da pixbet： This article is part of Football FanCast’s Off the Bench series, which places in-game managerial decisions and squad selections under FFC’s microscope.
da jogodeouro： QPR could have returned to winning ways on Saturday had Jordan Hugill started the match alongside Nahki Wells up-front, rather than Elias Chair.
Off the bench
It seemed a rather peculiar decision from Mark Warburton and although he may feel justified to make such a call, as Chair assisted Wells for the first goal, it may have actually held back the R’s.
Hugill has performed well this season, his seven goals suggest as much, but he also provides QPR with a little extra in attack, a physical edge that they lack otherwise – a factor which also makes him a useful partner for Wells.
Warburton’s decision may have been inspired by his desire to play a passing game, and though 61% possession would suggest it worked, it did in fact hinder the performance of Chair, whose pass accuracy was 74% – way below his average of 84%.
Hugill has struggled in the same area by comparison with a 71% average, but he makes up for it in other areas, most notably his aerial presence.
The striker has averaged 3.3 aerial duels won per game this term, and won one in his 30 minutes against Boro, which shows it could have been a useful secondary avenue of attack for Warburton’s men.
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Too one dimensional
Warburton has got his side playing some wonderful stuff and the likes of Wells and Eberechi Eze really excelling with 14 goals between them, but too often his side are trying too much to create openings.
Even Wells’ equaliser was an example of that, as the pass too him was very nearly cut out by the defender, and that means that the R’s were focused too much on one method of scoring.
With Hugill on the pitch, it would have been a different story, as he provides the ideal target from crosses by players such as Ryan Manning, and he would have been able to make more of a nuisance of himself had he started – especially against a Boro team who can be physical.
In his time on the pitch he managed two shots and one key pass, which shows he was lively in the final third, and may have been able to add a little extra if he had a longer time on the pitch.
If the QPR boss made his decision in a bid to improve his defence then it is an understandable one, but Hugill’s presence at set-pieces can also prove important, as the home side would have conceded from one in the first half but for the offside flag.