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Post by Macmoish on Dec 15, 2012 17:10:28 GMT
www.westlondonsport.com/qpr/superb-taarabt-gives-qpr-first-victoryWest London Sport - Sports news in west london QPRSuperb Taarabt gives QPR first victory Soccer - Barclays Premier League - Queens Park Rangers v Fulham - Loftus Road 15/12/2012 by Lyall Thomas QPR 2 Fulham 1 Two goals from Adel Taarabt – one fortuitous, one brilliant – gave QPR their first league win of the season. The skilful Moroccan found space from distance early in the second half and fired a low shot that took a deflection off the leg of Brede Hangeland and sent keeper Mark Schwarzer the wrong way. And then a sublime solo effort saw the forward skin Hangeland and curl home with the outside of his boot from the edge of the box. Substitute Mladen Petric pulled a goal back for Fulham late on but Ranger held on to secure a derby victory. R’s boss Harry Redknapp made three changes to the side that drew 2-2 away at Wigan last weekend, with Djibril Cisse returning to the side to partner Taarabt up front. Jose Bosingwa wasn’t in the matchday squad and so Nedum Onuoha started at right-back and Alejandro Faurlin came in with Samba Diakite dropping to the bench. Both Cisse and Taarabt went close early on before Jamie Mackie fired wide with only the keeper to beat after latching on to John Arne Riise’s sloppy back-pass. Rangers dictated the first half but the sides went in goalless at the interval and so it fell to Taarabt to produce two moments of individual quality to win the game. QPR: Green; Onuoha, Nelsen, Hill, Traore; Wright-Phillips (Fabio 86), Faurlin, Mbia, Taarabt, Mackie, Cisse (Ferdinand 90). Subs not used: Cesar, Diakite, Derry, Ferdinand, Granero, Fabio, Hoilett. Fulham: Schwarzer; Riether (Kelly 46), Hangeland, Hughes, Riise; Duff, Sidwell, Baird, Richardson (Petric 63); Berbatov, Rodallega (Dejagah 72). Subs not used: Etheridge, Senderos, Karagounis, Dejagah, Kacaniklic. QPR v Fulham as it happened
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Post by sharky on Dec 15, 2012 17:24:35 GMT
From BBC Football live
Garth Crooks, BBC Final Score
"QPR have got a run of games now, Newcastle away, who are having a difficult time at the moment, West Brom at home, and Liverpool, who are not playing well, at home, so it's do-able."
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Post by Macmoish on Dec 15, 2012 17:30:33 GMT
Warnock-type comment  anJTaylor @ijtaylor81 Redknapp - Adel can still be a fruitcake but he's got so much talent & ability. When he plays like he did today he's as good as anyone #QPR Redknapp - He's a top top talent. He could play anywhere on days like today. He was unplayable at times. #QPR |
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Post by londonranger on Dec 15, 2012 17:39:42 GMT
ESPN
QPR finally won a league game at the 17th time of asking, dispatching west London rivals Fulham 2-1 to move off the bottom of the pile.
Adel Taarabt's inspired performance proved the difference at Loftus Road as Harry Redknapp's side belatedly broke their duck with a narrow victory against their near neighbours.
Few could have predicted the Hoops' winless start to a campaign, with a summer of high-profile acquisitions and ambitious plans raising expectations in Shepherd's Bush.
Last weekend's draw at Wigan saw them break the record for the longest winless start to a Premier League season, with chairman Tony Fernandes this week admitting the season has been ``nothing short of a disaster``.
The R's have, though, shown signs of improvement since Redknapp succeeded Mark Hughes at the helm, following up three successive draws with a first win - thanks in no small part to Taarabt.
The Morocco international proved a thorn in Fulham's side from the outset and saw an effort deflect in off Brede Hangeland seven minutes into the second half.
Taarabt doubled QPR's advantage with an exquisite solo effort and they held on for three points despite substitute Mladen Petric's late strike.
Djibril Cisse was one of three QPR changes made for the game and he almost made an immediate impact, forcing Mark Schwarzer into action moments after kick off.
The Frenchman was played through by Taarabt, who appeared fired up and came close from 40 yards in just the second minute.
It proved the start of a QPR onslaught, with Cisse firing wide before Jamie Mackie wasted a glorious chance to break the deadlock when latching onto a poor John Arne Riise backpass.
A marauding Taarabt run through the middle ended in a strike that tested Schwarzer as QPR continued to show a level of skill and spirit rarely seen this season.
Fulham were struggling to get a foothold on proceedings but were almost gifted an opener by goalkeeper Robert Green.
Redknapp stuck with the England international despite the return of Julio Cesar from a groin injury - a move that almost backfired when he sent a miskick straight to Hugo Rodallega.
The Fulham attacker could not make the most of the lax clearance and, after Taarabt lashed wide and Cisse tested Schwarzer, there was another fortuitous moment for the hosts when referee Martin Atkinson waved away penalty appeals for an apparent Stephane Mbia handball.
The match lost its tempo at the end of the first half but the 3,148 travelling fans were enjoying themselves, goading the hosts with chants of ``stand up if you've won a game``.
However, it was QPR supporters with something to shout about when the game restarted for the second half.
Stephen Kelly came on for the seemingly injured Sascha Riether when play resumed, with QPR taking just seven minutes to score their first goal against Fulham since 1983.
Like so many times before, Taarabt made a burst forward but this time his strike took a lucky deflection of Hangeland, wrong footing Schwarzer and trickling home.
The playmaker was booked for his celebrations but it could not stop QPR's momentum, with Cisse curling just wide in the 60th minute after Chris Baird was dispossessed.
Fulham were rarely threatening the hosts, who deservedly got their second when Taarabt burst through in the 68th minute.
After picking up the ball just inside the Fulham half, the midfielder went past Hangeland and showed a few neat touches, before putting past Schwarzer with the outside of his right foot.
Fulham's frustrations were clear in a match they failed to assert their authority, with Steve Sidwell and substitute Ashkan Dejagah soon picking up bookings.
The former will miss the trip to Liverpool next week as it was fifth yellow card of the season and Petric ensured a nervy ending when his strike deflected in off Mackie's outstretched leg.
Schwarzer somehow clawed out a goalbound Cisse header at the death as QPR went onto secure victory, leading to raucous celebrations at the final whistle.
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Post by sharky on Dec 15, 2012 17:44:05 GMT
From BBC online
Adel Taarabt's double ended Queens Park Rangers' record-breaking winless start to a Premier League season as they beat Fulham in an engaging London derby.
The playmaker opened the scoring with a shot from 25 yards that flicked off defender Brede Hangeland.
While the 23-year-old's first owed much to luck, his sensational second saw him nonchalantly curl the ball into the net following a mazy run from midfield.
Mladen Petric's deflected strike late on ensured a nervy climax for QPR.
The victory was their first of the campaign at the 17th time of asking, halting a run of three consecutive draws since Harry Redknapp took charge in November following the dismissal of Mark Hughes. It also moves them above Reading and off the bottom of the table.
QPR v Fulham facts
Fulham have now won just one of their 10 away fixtures in the league this season
Despite ending their 16-game wait for a win, QPR's start to the season remains the worst in Premier League history
Five of Adel Taarabt's six Premier League goals have come against other teams from London
QPR started the brighter and could have gone ahead in the second minute after recalled striker Djibril Cisse was put through on goal following a glorious through ball from Taarabt.
The Frenchman's scuffed shot was saved easily by Mark Schwarzer, though he had room to complain to referee Martin Atkinson after his progress was impeded by a pull-back from defender Aaron Hughes.
That chance failed to wake Fulham from their stupor and their dozy start should have been punished when John Arne Riise played a blind pass back to Schwarzer, but Jamie Mackie somehow contrived to place wide from six yards when it looked easier to score.
A furious-looking Martin Jol watched on as his side's lack of concentration was to blame again when Chris Baird felled Stephane Mbia just outside the area following a loose pass from Hughes, but Cisse and Taarabt wasted the resulting free-kick.
The Dutchman's mood was not helped after the break when Fulham deservedly fell behind as Taarabt's run went unchecked. He broke from deep and hit a tame shot that, luckily for the hosts, took a hefty deflection off Hangeland and trickled into the net past the stranded Schwarzer.
Soon after, the error-strewn Baird was caught in possession just outside his own penalty box, but his mistake went unpunished as Cisse curled his shot just past Schwarzer's left post.
Taarabt was continuing to light up a match which was devoid of much entertainment, and his stunning second goal saw him push through the gigantic figure of Hangeland before playfully flicking the top of the ball to create the space to slide in an unstoppable shot along the ground with the outside of his boot.
Fulham had not provided any attacking threat as strikers Dimitar Berbatov and Hugo Rodallega struggled to spark into life. It was left to substitute Petric to finally find a way past Robert Green, his shot from outside the box looping off midfielder Alejandro Faurlin's boot and beyond the keeper's reach.
That moment of good fortune enticed the visitors to push on at the death, but they were unable to create an undeserved equaliser to deny QPR a vital three points.
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Post by Macmoish on Dec 15, 2012 22:20:04 GMT
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Post by Hogan on Dec 16, 2012 0:05:44 GMT
Warnock-type comment anJTaylor @ijtaylor81 Redknapp - Adel can still be a fruitcake but he's got so much talent & ability. When he plays like he did today he's as good as anyone #QPR Redknapp - He's a top top talent. He could play anywhere on days like today. He was unplayable at times. #QPR This Anj Taylor, is she yet another new addition to the ever expanding 'media' dept? Maybe they're doing what that dept is similar to what they did with the playing side, keep bringing them in until eventually you get one that works ;D |
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Post by fraserinbc on Dec 16, 2012 4:16:31 GMT
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Post by sharky on Dec 16, 2012 4:47:06 GMT
From the Daily Mail online
QPR 2 Fulham 1: Taarabt revives Rangers as they record first league win
By MALCOLM FOLLEY
PUBLISHED: 16:51 GMT, 15 December 2012 | UPDATED: 00:22 GMT, 16 December 2012
The worst start in Premier League history is over. And in the directors' box at Loftus Road, Rangers owner Tony Fernandes punched the air and wore a grin like a child on Christmas morning. Relief flooded the stadium.
At the 17th attempt this season, Rangers recorded their first win, thanks to the sorcery of Adel Taarabt in a spirited performance that reflected the work of Harry Redknapp.
Adel Taarabt of Queens Park Rangers is closed down by Chris Baird
Match facts
The latest Premier League table, fistures and results
QPR: Green, Traore, Hill, Nelsen, Onuoha, Faurlin, Mbia, Wright-Phillips (Da Silva 85), Taarabt, Cisse (Ferdinand 90), Mackie. Subs Not Used: Julio Cesar, Diakite, Derry, Granero, Hoilett.
Booked: Taarabt.
Goals: Taarabt 52, 68.
Fulham: Schwarzer,Riether (Kelly 46), Hangeland, Hughes, Riise, Duff, Sidwell, Baird, Richardson (Petric 63), Berbatov, Rodallega (Dejagah 72). Subs Not Used: Etheridge, Senderos, Karagounis, Kacaniklic.
Booked: Sidwell, Dejagah.
Goals: Petric 88.
Att: 18,233
Ref: Martin Atkinson (W Yorkshire)
For the first time, Rangers have vacated the bottom rung of the table. For the first time in a season that cost Mark Hughes his job after spending tens of millions of Fernandes' fortune, there is hope rather than despair in the air in Shepherd's Bush.
Fernandes runs a successful airline and he has not invested heavily in Queen's Park Rangers to see them timidly vanish from the Premier League.
'That is the best Christmas present ever,' said Fernandes last night. 'It is looking good - we're undefeated under Harry. I feel like I have won the championship.'
Redknapp's brief on his appointment could not have been more simple, or more difficult.
From this morning, he has 21 games left to keep Rangers in the top echelon of English football, and that is a mission he can approach with slightly more optimism now.
'It's going to be tough, we're not kidding ourselves,' admitted Redknapp.
'But we have taken six points from four games; and if you get six points from every four games you can stay in the league.'
Last night the Rangers dressing room was the happiest it had been since relegation was avoided on the final day of last season and the difference was created by a tactical masterstroke.
Taarabt was given the freedom to play in the space behind striker Djibril Cisse.
'Every time we got him on the ball, Fulham were in trouble,' said the Rangers manager.
Redknapp is no stranger to the Moroccan's talent.
He had managed him at Tottenham but, at a club brimming with high-class players, Redknapp opted to sell Taraabt, a teenager with maverick tendencies, to QPR for £1million.
He appreciates that piece of business now.
'He has fantastic ability; he was amazing today,' said Redknapp.
QPR's Adel Taarabt celebrates scoring the first goal
Taarabt's touch and control are beautiful to behold. He has the vision and time on the ball that only few possess.
And with space to play against Fulham, a conservative, unambitious team, he contrived to make a decisive breakthrough with Rangers first goal before scoring the second with sublime impudence.
In the 52nd minute, Taarabt cleverly brought the ball down, and as Cisse peeled to his left, he took advantage of the gap that opened in front of him.
Taarabt's shot, perhaps not the finest he has struck, took a big deflection off the outstretched leg of Brede Hangeland and left Fulham goalkeeper Mark Schwarzer wrong-footed as he covered the other side of his goal.
Taarabt raced to a corner of the ground to accept the congratulations of a section of a crowd that has not had much to shout about so far this season.
His next incisive involvement was memorable.
Barely in Fulham's half, Taarabt squeezed the ball through Hangeland's legs without the kind of resistance Fulham manager Martin Jol would have expected from his giant centre back.
In the clear, Taarabt teased John Arne Riise, running hard towards the Fulham penalty area.
And then after rolling the ball under his right foot, backwards and forwards with the skill of a conjuror, Taarabt dispatched a shot with the outside of his boot that entered the bottom corner of the net with gentle precision.
It was a moment of footballing genius. It was also a moment Redknapp celebrated by jumping from his seat with his arms raised above his head.
Rangers fans roared their approval. But when a team is at the wrong end of the table, life is rarely easy.
Two minutes from time Fulham substitute Mladen Petric was allowed to get within striking range and his left-footed shot beat Rangers goalkeeper Robert Green after taking a deflection off Alejandro Faurlin.
'I can only guess what psychological effect that had on the team having not won all season,' said Redknapp.
'I know how hard it was for me to live through those final minutes of the game.'
Jol, however, looked for no sympathy. He was disgusted with his team's performance.
'I wanted to give 10 of the 11 players who beat Newcastle on Monday a chance to do it again,' he said.
'But we never looked like earning the right to play. Rangers were first to the ball all the time and I am very disappointed with our style of play.'
For Redknapp there was only one blemish on the day.
In January, he can expect to lose Taarabt to Morocco for the Africa Cup of Nations.
But if Rangers can collect a couple more victories between now and then, Fernandes could be more easily persuaded to allow Redknapp to raid the market in the transfer window.
Last night, at last Rangers' season had lift-off.
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Post by Macmoish on Dec 16, 2012 9:18:12 GMT
FULHAM OFFICIAL SITE
\
Manager Reaction
Saturday 15 December 2012 18:06
Martin Jol admitted Fulham’s magnificent travelling support were let down by the Whites in the 2-1 derby defeat to Queens Park Rangers on Saturday.
The lacklustre Whites survived a number of first-half scares to go in level at the break. But second-half strikes by Adel Taarabt meant substitute Mladen Petric’s late effort proved meaningless.
The Whites were backed by a strong away contingent, but Fulham gave them little to shout about and Jol said: “We should have played better for the supporters. But we didn’t take the initiative. I don’t think we deserved anything today.
“We’re very disappointed with our style of play. If you don’t concede you have a result. I can complain about the goals but, especially first half, we never earned the right to use our quality.
“We didn’t get the ball to our quality players and we looked a bit rigid, a bit static. I don’t think it’s attitude or application – our intentions were good – but we didn’t get in the flow. QPR were first to the ball all the time. Every ball we played forward was intercepted. They had a bit of quality as well.
“They had Taarabt today and you need to do something special. But we gave him the opportunity to shine and that is irritating. Football is simple, but we couldn’t do the simple things. We couldn’t play in the flow.â€
Jol made just one change to his starting XI from the side that defeated Newcastle United 2-1 on Saturday. But it was a shadow of the performance that the Whites produced in the clash with the Magpies.
“Dimitar Berbatov did well in spells but he can’t do it all on his own,†said Jol. “I gave 10 out of the 11 players who started on Monday night a chance but too many players were not there. We had five or six players who weren’t as well as they could be. These are players who can dictate games.
“The second goal for example, was a mistimed tackle, so it was very cheap. And the first was a deflection. We tried to get in their half but our passing was sloppy and they could break us.â€
One plus for Fulham was the impact a substitute made once again – this time Petric stepping off the bench to score late on to give Fulham a glimmer of hope.
“It wasn’t far away at the end,†mused Jol. “Every time we try to do something with a substitution, something happens. And it happened again today.â€
But there were further blows for the Whites on a miserable afternoon at Loftus Road. Sascha Riether was replaced at half-time after suffering a back injury, while Steve Sidwell picked up a fifth yellow card of the season to sustain a one-match ban and rule himself out of Saturday’s trip to Liverpool.
“We’ll have to assess Riether but he had a problem with his back,†stated Jol. “He couldn’t go on after half-time. We have to play against Liverpool and Sidwell was booked so we will have to come up with a scenario. Bryan Ruiz is out as well which is not what you need but we will want to show what we can do.†Fulham
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Post by londonranger on Dec 17, 2012 0:34:35 GMT
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Post by Macmoish on Dec 17, 2012 7:33:13 GMT
GUARDIAN Transformed Adel Taarabt has Harry Redknapp purring as QPR beat Fulham • Moroccan scored twice in vital QPR victory • 'The boy is a genius, he could play with anybody' Paul Doyle at Loftus Road The Guardian, Sunday 16 December 2012 18.00 EST Watch match highlights from Loftus Road After Queens Park Rangers were promoted from the Championship in 2011, the then-Tottenham Hotspur manager Harry Redknapp was asked how he thought his former player Adel Taarabt would perform in the Premier League. "He will take the division by storm," said Redknapp before adding: "for a few weeks". But that was then. Now Taarabt, once the epitome of a mercurial luxury player, has added consistency to his breathtaking skills and Redknapp finds himself relying on the Moroccan to keep his team in the Premier League – and dreading the prospect of parting with him again. If Taarabt is summoned by his country for the Africa Cup of Nations in January, QPR's survival hopes will take a hit. "He's got ability like not many people you've ever seen in your life," said Redknapp of the player who crowned a wonderful personal display against Fulham with two fine goals to give QPR their first league win of the season and haul them to within five points of safety. "He can do things that nobody else can do … He's my type of player, I love people with that ability. I had [Paolo] Di Canio [at West Ham] and he's like that. The boy is a genius, he could play with anybody." Redknapp was not always so enamoured with Taarabt, who featured infrequently for Tottenham after joining as a 17-year-old from Lens in 2007, and was loaned out to QPR before joining permanently for around £1m in 2010. He then inspired the west London side to promotion. Redknapp now claims that even though the player could be frustrating back then, he never wanted Tottenham to sell him. He has been pleased to find that the player has progressed since they were last together. "I said before that he was a nut and he can be a nut … but he's grown up a bit now, he's better than he was. He was a complete fruitcake at Tottenham." Adel Taarabt Adel Taarabt celebrates scoring the first goal for QPR against Fulham at Loftus Road. Photograph: Tony O'Brien/Action Images The QPR full-back Armand Traoré, who has known Taarabt since he was a teenager, said Redknapp's predecessor, Mark Hughes, deserves much of the credit for the Moroccan's improvement. "Mark Hughes showed him how much of a good player he is and on the other hand he has to work hard," said Traoré. "I think it was a really good step for Adel to have that manager." Redknapp said that he still had to remind the 23-year-old to keep his focus after the draw at Wigan Athletic last week. "I took him off last week and he wasn't in the best of moods and didn't behave in the best of ways so I had him in the office on Monday morning and had a good heart-to-heart chat with him and he's responded to that." Redknapp also gave Taarabt a new position, placing him in the advanced central role in a 4-2-3-1 and the player thrived in it, orchestrating virtually every attack against Fulham, who never looked worth a point even when Mladen Petric narrowed the deficit in the 88th minute. "I freed [Taarabt] up to play in there and try to get him in between their midfield and their back four and get the ball to him at every opportunity because he can do damage to anybody," said Redknapp. "It's important to get him in the right position, he's not as effective out on the left." Fulham's manager Martin Jol, who worked with Taarabt at Tottenham and then tried to sign him for both Hamburg and Ajax, hailed him as "a wizard". Taarabt has seldom been a regular starter for his country and QPR now hope that Morocco's manager, Rachid Taoussi, does not recognise the player's newfound reliability because if he is called up for next month's Africa Cup of Nations he will miss between two and five matches for his club, depending on how far his country progress. They are in a tough group, with Angola, Cape Verde and the hosts South Africa, but are capable of reaching the final. Taarabt, knowing how vital he is to his club's survival, has admitted he is torn about what to do if called up but is unlikely to turn down his country. "It's really hard," says the Senegal international Traoré. "I've been in that situation last year. If you say no to your country, you and your family will get slaughtered. On the other hand QPR really need him so I think it's just going to have to be how he feels. But you can't really say no to the national team." Man of the match Adel Taarabt (QPR) www.guardian.co.uk/football/2012/dec/16/queens-park-rangers-fulham-report |
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Post by Macmoish on Dec 9, 2016 10:18:36 GMT
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Post by Ashdown_Ranger on Dec 9, 2016 13:32:21 GMT
GREAT second goal, what a player...
Sadly, what a waste...
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Post by dorsetqpr on Dec 9, 2016 17:18:55 GMT
so much talent, shame he never had the attitude to match it.
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