Marti Cifuentes remains coy on reasons for QPR’s fluctuating performances following FA Cup defeat
QPR head coach Marti Cifuentes has shared with his players the reasons he believes have caused the team’s inconsistent performances.
Rangers are 23rd in the Championship and exited the FA Cup following a 3-2 defeat to Premier League side Bournemouth in the third round yesterday that extended their winless run to seven games in all competitions.
However, Cifuentes has recently seen his side perform well against Championship high-flyers Southampton, Ipswich and Hull, and did so once again on Saturday as they took a 2-0 half-time lead against the Cherries.
Damaging defeats to Sheffield Wednesday, Millwall and Cardiff have been the product of less impressive showings, leaving QPR four points from safety.
“I have one idea that I share with the guys, but I will not share here today,” said Cifuentes when asked how his team often raise their game against loftier opposition.
“That’s how the game is. You need to understand the picture of the game and take different roles during it.
“Perhaps a lot of people expected an easy game for Bournemouth, but we did not make it easy for them even though they are a very good team.
“There are some reasons for that. The important thing in my opinion is the team is getting peaks of performance that shows if we improve in the areas we need to improve, hopefully we can be strong over 90 minutes – which so far we have only done in a few games.
“If it’s a motivational thing we’ve got a problem. We are here to play in front of 20,000 people.
“It’s not about a motivational thing. It’s about assuming that sometimes teams will play in a different way and the matches are different from game to game.
“Sometimes it’s about the braveness of the way we want to play. We are going to play against teams that will press high, against teams when you receive [the ball] on the back foot you need to be confident enough to trust the next guy.
“All of this is the foundation of the way we play. To have the personality to play under this pressure sometimes is easier than others.”
PICTURE: ROB AVIS
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