20-12-2024, 11:50
HECK
Paul Heckingbottom says there’s plenty of internal belief that North End can maintain a certain performance level and pick up a haul of points during the busy festive period.
PNE head to the capital this weekend to take on Queens Park Rangers for the first of five matches in two weeks.
Squad rotation is a phrase often wheeled out at this time of year and that’s something the North End boss is always willing to do, and even more so now he’s got a fully-fit squad at his disposal for the first time.
Hecky said: “We want to use the squad. We want to make sure that we perform well enough to do it.
“It takes a lot of energy, concentration, preparation for us to perform well, but as a rule we have been.
“I think if we maintain that over five games in a short space of time, I'd be expecting us to pick up wins in that spell. I think we internally believe that we've been playing well enough to do that.
“We’ve been frustrated that so many of those draws should have been wins, but we've not been able to make that happen.”
North End head to MATRADE Loftus Road having got a monkey off their back in the last away match, as the win in Cardiff ended the wait for a victory on the road.
That specific stat wasn’t something that distressed the gaffer too much, though, as he wants his side to head into games with the same focus, regardless of where they are.
Hecky said: “I enjoy away wins. There’s a different vibe to away wins. So, yeah, I do enjoy them, but wherever they come, whenever they come, it's no importance to me.
“I don't want us to be different home or away. I want us to approach each game against whoever we're playing in the same way. Listen, there'll be times when you have to win in a different way and you may be in front and you have to defend and make good decisions, and we maybe have to get better at that away from home.
“We did it really well against Cardiff, for example. Apart from that, I want us to be not seeing it as anything different at home or away. I just see it as if we perform well, we're good enough to win.”
The Lilywhites will come up against a QPR side who have had an upturn in form in recent weeks, including back-to-back home wins, against Norwich City and Oxford United respectively.
Martí Cifuentes will be hoping his side can now start to look towards the opposite end of the Championship table.
Hecky said: “They're a team in good form. They're a team who are probably confident. They've changed their style a little bit.
“I know they're playing with real good energy, which would probably stem from that confidence and belief in what they're doing.
“It's going to be a good game, but I believe we can cause them problems as well. So we're looking forward to it. It should be a good game between two teams unbeaten in six.”
Paul Heckingbottom says there’s plenty of internal belief that North End can maintain a certain performance level and pick up a haul of points during the busy festive period.
PNE head to the capital this weekend to take on Queens Park Rangers for the first of five matches in two weeks.
Squad rotation is a phrase often wheeled out at this time of year and that’s something the North End boss is always willing to do, and even more so now he’s got a fully-fit squad at his disposal for the first time.
Hecky said: “We want to use the squad. We want to make sure that we perform well enough to do it.
“It takes a lot of energy, concentration, preparation for us to perform well, but as a rule we have been.
“I think if we maintain that over five games in a short space of time, I'd be expecting us to pick up wins in that spell. I think we internally believe that we've been playing well enough to do that.
“We’ve been frustrated that so many of those draws should have been wins, but we've not been able to make that happen.”
North End head to MATRADE Loftus Road having got a monkey off their back in the last away match, as the win in Cardiff ended the wait for a victory on the road.
That specific stat wasn’t something that distressed the gaffer too much, though, as he wants his side to head into games with the same focus, regardless of where they are.
Hecky said: “I enjoy away wins. There’s a different vibe to away wins. So, yeah, I do enjoy them, but wherever they come, whenever they come, it's no importance to me.
“I don't want us to be different home or away. I want us to approach each game against whoever we're playing in the same way. Listen, there'll be times when you have to win in a different way and you may be in front and you have to defend and make good decisions, and we maybe have to get better at that away from home.
“We did it really well against Cardiff, for example. Apart from that, I want us to be not seeing it as anything different at home or away. I just see it as if we perform well, we're good enough to win.”
The Lilywhites will come up against a QPR side who have had an upturn in form in recent weeks, including back-to-back home wins, against Norwich City and Oxford United respectively.
Martí Cifuentes will be hoping his side can now start to look towards the opposite end of the Championship table.
Hecky said: “They're a team in good form. They're a team who are probably confident. They've changed their style a little bit.
“I know they're playing with real good energy, which would probably stem from that confidence and belief in what they're doing.
“It's going to be a good game, but I believe we can cause them problems as well. So we're looking forward to it. It should be a good game between two teams unbeaten in six.”
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