Julien Stephan could solve QPR problem with Everton transfer raid in January | OneFootball

Queens Park Rangers should push to sign Everton left-back Adam Aznou in the January transfer window.

Queens Park Rangers’ start to the season has been a frustrating one, with flashes of brilliance often overshadowed by too many below-par performances, with the squad perhaps lacking the right attributes across the board for Julien Stephan’s preferred style of football.

There is a need for a bit more dynamism coming from the back to balance the build-up play of the R’s and one man that could prove to be an ideal solution is Everton left-back Adam Aznou.

QPR have an abundance of attacking quality and some really exciting players, enhanced by their recruitment in the summer of League One stars Rumarn Burrell, Richard Kone and Kwame Poku.

They have joined an R’s side that are seemingly setup to play a fluent front-foot style of play, and that is why former Stade Rennais boss Julien Stephan has been given the job at Loftus Road.

At Rennes, Stephan gained a reputation for his ability to nurture and develop young talent, whilst playing a modern-day passing style of football that should be designed to allow the forward players to play with freedom and flair.

However, that approach doesn’t necessarily appear to suit a defence that lacks mobility and a naturally forward-thinking style, and so a move for Aznou would at least begin to solve that problem.

Adam Aznou would help the balance at QPR

In their most recent outing, a goalless draw against Sheffield United at Bramall Lane, QPR’s back-line saw Sam Field begin at left-back with Jimmy Dunne at right-back, flanking a centre-back partnership of Steve Cook and Amadou Mbengue.

It was a rare clean sheet for QPR and so pointing out flaws in that setup may seem ill-timed. But, like many teams with an issue at one end of the pitch, the solution that appears to have been found may well begin to nullify, or at least minimise, what they are good at in the opposite direction.

A good footballer and a very solid player, Sam Field came through as a midfielder and a lack of mobility to be a box-to-box man has seen him shift to becoming an auxiliary left-back in the last couple of years.

Jimmy Dunne, on the other hand, came through as an out-and-out centre-back before being moved to play as a right-back, where he has also played very well.

However, for QPR to try and play the possession-based style that Stephan wants, the modern day approach tends to revolve around at least one of the full-backs pushing high, whilst the other tucks in to form a back three with the ball.

That makes complete sense with Dunne at right-back, but with Field as the left-back, there is a lack of support and variety to the forward players, leading to disjointed and stunted moves when building up from the back.

Dunne has to play due to his quality and so the solution should be found at left-back, especially when one of the centre-backs is the experienced but, again, lacking in mobility Cook, who himself can’t drive forward to support the midfield, but also can’t really be left alone either due to fears of a lack of pace being exposed.

One example in particular of a lack of direct width and effectiveness from out-wide, with so many creative players more akin to playing narrowly ahead of quite a flat back-line, would be that QPR have the third-lowest average of crosses per match, according to FotMob.

That imbalance is perhaps further highlighted by the fact that they have had the third most touches in the opposition box, suggesting that they can force the ball into the box, but it is more via being 'forced' through individual quality, rather than cohesive patterns of play in getting the ball to the front-line, coming across as quite jumbled.

There is a focus on trying to get the ball from out-wide funneled through to the attack, with a lot of QPR's build-up beginning with Dunne, who has created the joint most big chances throughout this season for the west Londoners.

There is a very fair and reasonable question mark over that stat because, given their squad boasts the likes of Ilias Chair, Karamoko Dembele and Nicolas Madsen to name just a few, a player who has become a right-back after being a centre-back being their most productive chance creator appears to be something that needs fixing.

If it is the case, as it seems with the eye test as well as with the stats, that QPR's main chance creation comes from full-back, but without many successful crosses, rushing the ball into the box quite narrowly, then it would make sense to bring in someone for the other flank, lessening the burden on Dunne and giving more mobility down the left.

As a result, if a left-back is what is required, then QPR should look towards Merseyside to find value with former Bayern Munich defender Adam Aznou surely available for a move in January.

The Spain-born Morocco international joined the Toffees in the summer, but he has yet to make a Premier League appearance and, with the expectation that Everton bring in full-back cover on both sides, Aznou is only expected to fall further down the pecking order.

His failure to make an impact at the Hill Dickinson Stadium shouldn’t be attributed to his quality, though, and QPR would be foolish to not at least explore the possibility.

Adam Aznou would be a good fit for Julien Stephan

A flying full-back with a natural desire to get forward and supplement the attack is probably quite high on QPR’s wish-list for this winter, as it would help get the best out of Stephan’s style and provide more of a platform, and support, for the attacking players to thrive.

Adam Aznou falls into that category and his current failure to get minutes at Everton could well be what presents an excellent opportunity for a side like QPR.

The 19-year-old has been highly-rated for a while, having played at La Masia with Barcelona before going on to make a couple of Bundesliga appearances for Bayern Munich last season.

He spent the second-half of last season on loan at a very defensive Real Valladolid side that were relegated from La Liga in a move that didn’t make much sense for his style and development.

Another move to another club with a functional, perhaps safety first manager in David Moyes’ Everton has again led to similarly indifferent results for Aznou.

For example, despite joining an extremely poor side in crisis both on and off the pitch at Valladolid last season, he was still able to create 0.6 chances per game from full-back for a team that created very little in La Liga.

That may seem like an underwhelming number, but having joined a disjointed side mid-way through the campaign and doing it for a team that scored nine goals fewer than any other side in Spain's top-flight, in his first stint getting regular minutes as a professional footballer, is more than reasonable - and would only be able to bettered quite easily at a QPR side that do get forward so much, as shown by the amount of touches in the opposition box.

It may be that he is reluctant to take a step outside of top-flight football in Europe but, at just 19, it would make more sense for him to find his feet playing regular football at a club that will try and get on the front foot, to best showcase his instincts as an attacking full-back.

It may only be a temporary fix on a loan deal, but it would be a real coup for QPR, and help Stephan show what can be done with the right personnel for his system.