Driving up the M1 on the way to this game, my sons and I were talking about why it’s always a bad idea to leave before the final whistle just in case something dramatic happens at the death. The example Charlie came up with was our home game against Brentford in 2017 in which we were trailing 0-2 after 90 minutes, only for Matt Smith and Luke Freeman to get a goal apiece in injury time. As things turned out, this game proved to be another good example, with the hosts going 1-0 up in the 93rd minute and the visitors’ equalising in the 96th. If we’d left early, as hundreds of home fans did, we would have missed the only two bits of excitement in the match.
Martí Cifuentes shuffled around the back line going into this game, as we thought he would, given that QPR brought Harrison Ashby in on loan on deadline day, suggesting he might not want to keep Jimmy Dunne at right back. Ashby didn’t play, but Jake Clarke-Salter was rested, making way for Dunne at centre back, with Hevertten Santos replacing him at right back. In addition, Martí brought back Lucas Andersen as our CAM, with Nicolas Madsen replacing Alfie Lloyd on the left and Karamoka Dembélé on the right. That meant the gaffer set them up in a 4-2-3-1 formation as follows: Paul Nardi in goal; Santos, Steve Cook, Dunne and Kenneth Paal as the back four; Sam Field and Jack Colback in defensive midfield; Dembélé, Andersen and Madsen as the attacking trio; and Michy Frey up front.
This was close to the line-up in our match-winning second half performance against Luton, save for Dunne playing out of position – or, rather, back in his old position – and the absence of Paul Smyth. But it didn’t gel as well here, perhaps because Dembélé was on the right rather than playing as a number 10, which feels like his natural position. Andersen was a poor substitute for the nimble 21 year-old and we improved when the Dane got the hook in the 72nd minute and Dembélé shifted to the centre, with Koki Saito coming in to replace him on the left.
For most of the game, we looked a bit lacklustre and careless, as if the players had spent the international break with their feet up and their heads elsewhere. That can’t be true, but maybe Cifuentes didn’t work them too hard as per the slow-burn fitness strategy of Ben Williams, our now departed Director of Performance. Williams’s approach can be frustrating, given that it means our players aren’t straining ever sinew in the first half of the season, but it paid off last season, with QPR having more players available at the end of 2023-24 than any other EFL team, according to our 26 year-old CEO on Radio 5 Live.
No such restraint was exhibited by the Owls, who seemed more energetic and committed than us, particularly in the first half where the hosts enjoyed 59% of the possession. They also had a total of nine shots in the first 45 minutes compared to just two from us, although, happily, they only managed to get one on target. It was the hosts failure to take their chances that saved us, given that they kept overwhelming us in the middle of the park with their pace and aggression. That is, until Barry Bannan scissored the ball into the top right-hand corner in the 93rd minute, which, as Charlie said at the time, felt like a deserved victory.
Frey did his best, chasing down long balls, wrestling with defenders and running at the keeper, but failed to produce any moments of magic, as he did against Luton. He was replaced by Zan Celar in the 72nd minute who still looks slightly intimidated by the physical brutality of the Championship, pulling out of tackles and losing every aerial duel.
But, defying the odds, we somehow managed to get an equaliser in the 96th minute. From where I was standing behind the QPR goal, along with 1,300 other Rangers’ fans, it was impossible to see what was going on. A goalmouth melee at the other end seemed to go on for an eternity, but ended with someone – it was impossible to say who – poking the ball over the line.
It produced extraordinary jubilation in the away end – delight that we’d managed to silence the home fans, who’d greeted Bannan’s goal with an almighty roar, and relief that we weren’t going to lose after all, having given up on this match after going one-nil down in the 93rd minute. This is the third league game this season in which we’ve come from behind to win or rescue a point, which shows great character.
The icing on the cake was discovering the goalscorer was Alfie Lloyd, who Martí had brought on in the 91st minute as a replacement for Dembélé. I have a soft spot for Lloyd because he was nice to Charlie when he did work experience at QPR last year and he’s clearly a lovely man judging from the affection the other players show towards him. Cifuentes seems to rate him because he’s slotted him into the first team this season, even starting him against Luton. But until today’s cameo he’d proved a bit disappointing. In particular, he’s been unable to finish in spite of getting himself into goal-scoring positions. So I’m pleased he’s got his first goal and hope it proves a confidence-booster. At the end, when the players were applauding the fans, Martí came up and gave him a huge hug, clearly delighted for him.
We’ve got a real test on Tuesday when we play Crystal Palace at Loftus Road in the third round of the Carabao Cup. You never know which QPR team is going to turn up, but let’s hope it’s the one that produced our excellent second half performances in the league games against Sheffield United and Luton.
You can watch the highlights on Sky Sports here. Lovely stadium, by the way, one of the nicest I’ve been to.