Blackburn 1-1 QPR: Paul Lambert and Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink reaction
Wednesday 13 January 2016 00:23, UK
Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink is not anxious about his winless start as QPR manager, despite seeing another late goal deny them victory in a 1-1 draw at Blackburn in the Sky Bet Championship on Tuesday evening.
The former Burton boss arrived at Loftus Road in early December and has not tasted success in any of his opening eight games in charge.
Hasselbaink was on course to end that spell after Leroy Fer had given them the lead at Ewood Park midway through the first half.
However, having conceded in the final 10 minutes of each of their previous four Sky Bet Championship fixtures, Rangers once again succumbed to late pressure as Hope Akpan diverted Ben Marshall's long throw in to end Rovers' goal drought after 505 minutes.
"I'd be lying if it doesn't play on your mind, of course it plays on your mind," Hasselbaink said of still waiting for his first success.
"But it is a cycle that we have to go through, it is one of those things that we have to get out of ourselves.
"I don't think that it was only about concentration, it was just one of those things. We had a man on the line but it went into that little gap.
"There were so many positives that really I should only look really at those positives and we need to build from those positives. If you keep performing like that, that win will come.
"I'm not really that worried or nervous, I'm very proud of the boys and how they have performed. They should have got more but football is cruel, you just need to make sure that the next time it is you that does it and keep on working."
The hosts had offered little attacking threat after falling behind and Akpan's goal came out of nowhere during a dull second half.
Blackburn boss Paul Lambert pointed to their spate of chances before Fer struck, though, and praised his side for claiming a point after three successive 1-0 away losses.
"I thought it was no more than we deserved - I thought we should have scored three before they even scored," the Scot said.
"How we went down a goal, I don't know. All credit to the team, I thought the very least we deserved was to get something from it.
"I was happy with them coming back. We've had a wee bit of a hard time the last few weeks and we're playing against a good side. I thought it was no more than we deserved. It's a big point."
The game, where top scorer Jordan Rhodes failed to score for an eighth successive game, was another reminder that Lambert needs more attacking options and an injection of creativity too in this January transfer window.
"We need somebody else up top to give us a hand; we need a bit more creativity in the side," Lambert admitted.
"There's a few areas there that we need a bit of help."
