| Catastrophe, ou formidable? Stéphan steps into Loftus Road hot seat - Column on 20:21 - Jun 25 with 1597 views | Northernr |
| Catastrophe, ou formidable? Stéphan steps into Loftus Road hot seat - Column on 20:16 - Jun 25 by Wilkinswatercarrier |
With my new post season ultra positive outlook I'm trying to see any negatives at the moment.
This does look like Nourry putting his ideas into practice. I know the 1st team still looks a little weak, but overall its a big thumbs up so far.
I've still got this season down as survival, but i just want better football this year. |
Well I've put in that bloody 442 season preview under "I won't be happy unless.."
We get better than last year. When you sack a popular manager doing a reasonable job that's the pressure you put on yourself.
But as I say in this article, moving much beyond 15th with our wage bill is a challenge. So I';m not standing here arms folded demanding top ten or play off push.
Some key things you could improve to get the likes of me onside straight away, other than a few places in that league table...
- solve this bloody home form. Bottom three in the Championship multiple seasons running for home form. More home wins.
- Cups. They do matter. They matter to us, at a club like this, who has been stuck in this league going to Preston for ten years. Cifuentes really disappointed me at Leicester. This manager has a great cup record. Finish 15th again but have fun in one or both cups and that's going to bring a lot of good will.
- Attack, goals, attractive style of play.
- Players improving, development squad prospects establishing in first team.
Do that, finish 13th-14th, good seaosn for me. |  | |  |
| Catastrophe, ou formidable? Stéphan steps into Loftus Road hot seat - Column on 20:38 - Jun 25 with 1542 views | Hunterhoop |
| Catastrophe, ou formidable? Stéphan steps into Loftus Road hot seat - Column on 19:09 - Jun 25 by kensalriser |
442 with our current squad will be a formidable catastrophe. Annihilation awaits in midfield and lest we forget, the total number of strikers on the books is about 1.5. |
I’m not sure it’d be quite the catastrophe some think.
We have two good holding midfielders.
It’ll suite Frey, Celar and Kelman.
We have Smyth as a genuine, old school winger and we might sign another.
It’ll be fine for the defence who will have grown up with a 4 man midfield in front of them, and perhaps aren’t the most comfortable playing out.
It doesn’t suit Chair or Dembele or Kolli. But who else doesn’t it suit? Millwall make it work on a lower budget with arguably (I think so) worse players.
I’m not going all Mike Bassett, but I don’t think it should be dismissed out of hand. |  | | |
| Catastrophe, ou formidable? Stéphan steps into Loftus Road hot seat - Column on 20:44 - Jun 25 with 1510 views | gigiisourgod |
| Catastrophe, ou formidable? Stéphan steps into Loftus Road hot seat - Column on 20:38 - Jun 25 by Hunterhoop |
I’m not sure it’d be quite the catastrophe some think.
We have two good holding midfielders.
It’ll suite Frey, Celar and Kelman.
We have Smyth as a genuine, old school winger and we might sign another.
It’ll be fine for the defence who will have grown up with a 4 man midfield in front of them, and perhaps aren’t the most comfortable playing out.
It doesn’t suit Chair or Dembele or Kolli. But who else doesn’t it suit? Millwall make it work on a lower budget with arguably (I think so) worse players.
I’m not going all Mike Bassett, but I don’t think it should be dismissed out of hand. |
I’d argue that Kolli would be suited to a 4-4-2 or at least in the Bergkamp / Cantona 4-4-1-1 mould |  | | |
| Catastrophe, ou formidable? Stéphan steps into Loftus Road hot seat - Column on 21:07 - Jun 25 with 1425 views | lassel |
| Catastrophe, ou formidable? Stéphan steps into Loftus Road hot seat - Column on 20:44 - Jun 25 by gigiisourgod |
I’d argue that Kolli would be suited to a 4-4-2 or at least in the Bergkamp / Cantona 4-4-1-1 mould |
I wouldn’t be surprised to see Kolli binned off this summer. Iran and Israel have a more amicable relationship than the Kolli’s and Nourry…. | | | |
| Catastrophe, ou formidable? Stéphan steps into Loftus Road hot seat - Column on 21:11 - Jun 25 with 1415 views | gigiisourgod |
| Catastrophe, ou formidable? Stéphan steps into Loftus Road hot seat - Column on 21:07 - Jun 25 by lassel |
I wouldn’t be surprised to see Kolli binned off this summer. Iran and Israel have a more amicable relationship than the Kolli’s and Nourry…. |
That would be a real shame, as in patches last season he looked capable of really stepping up into Champ football. | | | |
| Catastrophe, ou formidable? Stéphan steps into Loftus Road hot seat - Column on 21:19 - Jun 25 with 1396 views | TK1 |
442 is a massive red herring. Think everyone should push it to the back of their minds until we witness it regularly.
As Clive writes, "Nourry has put a game model in place that he wants all the teams throughout the club to be playing."
That game model is not 442. So unless the the Dev squad, the U18s and youth teams start playing 442 I'd be amazed if Stephan has been appointed with a mandate to just play whatever you want, son.
They want players to transition smoothly through the age groups, train with the first team sometimes - it's gonna all be the same formation, or similar enough. Kelman went to Os because they play the same system. There's a Head of Methodology on a very good wedge no doubt to ensure that there's no jazz played by individual coaches, that it all aligns. Bould's appointment is another brick in this construct. | | | |
| Catastrophe, ou formidable? Stéphan steps into Loftus Road hot seat - Column on 22:02 - Jun 25 with 1307 views | dmm |
Stephan and now Bould look like good appointments but I'm keeping my powder dry until I see who we sign to fill the vacant positions.
If we bring in Amadou Mbengue and Kwame Poku, that will be a good start. Of course, a left back is required but central midfield is in need of attention. We must find a no. 8 who can drive us forward and score goals, as well as a DCM, assuming Colback is off. |  | | |
| Catastrophe, ou formidable? Stéphan steps into Loftus Road hot seat - Column on 22:47 - Jun 25 with 1210 views | BazzaInTheLoft |
| Catastrophe, ou formidable? Stéphan steps into Loftus Road hot seat - Column on 21:07 - Jun 25 by lassel |
I wouldn’t be surprised to see Kolli binned off this summer. Iran and Israel have a more amicable relationship than the Kolli’s and Nourry…. |
Long term, we’d miss Kolli more than Marti. |  | | |
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| Catastrophe, ou formidable? Stéphan steps into Loftus Road hot seat - Column on 23:18 - Jun 25 with 1136 views | Logman |
I'm not sure we've got the strikers, yet alone the midfielders to play 4-4-2.
Wha I want to know from Clive though is what is Stephan's man management like ?
Because Marti was pretty good at keeping everyone in board and even managed to get a tune out of the likes of Ashby and Madsen.
I'm worried that the French man will not be so supportive and there will be divisions when the players that he has inherited don't cut the mustard. | | | |
| Catastrophe, ou formidable? Stéphan steps into Loftus Road hot seat - Column on 23:47 - Jun 25 with 1100 views | queensparker |
If we’re looking at two up front I reckon Frey plus either Kolli or the top scorer in the division below
Kelman sounds handy.
Sign one more massive hard barstd and that’s not a bad attack - Kolli is a good finisher and clearly so is Kelman. [Post edited 25 Jun 23:48]
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| Catastrophe, ou formidable? Stéphan steps into Loftus Road hot seat - Column on 00:22 - Jun 26 with 1042 views | stainrods_elbow |
The first lazy/semi-defeatist myth that needs to be squashed is there's some kind of necessary correlation between a club's payroll and final placing. Sure, there was no surprise in seeing ex-Premiership Leeds, Burnley, and Sheffied United at the top of the tree last time out, given parachute payments etc., but, for those who care to do the forensics and study the facts, here's the 'wages league table' for 24/25 (if you can endure the littering tedium of the box ads):
https://www.capology.com/uk/championship/payrolls/
Of that little lot, to extrapolate:
Luton, 4th highest wage bill, relegated
Cardiff, 7th highest, relegated
Hull City, 9th highest, finished 21st
Middlesbrough, 5th highest, finished 10th
On the other hand (in order of merit re 'money' vs 'achievement')
Coventry 17th highest, finished 5th
Sunderland 15th highest, finished 4th
Blackburn 14th highest, finished 7th
Millwall 13th highest, finished 8th
And just for the likes of Hoos and his former converts to suck on, ground size isn't an essential factor either, or the likes of Luton (even if they couldn't stick around this time), Bournemouth and Palace would never have prospered as in the Prem as they have.
What counts a lot more is coaching excellence, commitment/spirit/belief, organisation, and a smattering of quality and experience in key positions. That's how Warnock's promotion-winning side did it, with a bit of help from our resident Terror Bat and his echolocational gifts. In the Prem, Chelsea and Manure spend shedloads, but one still only just about squeezed into the top 4 while the other finished a couple of places above relegation.
Case closed, I think, so let's talk about the things that really matter and give ourselves a reason to expect (a lot) better from our French revolution!
PS As for 4-4-2, past QPR sides have done it gloriously with Bowles and Givens, Bannister and Byrne, and Flanagan/Stainrod and Allen, plus their fare share of flying wingers like Thomas and Stewart, so looking back to look forward doesn't sound too bad at all - though as ever you need the players to fit the system. In 76, it was notionally 4-4-2/4-3-3, but we played our own brand of Dutch/total football as (i) we had a coach who could implement it and (ii) players who could execute it. As Ian Gillard once sourly put it, most modern players are robots. [Post edited 26 Jun 0:32]
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| Catastrophe, ou formidable? Stéphan steps into Loftus Road hot seat - Column on 01:04 - Jun 26 with 1025 views | kensalriser |
| Catastrophe, ou formidable? Stéphan steps into Loftus Road hot seat - Column on 00:22 - Jun 26 by stainrods_elbow |
The first lazy/semi-defeatist myth that needs to be squashed is there's some kind of necessary correlation between a club's payroll and final placing. Sure, there was no surprise in seeing ex-Premiership Leeds, Burnley, and Sheffied United at the top of the tree last time out, given parachute payments etc., but, for those who care to do the forensics and study the facts, here's the 'wages league table' for 24/25 (if you can endure the littering tedium of the box ads):
https://www.capology.com/uk/championship/payrolls/
Of that little lot, to extrapolate:
Luton, 4th highest wage bill, relegated
Cardiff, 7th highest, relegated
Hull City, 9th highest, finished 21st
Middlesbrough, 5th highest, finished 10th
On the other hand (in order of merit re 'money' vs 'achievement')
Coventry 17th highest, finished 5th
Sunderland 15th highest, finished 4th
Blackburn 14th highest, finished 7th
Millwall 13th highest, finished 8th
And just for the likes of Hoos and his former converts to suck on, ground size isn't an essential factor either, or the likes of Luton (even if they couldn't stick around this time), Bournemouth and Palace would never have prospered as in the Prem as they have.
What counts a lot more is coaching excellence, commitment/spirit/belief, organisation, and a smattering of quality and experience in key positions. That's how Warnock's promotion-winning side did it, with a bit of help from our resident Terror Bat and his echolocational gifts. In the Prem, Chelsea and Manure spend shedloads, but one still only just about squeezed into the top 4 while the other finished a couple of places above relegation.
Case closed, I think, so let's talk about the things that really matter and give ourselves a reason to expect (a lot) better from our French revolution!
PS As for 4-4-2, past QPR sides have done it gloriously with Bowles and Givens, Bannister and Byrne, and Flanagan/Stainrod and Allen, plus their fare share of flying wingers like Thomas and Stewart, so looking back to look forward doesn't sound too bad at all - though as ever you need the players to fit the system. In 76, it was notionally 4-4-2/4-3-3, but we played our own brand of Dutch/total football as (i) we had a coach who could implement it and (ii) players who could execute it. As Ian Gillard once sourly put it, most modern players are robots. [Post edited 26 Jun 0:32]
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Nice argument but it's payroll only, which is only half the story. |  |
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| Catastrophe, ou formidable? Stéphan steps into Loftus Road hot seat - Column on 01:20 - Jun 26 with 1012 views | SydneyRs |
| Catastrophe, ou formidable? Stéphan steps into Loftus Road hot seat - Column on 21:11 - Jun 25 by gigiisourgod |
That would be a real shame, as in patches last season he looked capable of really stepping up into Champ football. |
Was interesting to see Dave Mc and Keven Gallen both agree on Kolli and holding a view that he has peaked and now might be a good time to cash in. | | | |
| Catastrophe, ou formidable? Stéphan steps into Loftus Road hot seat - Column on 01:24 - Jun 26 with 1006 views | SydneyRs |
| Catastrophe, ou formidable? Stéphan steps into Loftus Road hot seat - Column on 00:22 - Jun 26 by stainrods_elbow |
The first lazy/semi-defeatist myth that needs to be squashed is there's some kind of necessary correlation between a club's payroll and final placing. Sure, there was no surprise in seeing ex-Premiership Leeds, Burnley, and Sheffied United at the top of the tree last time out, given parachute payments etc., but, for those who care to do the forensics and study the facts, here's the 'wages league table' for 24/25 (if you can endure the littering tedium of the box ads):
https://www.capology.com/uk/championship/payrolls/
Of that little lot, to extrapolate:
Luton, 4th highest wage bill, relegated
Cardiff, 7th highest, relegated
Hull City, 9th highest, finished 21st
Middlesbrough, 5th highest, finished 10th
On the other hand (in order of merit re 'money' vs 'achievement')
Coventry 17th highest, finished 5th
Sunderland 15th highest, finished 4th
Blackburn 14th highest, finished 7th
Millwall 13th highest, finished 8th
And just for the likes of Hoos and his former converts to suck on, ground size isn't an essential factor either, or the likes of Luton (even if they couldn't stick around this time), Bournemouth and Palace would never have prospered as in the Prem as they have.
What counts a lot more is coaching excellence, commitment/spirit/belief, organisation, and a smattering of quality and experience in key positions. That's how Warnock's promotion-winning side did it, with a bit of help from our resident Terror Bat and his echolocational gifts. In the Prem, Chelsea and Manure spend shedloads, but one still only just about squeezed into the top 4 while the other finished a couple of places above relegation.
Case closed, I think, so let's talk about the things that really matter and give ourselves a reason to expect (a lot) better from our French revolution!
PS As for 4-4-2, past QPR sides have done it gloriously with Bowles and Givens, Bannister and Byrne, and Flanagan/Stainrod and Allen, plus their fare share of flying wingers like Thomas and Stewart, so looking back to look forward doesn't sound too bad at all - though as ever you need the players to fit the system. In 76, it was notionally 4-4-2/4-3-3, but we played our own brand of Dutch/total football as (i) we had a coach who could implement it and (ii) players who could execute it. As Ian Gillard once sourly put it, most modern players are robots. [Post edited 26 Jun 0:32]
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Sure there are exceptions (that prove the rule), but there's no denying the huge part that finances, especially parachute payments, play in this division. Doesn't make success impossible, but it certainly makes it far less probable. | | | |
| Catastrophe, ou formidable? Stéphan steps into Loftus Road hot seat - Column on 01:53 - Jun 26 with 974 views | stainrods_elbow |
| Catastrophe, ou formidable? Stéphan steps into Loftus Road hot seat - Column on 01:04 - Jun 26 by kensalriser |
Nice argument but it's payroll only, which is only half the story. |
It's obviously by far the biggest part of the story in terms of any club's expenditure (in 2023-24, Champ clubs spent on average 93% of their turnover on wages), so you need to get your facts straight), plus the original post correlated wages to league position specifically, so I was addressing that myth in order to nail it. | |
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| Catastrophe, ou formidable? Stéphan steps into Loftus Road hot seat - Column on 01:55 - Jun 26 with 973 views | stainrods_elbow |
| Catastrophe, ou formidable? Stéphan steps into Loftus Road hot seat - Column on 01:24 - Jun 26 by SydneyRs |
Sure there are exceptions (that prove the rule), but there's no denying the huge part that finances, especially parachute payments, play in this division. Doesn't make success impossible, but it certainly makes it far less probable. |
An exception that proves the rule normally means one or two counter-examples, whereas I've given you 8 clubs (or a third of the division) that majorly buck the trend in both directions, so you're clearly being perverse and arguing with me for the sake of it rather than dealing rationally with the facts. | |
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| Catastrophe, ou formidable? Stéphan steps into Loftus Road hot seat - Column on 06:51 - Jun 26 with 834 views | JamesB1979 |
| Catastrophe, ou formidable? Stéphan steps into Loftus Road hot seat - Column on 01:55 - Jun 26 by stainrods_elbow |
An exception that proves the rule normally means one or two counter-examples, whereas I've given you 8 clubs (or a third of the division) that majorly buck the trend in both directions, so you're clearly being perverse and arguing with me for the sake of it rather than dealing rationally with the facts. |
Yeah I agree. If you ignore the 4 sides in Sheffield and the 3 relegated Prem teams, we could be targeting 5th and below. But we’ll need some strengthening in a few areas…..a left back would be nice. | | | |
| Catastrophe, ou formidable? Stéphan steps into Loftus Road hot seat - Column on 07:40 - Jun 26 with 733 views | Wilkinswatercarrier |
| Catastrophe, ou formidable? Stéphan steps into Loftus Road hot seat - Column on 01:20 - Jun 26 by SydneyRs |
Was interesting to see Dave Mc and Keven Gallen both agree on Kolli and holding a view that he has peaked and now might be a good time to cash in. |
I'm not sure where Kolli fits in. He is either a 10 or playing as a forward in 442. What he isn't is a lone striker or a pacy winger.
It'll be interesting to see how the new boss sets the team up in pre season.
I'd sell Kolli for what it's worth. | |
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| Catastrophe, ou formidable? Stéphan steps into Loftus Road hot seat - Column on 07:51 - Jun 26 with 704 views | BazzaInTheLoft |
| Catastrophe, ou formidable? Stéphan steps into Loftus Road hot seat - Column on 07:40 - Jun 26 by Wilkinswatercarrier |
I'm not sure where Kolli fits in. He is either a 10 or playing as a forward in 442. What he isn't is a lone striker or a pacy winger.
It'll be interesting to see how the new boss sets the team up in pre season.
I'd sell Kolli for what it's worth. |
Don’t fancy him in behind Kelman this season? | | | |
| Catastrophe, ou formidable? Stéphan steps into Loftus Road hot seat - Column on 07:58 - Jun 26 with 690 views | JamesB1979 |
| Catastrophe, ou formidable? Stéphan steps into Loftus Road hot seat - Column on 07:51 - Jun 26 by BazzaInTheLoft |
Don’t fancy him in behind Kelman this season? |
Got to be Chair or Dembele ahead of him no? | | | |
| Catastrophe, ou formidable? Stéphan steps into Loftus Road hot seat - Column on 08:01 - Jun 26 with 685 views | BazzaInTheLoft |
| Catastrophe, ou formidable? Stéphan steps into Loftus Road hot seat - Column on 07:58 - Jun 26 by JamesB1979 |
Got to be Chair or Dembele ahead of him no? |
I don’t think either of those are going to score the same amount as goals as Kolli. | | | |
| Catastrophe, ou formidable? Stéphan steps into Loftus Road hot seat - Column on 08:11 - Jun 26 with 667 views | davman |
This lot. With our injury record? Resilient they are not.
Just got to hope that our second 11 is better than it was last season... |  |
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| Catastrophe, ou formidable? Stéphan steps into Loftus Road hot seat - Column on 08:43 - Jun 26 with 607 views | JamesB1979 |
| Catastrophe, ou formidable? Stéphan steps into Loftus Road hot seat - Column on 08:01 - Jun 26 by BazzaInTheLoft |
I don’t think either of those are going to score the same amount as goals as Kolli. |
Think the other 2 would create more. | | | |
| Catastrophe, ou formidable? Stéphan steps into Loftus Road hot seat - Column on 09:12 - Jun 26 with 538 views | 1JD |
| Catastrophe, ou formidable? Stéphan steps into Loftus Road hot seat - Column on 01:20 - Jun 26 by SydneyRs |
Was interesting to see Dave Mc and Keven Gallen both agree on Kolli and holding a view that he has peaked and now might be a good time to cash in. |
Strange perspective from Dave Mc on Kolli. How anyone at 20 years old is at their peak market value is beyond me. Unless of course you simply don’t rate them at all, which is essentially Dave’s perspective.
Watched Kolli from early on in the youths -he’s always been the stand out talent and on a different level to all others. Premier league potential and I don’t say that lightly. We simply don’t produce this type of talent through our academy.
So I’m with Chair - who is on record saying he’s got huge potential and is best natural talent to come through the club since Eze, with several similarities. For someone who trains with him everyday and understands what passes through the club over the years, that’s high praise indeed. He just needs to stay fit. | | | |
| Catastrophe, ou formidable? Stéphan steps into Loftus Road hot seat - Column on 09:33 - Jun 26 with 491 views | R_from_afar |
| Catastrophe, ou formidable? Stéphan steps into Loftus Road hot seat - Column on 23:18 - Jun 25 by Logman |
I'm not sure we've got the strikers, yet alone the midfielders to play 4-4-2.
Wha I want to know from Clive though is what is Stephan's man management like ?
Because Marti was pretty good at keeping everyone in board and even managed to get a tune out of the likes of Ashby and Madsen.
I'm worried that the French man will not be so supportive and there will be divisions when the players that he has inherited don't cut the mustard. |
"I'm not sure we've got the strikers, yet alone the midfielders to play 4-4-2."
Indeed, but bear in mind that the headline formation often changes when a team is out of possession  . |  |
| "Things had started becoming increasingly desperate at Loftus Road but QPR have been handed a massive lifeline and the place has absolutely erupted. it's carnage. It's bedlam. It's 1-1." |
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