Having previously rescued Portsmouth and Tottenham from
troubled water, Harry Redknapp reckons his mission at Queens Park Rangers is
even tougher. With little margin for error, the former Tottenham manager opted
for safety ahead of fantasy. Bosingwa and Granero returned to first team, with
Mbia and Diakite shielding the defence in midfield. To anchor the players'
belief that the season is not over yet, to leave Sunderland with at least a
point is a must.
Sunderland's recent struggle would have given Redknapp a
hand. Movement up front was very limited, with only Sessegnon being able to
threaten occasionally. Adam Johnson again looked toothless in the left wing,
which left Steven Fletcher isolated between Ryan Nelsen and Clint Hill. Cattermole
once again was bothered by his knee and had to leave merely 5 minutes into the
match. Since, the Black Cats was never able to take control in midfield, even though
QPR's passing had been off the mark.
While Djibril Cisse is having a poor season, QPR is boosted
by the return of Jamie Mackie, who had not been Mark Hughes' favourite. The
strong winger does not shy away from strong tackles and shows great desire for
victory. Being a frequent receiver of Taarabt's passes, Mackie was fractionally
close to scoring for the second
consecutive match, only to be denied by Mignolet, who looked to recover from his horrible mistake on Saturday.
The flow of the match sums up the story so far this season
for the two teams. Neither showed flashes of clinical touch in the final third.
QPR never prepared to put much manpower beyond half way line, but Sunderland,
who ought to have more initiative to go for a win, often found their attack
terminated due to inadequate support in the box. Their two best chances in the
game both came from Steven Fletcher. Julio Cesar and Robert Green, who came in
after half time for the injured Brazilian, split the responsibility of
retaining the clean sheet.
The introduction of Louis Saha and James McClean gave the
home team more physical presence in attack. However, they have nearly lost the
match late in the game when Shaun Wright-Phillips, who had substituted Taarabt,
came close to snatching the win following a fastbreak.
In the end, it was only a goalless draw. The competent and
spiritual football QPR displayed might be still far from the quality Tony Fernandes
expects from his investment, but QPR has at least got their first step right
towards the great escape. Harry Redknapp would have every reasons to be satisfied
with his first match back in the Premier League.
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