QPR manager Harry Redknapp is not to blame for the team's position at the bottom of the Barclays Premier League, according to Rangers midfielder Adel Taarabt.
Redknapp's side were beaten 2-0 by West Ham on Sunday meaning the team have taken just four points from their opening seven league games.
QPR's defeat was compounded by a sluggish display that has placed added scrutiny on Redknapp and his ability to motivate his under-performing players.
"It is easy to blame the manager when you lose but the players have to step up," said Taarabt, who came on for 24 minutes at Upton Park but is yet to start a match this season.
"The manager can change tactics, tell us what he wants, but when we go on the pitch it is the players who perform.
"It is disappointing, we are bottom of the league.
"If we keep clean sheets we can win games, but at the moment we are not doing that so it is hard for us."
Redknapp said his players' fitness was not up to scratch after the West Ham defeat, with a number of his squad still regaining sharpness after injury.
Taarabt has been struggling with an ankle problem since the summer and the talented Moroccan is still trying to re-establish himself at Loftus Road after a permanent move to AC Milan broke down in the summer.
"I was in the middle of a transfer and it did not happen for whatever reason," Taarabt said.
"It was difficult for me because I thought I was moving. In the end it did not happen, so I am (here) now and have to work hard to get back in the team and help QPR win games.
"These two weeks for the international break will help me get to 100 per cent. I did not have a very good pre-season and I need games. Hopefully my ankle will be fine, it is not a big injury."
Taarabt scored four goals in 14 league appearances while on loan at Milan last season and the 25-year-old admits he had hoped to sign permanently for the Italian giants in the summer.
"I had a taste of something different last year, playing in the Champions League at a big club," Taarabt said.
"That is why I wanted to move. Not because I do not want to be at QPR, because it was a big opportunity for me.
"Do not forget that this club has helped me a lot. I am one of the longest-serving players here now, and I still love the club. It will always be in my heart. I am very concentrated on QPR and giving my best."
Source: PA
