‘One of the best teams’: Marti Cifuentes makes new Bristol City admission after QPR draw’
The QPR manager was impressed by Bristol City, which had drew with Liam Manning’s team at Ashton Gate on Saturday.
QPR manager Marti Cifuentes believes Bristol City are one of the “best teams” in the Championship for pressing, athleticism, and counterattacking, following their draw at Ashton Gate.
On Saturday, the Robins drew 1-1 with Cifuentes’ team in BS3, extending their Championship winless streak to three matches.
Scott Twine gave the Robins the lead with his first touch after coming on as a substitute, curling a free-kick past Rangers’ keeper Paul Nardi. Paul Smyth scored for the visitors after beating Max O’Leary to a loose ball and lofting it into the net from 40 yards.
Cifuentes was impressed by the Reds’ play, despite the fact that Liam Manning’s team missed numerous scoring opportunities.
“It was a difficult game, especially at the start of the first half,” the Hoops manager conceded. “It was bad; we were not at the level we required, and Bristol showed incredible energy, which I am not shocked by because, in terms of athleticism, press capability, and counter capacity, they are one of the greatest teams in the league.
“We were aware of the issue, and I do not believe we were at the required level. We discussed at halftime that it didn’t matter if we played one day later than them or if it was an early kick-off; all of these are excuses, and the reality is that when the referee blows the whistle, we need to be able to compete, which is why I have mixed feelings about not having a great performance, but I’m still extremely proud.
“It is not often that you feel this way, but that is how I feel. I’m very, very happy of all of the boys because, in a game setting that wasn’t fantastic, in a style of play that wasn’t exactly what we wanted to accomplish, we were dominated by a team that was doing a lot of nice things, but we had the ability to compete.”
Bristol City had 17 shots to QPR’s five, with Anis Mehmeti having the greatest chance in the second half. The Albanian international had a chance to extend the Reds’ lead, but his right-footed shot failed to test Rangers’ custodian Nardi.
While Manning’s side would have been good value for the three points, Cifuentes believed the visitors could have grabbed the win in the last minutes, with golden chances falling to Steve Cook, Alfie Lloyd, and Kenneth Paal.
“There is a new English expression that I learnt this week: grind it out,” the 42-year-old revealed after the final whistle. “We had to grind it out, and I think that’s the summation of the game because I believe we had several chances to win in the final minutes, demonstrating how competitive this league is.
“Sometimes you’ll have difficult periods in games or on the calendar, but if you stick with it, believe in yourself, and keep working, it won’t be an issue because that’s the essence of football and this competition. I wouldn’t say it’s terribly unjust to receive a point here; in fact, I think it’s well merited, but we played against a team who did a lot of excellent things.
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