EFL

Jimmy Dunne was naive for quickfire bookings – QPR boss Gareth Ainsworth

By Sports Desk October 24, 2023

QPR head coach Gareth Ainsworth admitted defender Jimmy Dunne was naive for his quickfire double booking which turned the game in the 2-0 defeat to West Brom at the Hawthorns.

Dunne was booked for coming back onto the pitch too early then sent off two minutes later for allegedly marking the penalty spot after West Brom were awarded a spot-kick.

Brandon Thomas-Asante crashed home from the spot in the 59th minute before Grady Diangana tapped home the second eight minutes later.

“There was a crazy moment to give the penalty away and then a crazier, more naive moment with the red card,” said Ainsworth.

“I spoke to the referee and he said there was an incident on the penalty spot with the West Brom player.

“I asked him if he was absolutely certain that it was the player he recognised and he said ‘yes, 100 per cent’, so a second yellow was warranted. If it’s true, it’s very naive.

“The first yellow was coming back onto the pitch too early.

“You can accept getting done by football but when you lose a player to that – if it is that – then it’s very naive.”

Rangers have now suffered five straight defeats to remain third from bottom of the Sky Bet Championship.

The pressure is mounting on Ainsworth and they face leaders Leicester at home on Saturday, but he vowed things will improve.

“We’ve got some really good players but I’m sure there’s enough to turn it around,” he insisted.

“We’re going to get out of this and one way or another, I’ll get these boys fighting.

“I know the frustrations of the fans and supporters all over the world make managers targets and sometimes they have to take flak.

“There’s pressure from day one because you get judged on results, but I don’t fear anything.”

West Brom head coach Carlos Corberan admitted patience was the key to breaking down QPR as he prepares to celebrate his first anniversary in charge of the club on Wednesday with a return to the top six.

“It was a question of patience and being mature enough because sometimes when you play against 5-4-1, it’s not easy to attack,” he said. “The key in these type of games is not to concede counter-attacks, and at the same time to create chances.

“But at the same time it’s important to dominate so you can create something.

“Things like passing the ball in front of the player instead of the back because if you play at his back, that can lead to you being off balance and you can give them the advantage.

“One thing which helped us was how we were attacking down the sides – having Diangana and Matt Phillips one against one.

“The key was to stretch their last nine with players such as Nathaniel Chalobah and Jed Wallace making runs in behind, which allowed us to start to stretch them and allowed us to get them one-v-one.”

Related items

  • Kaiserslautern 0-1 Bayer Leverkusen: Xhaka stunner seals DFB-Pokal triumph Kaiserslautern 0-1 Bayer Leverkusen: Xhaka stunner seals DFB-Pokal triumph

    Bundesliga champions Bayer Leverkusen battled past second-tier Kaiserslautern 1-0 on Saturday to win the DFB-Pokal and secure the club's first domestic double.

    Leverkusen missed out on a treble after losing 3-0 to Atalanta in the Europa League final on Wednesday, in what was astonishingly their first defeat of the season in all competitions, after a European record 51-game unbeaten run.

    But at Berlin's Olympic stadium, which will host the Euro 2024 final in July, Xabi Alonso's side ensured they capped off a remarkable campaign with another piece of silverware thanks to Granit Xhaka's stunning 16th-minute strike.

    The ball rolled out to the former Arsenal man around 25 yards out, and he planted an unstoppable first-time effort into the left-hand side of the net.

    They controlled the pace even after they were reduced to 10 men following Odilon Kossounou's second booking a minute before half-time.

    Kaiserslautern rarely threatened after the break, with Leverkusen limiting their opponents to just 0.2 expected goals.

    And even though they could not add to their lead, Leverkusen were able to comfortably wrap up their second trophy of the best season in the club's history.

    Data Debrief: Leverkusen join the club

    Leverkusen are only the fifth different side to win the double in Germany since the Bundesliga was founded, after Bayern Munich (13 times), 1. Koln, Werder Bremen and Borussia Dortmund.

    Xhaka's strike was a worthy winner. He became the first Swiss player to score in a DFB-Pokal final.

  • Barcelona coach Giraldez celebrates 'one of the happiest days' after Women's Champions League triumph Barcelona coach Giraldez celebrates 'one of the happiest days' after Women's Champions League triumph

    Barcelona coach Jonatan Giraldez celebrated "one of the happiest days" of his life after his side claimed the Women's Champions League title.

    Giraldez led Barca to a 2-0 victory over fellow heavyweights Lyon in Bilbao on Saturday.

    Aitana Bonmati and Alexia Putellas got the goals in the second half, as Barca beat Lyon for the first time and won the Champions League for a third season out of the last four.

    Giraldez will now leave Barca to take charge of Washington Spirit in the NWSL, but was able to leave on the highest note possible, having won a quadruple this term, becoming the first European team since Arsenal in 2007 to manage such a haul in a single campaign.

    He told DAZN: "It was an incredible game, I am really happy, one of the best days of my life for sure.

    "We did an amazing job with the ball, without the ball. we suffered in the last minutes, but I'm very proud of all of them."

    Barcelona defender Lucy Bronze, whose future with the club is uncertain, told DAZN: "We knew that that's what we needed, to be a club to make history.

    "It's not easy, it's hard to win it once. To win it back to back, Lyon showed how difficult it is and this team has finally done that. We go down in history as one of the best teams in Europe."

    Barca's two Ballon d'Or winners scored their goals, with Bonmati breaking the deadlock just after the hour before Putellas lashed home in stoppage time.

    "She's the captain of the team, she's the Queen of Barcelona for a reason," Bronze said of Putellas.

    "She's always so confident in the team and showed today why she is a back-to-back Ballon d'Or winner.

    "She's got the quality to do that in the last minute of the Champions League final when we were up against it at the end and just sealed the win for us. It was amazing."

  • Juventus 2-0 Monza: Departing Alex Sandro scores as Bianconeri round off with a win Juventus 2-0 Monza: Departing Alex Sandro scores as Bianconeri round off with a win

    Juventus completed their Serie A campaign with a comfortable 2-0 home win over Monza thanks to first-half goals from Federico Chiesa and Alex Sandro.

    Juve ended their season on 71 points, third in the standings, though they can still be overtaken by Europa League champions Atalanta, who sit fifth and have two matches left to play.

    Chiesa broke the deadlock after 26 minutes on Saturday and long-serving left-back Sandro, playing in his final game for the Bianconeri before departing as a free agent, doubled the lead two minutes later with a header from a corner.

    Juve came close to scoring a third early in the second half, but Chiesa's attempt from the edge of the box hit the woodwork.

    Thiago Motta is expected to take charge of Juve in the coming days, after his departure from Bologna was confirmed.

    Monza ended the campaign in 12th place with 45 points.

    Data Debrief: How's your luck?

    Chiesa's effort against the frame of the goal means that, since the beginning of the last season, only Inter (36) hit the woodwork more times than Juve (35) in Serie A.

    Juve will be hoping to be that bit more clinical next term as they aim to challenge for the title under Motta. 

© 2023 SportsMaxTV All Rights Reserved.