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The Queens Park Rangers reached the fifth round of the FA Cup for the first time since 1997 by beating the Ligue 1 at Portsmouth 2-0 in a replayed match at Loftus Road last night (Tuesday).
Nahki Wells and Matt Smith's goals in the second period helped Steve McClaren's men qualify for the last 16 spots in the competition, where QPR will face Watford on Friday, February 15th.
And we look at the discussion points of the game below.
Smith and Wells work well together
Matt Smith recently spoke about the possibility of a successful partnership with Nahki Wells, admitting that it was something he hoped the fans could see more, and the linking game between the duo built on the last stages of the game. Wigan. play for 90 (well, 82) minutes.
Smith seemed to win everything in the air but, more importantly, Wells did a great job of anticipating rollovers and giving himself a goal. It was therefore normal for the first two players to have their names on the scoresheet.
The return of Hemed in the team
Injuries sustained by three of QPR's summer rookies hit the club hard. Hemed, Geoff Cameron and Angel Rangel all became unavailable at about the same time.
The Israeli striker is back from the operation against Pompey. The fans will have been thrilled to see him return to action, even though Steve McClaren confessed that he was probably still two or three weeks away from his optimal fitness.
After a few difficult weeks, the Hoops have once again the opportunity to attack and hope that this is not the only player they welcome with enthusiasm for the match against the first team in February.
Freeman invigorated by the armband
When Toni Leistner was named to the bench, there was a debate around the press as to which of his teammates would receive the captain's armband in the absence of the German. Freeman was right, having also been captain of the team against Leeds in the third round. He interpreted it as a confident coach who would like the match to run at full speed, from left to right and center.
Some first shots on goal suggested that he was in the mood for a big game from the start, but he was not going to let his deadly capacity off center. Even after the efforts of his opponent did not really hit the mark, he scored a corner and a free-kick on both goals and could easily get a third help with a little luck.
An indispensable clean sheet
After a fantastic series of clean sheets early in the season, McClaren complained after Saturday's loss to Wigan that his team had lost that solid base and needed to get it back. He will be delighted that his team has reacted with the utmost discretion.
Joe Lumley could only stop in the 88th minute and the strength of Grant Hall and Joel Lynch allowed Portsmouth to play 180 minutes at Loftus Road without scoring. The performance is excellent for the two central defenders: Lynch was the goal that allowed Portsmouth to overtake Fratton Park, while Hall will be delighted with his performance after a terrible pair of injuries.
Finally in the fifth round
QPR's win over Leeds early this month, their first in this 21st century competition without the need to replay, would have been a missed opportunity if they had followed by failing to overtake a lower-division team. .
As the game remained scoreless around the hour, there must have been a nagging impression that the hiccups of the first run could be repeated, even though the visitors rarely seemed threatening. A quick shot from one to two made the case, and a first appearance in the fifth round since the time of Trevor Sinclair waits.
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