Sports Mole previews Tuesday’s Championship clash between Queens Park Rangers and Middlesbrough, including predictions, team news and possible lineups.
Middlesbrough will be aiming to bounce back from a heavy home defeat when they continue their Championship campaign with a clash against Queens Park Rangers at Loftus Road on Tuesday night.
Boro are currently 10th in the Championship table, three points off the playoff positions, while QPR occupy 23rd spot, picking up only 10 points from their first 13 matches of the 2024-25 campaign.
Match preview
© Imago
QPR boast a record of one win, seven draws and five defeats from their 13 Championship matches this season, with a total of 10 points leaving them in 23rd spot, just one point ahead of basement side Portsmouth.
Marti Cifuentes‘s side will enter this match off the back of a goalless draw with Sunderland, and they have now shared the points in their last three matches, also drawing with Coventry City and Burnley since a 2-1 home reverse to Portsmouth.
Draws against Burnley and Sunderland will undoubtedly have boosted QPR’s confidence, but they are winless in England’s second tier since overcoming Luton Town at the end of August.
The Hoops finished 18th in the Championship last season, and they have been absent from the Premier League since the 2014-15 campaign, spending each of their last nine seasons in England’s second tier.
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Middlesbrough have won two of their last three Championship matches against QPR, including a 2-0 victory when the two teams locked horns in the corresponding match during the 2023-24 campaign.
Michael Carrick‘s side finished eighth in the Championship last season, only four points off the playoff spots, and they are being tipped to challenge for promotion to the Premier League for the 2025-26 campaign.
Boro have picked up 18 points from their opening 13 games of the season, which has left them in 10th spot in the table, just three points behind sixth-placed West Bromwich Albion.
Middlesbrough will enter this match off the back of a 3-0 home defeat to Coventry, which proved to be their third loss in their last five league games, winning just once during that period, which came at home to Sheffield United.
Boro need to find some consistency in the months ahead if they are to finish in the playoff spots, and they will be eyeing victories over QPR and Luton in their final two matches ahead of the November international break.
Queens Park Rangers Championship form:
Middlesbrough Championship form:
© Imago
QPR will be without the services of Harrison Ashby, Michael Frey, Kenneth Paal, Jack Colback and Liam Morrison for Tuesday’s game.
Ashby had to be substituted in the latter stages of the first half against Sunderland on Saturday, which will open the door for Hevertton Santos to come into the XI for the home game against Middlesbrough.
Nicolas Madsen has come up with two goals this season, and he will feature in the final third of the field, while there are also expected to be starting roles for Zan Celar and Ilias Chair in the Championship contest.
As for Middlesbrough, Lukas Engel, Alex Gilbert, Darragh Lenihan, Tom Smith and Alex Bangura will miss out through injury, while Hayden Hackney is suspended for the clash with QPR.
Hackney was sent off in the 22nd minute of Saturday’s clash with Coventry after picking up two yellow cards in quick succession, so there is expected to be a spot in the starting side for Jonny Howson.
Tommy Conway has been the team’s main source of goals this season, finding the back of the net on four occasions in nine appearances, and the 22-year-old will again lead the Boro line on Tuesday night.
Queens Park Rangers possible starting lineup:
Nardi; Dunne, Cook, Field; Smyth, Varane, Morgan, Santos; Madsen, Celar, Chair
Middlesbrough possible starting lineup:
Dieng; Ayling, Edmundson, Clarke, Borges; Morris, Howson; Jones, Azaz, McGree; Conway
We say: Queens Park Rangers 1-2 Middlesbrough
QPR have the second-worst home record in the Championship this season, failing to win in seven games in front of their own fans, and we are backing a talented Middlesbrough side to bounce back with a victory on Tuesday night.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
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