At the bottom end of the Championship at this early stage lie these two teams, Queens Park Rangers will host Swansea City at Loftus Road with the side from Wales still searching for their first win of the season.
Key Takeaways
- Queens Park Rangers are two places above Swansea City but have two wins to their name
- Swansea have yet to record a victory in the Championship thus far
- The sides have been evenly matched over the past few years, with two wins for QPR, two wins for Swansea City and two draws between them
At the early stages of this championship season these two sides clearly have not got going yet. This is an opportunity for one of them to take the initiative and put their wobbly start behind them.
Queens Park Rangers Form
The home side got off to an abysmal start to the season, 4-0 thumping away at Watford left a bitter taste in their mout has they made the journey to the Welsh Capital to face Cardiff City, where they gained their first 3 points of the season with a 2-1 win thanks to Sinclair Armstrong and Kenneth Paal’s first goals of the season.
The EFL Cup proved cruel to the R’s, Gareth Ainsworth’s side went out to Norwich City after a tight 1-0 defeat. They suffered the same result in the league 3 days later, this time at the hands of Ipswich Town.
Another defeat followed, this time to recently relegated Southampton, but new signing Jack Colback found the net for the first time for his new club and gave them a glimmer of hope. They capitalised on that in their latest fixture, an excellent win away at Middlesbrough, with Andre Dozzell opening his account for the season and Colback bagging another.
Swansea City Form
Swansea are in real trouble this season if they don’t turn their fortunes around after a dreadful start. Their most recent fixture has to be the most painful, losing 2-0 to their biggest rivals, Cardiff City.
This followed a 2-1 home defeat to Bristol City, where despite Swansea dominating possession Liam Cullen’s 10th-minute goal was not enough to earn them a point.
This Swansea managed a point against Coventry City at home with Jerry Yates on the score sheet in the 41st minute, Swansea are however through to the next round of the EFL cup after a three nil victory against Northampton Town giving them some hope that they can find the net effectively this season.
Head-to-Head
Over the years these teams have faced each other in many different competitions all across the English Football League system. More often than not in recent years it has been in the championship where these two have clashed. In the last six meetings since 2020, the teams have been remarkably evenly matched, with two wins apiece and two draws. Interestingly, the highest score line in the past six games has never been higher than two goals scored.
Team News
QPR are without the suspended Jack Colback for this game after receiving a straight red card. Jimmy Dunne’s shoulder injury will keep him out of this tie.
Swansea will make the trip to London without Liam Walsh and Steven Benda on the team sheets as their injuries will keep them out until the end of the month.
Key Players
With Jack Colback out for QPR for this game, Andre Dozzell will have to take the lead in the middle of the park. The midfielder has been a consistent presence for his side since joining two years ago and will look to add some attacking flair to his performances as he is yet to find the net for QPR.
After breaking into Swansea's first team last year following a loan spell at Lincoln City, Liam Cullen will want to get back amongst the goals and inspire his side to their first victory of the season. With eight goals to his name from last term he will want to return to the form that gained him a place in the Welsh U-21 side.
Final Thoughts
Their recent form makes for dire reading for both teams and fans of these clubs could be forgiven for not expecting a cricket score line in this game. With the lack of quality showing through so far this season, this game could very well peter out to a draw or a marginal win for one side.