'Something Wrong': Stoke City boss criticises Loftus Road after QPR defeat

Stoke City manager Mark Robins took a swipe at the Loftus Road pitch after his Potters side were beaten 1-0 by QPR on Saturday afternoon.

Julien Stephan’s men made it three wins on the bounce following that painful 7-1 defeat to Coventry City last month. Harvey Vale was the difference maker in west London this weekend, capping off a purring performance with a second half strike to keep the three points in the capital.

Despite wins against Charlton Athletic and Wrexham, it was the visitors who went into the fixture as slight favourites following an impressive start to the Championship campaign. Stoke City had conceded just three goals prior to the match, winning four of their opening five league outings.

QPR beat Stoke City through Harvey Vale strike

Giving his reaction to the match after full-time, Robins accepted that Stoke City didn’t deserve to get something from the meeting but did pour scorn on the turf at Loftus Road, suggesting the upkeep of the grass may have influenced the result.

Speaking to the Stoke City media channel, he said: “We got exactly what we deserved. All the things we’ve done well, we didn’t do as well or well enough today. That meant that we got nothing from the game and it’s really disappointing. I’ve been saying all week about how well they look, how good they look in training and the confidence. Someone does something different, different environment, second 12:30 kick-off and we’ve lost 1-0. That can’t become a thing.

Mark Robins criticises Loftus Road pitch

“They sit in a lower position and make it really difficult for you if you allow it. You’ve got to move it quickly and we didn’t do that. I think the pitch was a little bit longer today, they said they’ve been treating it because there’s something wrong with it. We need to wash everything that touches it, which is a bit of a worry in itself.

“The fact that they’ve kept it longer, they watered it earlier on when it stopped raining, it dried out and it became a little bit slower. We’ve got to make sure that zip is there from ourselves, we have to make it. We didn’t utilise the ball well enough.”

QPR remain unbeaten at Loftus Road this season, with a draw against Preston North End and the win over the Addicks coming prior to the victory over Stoke City. Stephan’s side are on the road at Sheffield Wednesday next before taking on Oxford United under the lights at Loftus Road at the start of October.

In other news, 'Transfer gold' - QPR praised for summer signing who is already proving his worth.