS ANDERSEN SHOWS HIS CLASS ONCE MORE

On a night when Loftus Road remembered its most famous forward in Stan Bowles, Lucas Andersen offered yet more signs that he is well on the way to becoming a fan favourite in his own right.

The Danish playmaker now has three assists in his first six QPR appearances after intelligently picking out Field to open the scoring, and all the signs suggest he could be on course to add to that tally in the coming weeks.

Andersen made six key passes against West Brom, taking his overall tally for his new club to ten in a little over four hours of football for his new side.

His languid style can hide his willingness to press and harry opposition players, with the 29-year-old putting in a tackle and an interception to aid QPR’s aggressive hounding of the visitors whenever the ball was lost.

Andersen looked surprised to be substituted when Cifuentes opted to replace him with Chris Willock in the 71^st minute, and few among the home crowd would have been pleased to see him depart.

However, Andersen is yet to complete 90 minutes for Rangers since signing and is continuing to build up his fitness after not playing competitively for almost three months before arriving in W12.

Given how good the former Ajax man has already been in his time on the pitch so far, it is tantalising to imagine what he could produce once he is up to full speed.

MICHAEL FREY PENALTY MISS ONLY ADDS TO STRIKER CONUNDRUM

Many of the elements of Cifuentes’ regular starting eleven now seem to be decided.

There is understandably rotation that takes place, particularly in a three-game week like this one, and changes in personnel due to injury and suspension have been required.

However, the one position where there does not currently seem to be a definite starter is the central striker berth.

In the last five games, Sinclair Armstrong, Lyndon Dykes and Michael Frey have been selected to play upfront, with none of the three starting consecutive games.

Dykes began the win against Leicester City at the weekend, setting up Chair for the game’s opening goal before Armstrong took his place in the second half and scored with his very first touch.

It was Frey who started the West Brom draw, and although he put in a combative performance in which he regularly robbed the visiting defenders of possession and won four of his five aerial duels, he did not quite take the chance to make the position his own.

The January signing saw a penalty saved early in the second half as QPR chased an equaliser having already passed up a decent chance to score with a headed effort form a Chair cross.

Cifuentes praised Frey’s application post-match and absolved him of any blame for the penalty miss, yet it seems only the Spaniard knows who will be leading the line for him in Saturday’s game against Middlesbrough.