QPR boss Marti Cifuentes reveals he ‘hated’ dramatic ending to Birmingham win

Marti Cifuentes admitted he found it hard to fully enjoy the climax to QPR’s late win against Birmingham City on Saturday.

A fabulous Jimmy Dunne strike in the 92nd minute earned Rangers a vital 2-1 win against their relegation rivals, moving Cifuentes’ side four points clear of the relegation zone in the process.

Juninho Bacuna had given Birmingham a second-half lead, only for Steve Cook to equalise three minutes later and set up a dramatic ending to the game.

“I hated it, I wanted to win 3-0!” said Cifuentes when asked about the finale. “Of course, I was very happy, but those guys (the players) will make me feel very old, very soon.

“Immediately when Jimmy scored I was thinking how we could keep the advantage. I was not running around. I was happy about the goal but immediately we were thinking.

“We managed really well the last seven or eight minutes without conceding any shots.”

There were emotional scenes following the final whistle as well, with fans at Loftus Road celebrating what could turn out to be a decisive moment in QPR’s season.

Cifuentes encouraged his players to return to the pitch after heading down the tunnel in order to spend longer with the supporters.

“It is important to create this togetherness,” he explained.

“We were quick. I understand that we have a game on Monday [against Swansea] but five minutes will not damage anyone. This atmosphere… again, today it was amazing.

“Some players wanted to do it as well. We just felt it was a good moment to spend more time together with the supporters. They deserve that.

“We need to be very careful. Today is a day to be happy but the reality is we have seven games left and we need to pick up a lot more points. It is going to be difficult until the end.

“We are in a very good mood today, the way it must be, but from tomorrow we will think about Swansea and we need to get more points.”