Several teams have managed to put together some pretty decent runs in the Championship this season. All of them, though, are susceptible to poor form and bad results. This is partly because this is a tight league with little difference between top and bottom – especially compared with the Premier League – but also because few teams have the resources to really cope with injuries or suspensions.<div><figure class="external-image"><img loading="lazy" class="alignright size-full wp-image-685" src="http://epltalk.com/wp-content/blogs.dir/7/files/2009/11/QPR.jpg" alt="QPR" width="257" height="257"></figure></div>
Newcastle apart, it’s Queens Park Rangers who have probably received the most praise and media coverage over the last couple of months. Goals have been flying in from all angles, Derby were humiliated on terrestrial television and the passing style insisted upon by Jim Magilton has led to the club being dubbed ‘The Arsenal of the Championship’ on more than one occasion.
QPR, though, have problems. First of all they failed to find much flow against Leicester live on Sky and their winning run came to an abrupt end. A few days later they were denied again by a hard working Palace side who held them to a 1-1 draw. Even Rangers’ recent victory at Sheffield Wednesday needed a late winner to patch over a lack of fluency.
The cliche is that the top teams win even when they are playing badly, so in that respect the win at Hillsborough was an encouraging sign. Yet despite the individual brilliance of Akos Buzsaky, Adel Taraabt amd Wayne Routledge, QPR fans harbour concerns about how far their team can go this season.
The reason for this is The Captain Curse. Five separate players have already led the team out this season. Four of those players are currently injured. If Mikele Leigertwood was to be crocked in training this week, the chances are a sixth name would be added to that list. It’s only November!
Rangers are currently chronically low on genuine leadership. That’s not to say there isn’t plenty of endeavour. Defender Peter Ramage has a tremendous attitude. Wayne Routledge’s work ethic is outstanding for such a creative footballer. Jay Simpson is a tireless worker up front. But it feels like a quiet dressing room. Teams going for promotion need defiance, they need players in the team that will drive them forward when the going is tough. Sometimes, just playing great football isn’t quite enough.
It all started when poor Martin Rowlands suffered a second cruciate injury in a year while playing in a friendly for the Republic of Ireland, ruling him out for the rest of the season. It was a cruel blow for the QPR captain and also for the team because his energy, his drive and his snappy tackling add an extra dimension to the squad. Gavin Mahon took over the armband and the matchday programme notes as Rowlands prepared for a season watching from the sidelines. Mahon will have been with the club for two years in January and during that time he never missed a game through injury – until about a fortnight ago. He’s now out for four months following knee surgery. While not always a first team regular, Mahon is nevertheless a real leader and was captain of Watford the last time they paid a brief visit to the Premier League.
With defender Fitz Hall seemingly unable to put together a run of games in a QPR shirt without suffering injury, Rangers are certainly lacking a genuine captain. The possible signing on a permanent deal of current loan player Ben Watson in January would help (not least because QPR’s central midfield is now looking a bit thin), but ideally Rangers probably need something extra.
If the club is still in the top six after Christmas, it seems likely that Jim Magilton will be asking Chairman Flavio Briatore for a little more investment (Russell Martin of Peterborough is one name that has already been rumoured in the press). A couple of wise additions in January may well be enough to push Rangers over the line and back into the top flight for the first time in 14 years… unless The Captain Curse continues to strike down QPR’s leaders.

Can QPR Cope With The Captain Curse?

Can QPR Cope With The Captain Curse? - World Soccer Talk

<div id="attachment_580" style="width: 185px" class="wp-caption alignright"><div><figure class="external-image"><img aria-describedby="caption-attachment-580" loading="lazy" class="size-full wp-image-580" src="http://epltalk.com/wp-content/blogs.dir/7/files/2009/07/jimm.jpg" alt="How much time will Jim Magilton be given at QPR?" width="175" height="258"></figure></div>How much time will Jim Magilton be given at QPR?</div>
Of the 24 teams that kicked off the Championship just under a year ago, eleven now have new managers. In the majority of cases, the manager was removed due to perceived failings. Being a Championship manager is like being a duck at a shooting gallery. It’s a question of ‘when’, not ‘if’, no matter how dumb the man holding the gun might be.
It’s a truism, but it all comes down to expectations. Two teams can be promoted automatically, another four can reach the play-offs. Yet by my reckoning seven clubs will expect to finish first or second and nine others will believe they can make the play-offs.
With kick-off still a few weeks away, two-thirds of the managers in this league are now giving optimistic interviews about challenging for the top six. Disappointment for most of them is therefore inevitable. And disappointment leads to jobless managers.
Here’s my top five managers most at risk as teams start their pre-season preparations:
1. Jim Magilton, QPR: The Rangers owners can dress it up any way they like, but the turnover of managers (or head coaches) at the club since Flavio Briatore arrived has been startling even by the bizarre standards football sets itself. QPR have now turned to Jim Magilton, deemed not good enough for Ipswich only a few weeks before his appointment at Loftus Road.
A spat with the Chairman or a poor start to the season could easily see Magilton disappear from his post within a matter of months.&nbsp; He has to be the favourite to go first.
2. Malky Mackay, Watford: Another new manager who could potentially be at risk early in the season. Watford seem destined to lose talisman Tommy Smith to Sheffield United, and even though the surprisingly high £1.8m fee will be welcome, his departure will be a real blow.
Watford are now a far cry from Boothroyd’s big, dangerous side of a a few years back and if they start badly the club may decide to cut their losses and, against recent practice, opt for a more experienced hand.
3. Gareth Southgate, Middlesbrough: If Southgate had been in charge of any other established Premier League club and turned in the results he did last season, he would be out of a job.&nbsp; Famously, he belittled Sven Goran Eriksson after England’s 2-1 World Cup defeat to Brazil in 2002, claiming that the team needed Winston Churchill at half time, not Iain Duncan Smith.
I wonder if he recalled those words when his team lost 3-0 to rock bottom West Brom, 4-1 to Bolton or 5-0 at home to Chelsea. The management game, he must now realise, is more than spouting a bit of loud rhetoric at half time.
Steve Gibson always backs his managers but if Boro fall towards mid-table (or worse, as Sunderland did a couple of years back), Gibson may have no other option than to advise Southgate to go back to the pizza commercials.
4. Roberto di Matteo, West Brom: This was truly an appointment out of the left-field. It was as if the West Brom board were so flush from receiving £2m from Celtic for a manager that had just relegated their club, that, like a gambler who believes he’s on a roll, they decided to bet high on a pair of deuces. I mean, the Albion job is a big job these days.
Di Matteo did well at MK Dons, but in truth he was managing a team already built by Paul Ince and one that had a significant financial advantage over most clubs in League One.
It’s a brave decision, but West Brom fans are used to yo-yoing. They’ve had their spin down and now they will be expecting the corresponding spin up. Di Matteo is under significant pressure.
5. Chris Coleman, Coventry: As with the Premier League, there will always be one surprise who’ll go early. I’ll plump for Coleman. He has had time to consolidate at Cov and the board will be expecting something much greater than last season’s finish of 17th.
Only four teams won less home games than Coventry last season and Cookie must somehow find a way to turn that cavernous stadium into an intimidating place to visit.
Now it’s over to you. Who do you think will be first to go? Maybe Shearer won’t be able to take the heat? Or perhaps Gary Johnson will be poached by the Premier League. Let us know below.

Magilton Leads The Championship Sack Race

Magilton Leads The Championship Sack Race - World Soccer Talk

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Can QPR Cope With The Captain Curse?

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Magilton Leads The Championship Sack Race