QPR places promotion hopes on Morrison

13 March 2014 01:46

QPR posted losses of £65m for the year to May 2013, it’s hardly surprising given the club’s relegation from the Premier League and the frankly shambolic transfer policy of spending big on distinctly average players. That coupled with shaky form making an immediate return to England’s top tier all the less likely have led to some questioning whether or not Harry Redknapp will be at the helm next season.

Redknapp showed a brilliantly shrew move in the loan signing of Ravel Morrison from West Ham. Morrison, who was subject of a bid from Fulham given several good performances when chances to start presented themselves due to injuries and suspensions for West Ham, is one of the brightest young talents in English football. That’s not the best part of the signing though, given that emergency loan signings only last 93 days, Redknapp delayed Morrison’s signing until Friday, ensuring that the player would be available for the play-off final, should QPR reach it.

That says a lot about the faith that Redknapp has in Morrison, that he thinks he is good enough to play in such an important match, should it be required. But perhaps it says more about where QPR are at the moment.

Morrison has now made 4 appearances for the R’s and scored 2 goals, both of which came in Saturday’s win over Birmingham. His goals included a well-placed free kick from the edge of the area and a cool finish from just inside the area placed into the bottom corner, in his relatively short career Morrison has shown he has the ability to be a top class finisher.

He has an impressive pass accuracy of 91.5% and has average 44 passes per game in his stint at QPR. Of those, 1.8 per game have been passes which have created chances. That’s an area where he needs to improve and at times be less selfish, which is further demonstrated by his lack of assists for his new club.

Morrison’s defensive contribution is particularly weak, with no interceptions, less than one (0.5) tackles per game and 1.3 fouls committed per game. More and more is becoming expected of forward thinking players defensively, so if Morrison wants to make it at the highest level it’s something he’ll have to look to add to his game.

There’s no doubt that Morrison has an immense amount of talent, but if he is to become one of the best in the world he needs to add a few things to his game (namely more defensive contribution), which may require an adjustment of his attitude. Hopefully, the extra responsibility and reliance Harry Redknapp and QPR are placing in the youngster will go some way to correcting this. This could well be the experience that determines the trajectory of Ravel Morrison’s career

Statistics courtesy of WhoScored

Source: DSG