Hoop Dreams - QPR FC

When you get through managers at the rate QPR have done in the last few seasons, you know the club will come up against the odd ex-manager from time to time. Should Hull be relegated and he stays in his job, the Hoops could open their doors to welcome the return of an Iain Dowie team next season. Before that happens, they will certainly have to face up to Paul Hart again, now at Crystal Palace, on April 10, with Palace fighting for their lives to remain in this division. And should Jim Magilton find his way back into management, who is betting against him leading a team out against Rangers in the foreseeable future?

A reunion which could really smart will occur this Saturday though, when Paulo Sousa returns to his former home ground with Swansea City. Sousa managed 26 games at QPR, not a bad achievement considering the all-too brief tenures other managers suffered whilst Flavio Briatore was calling the shots. Sousa was eventually sacked for the rather vague indiscretion of imparting confidential information to supporters.

Going by word of mouth at the time and a number of the players' comments before he left, Sousa was highly respected in the QPR dressing room. Players often spoke about his different vision of the game and of his desire for the players to be able to line-up in a number of different systems or formations - and to be able to switch between them during a match. That didn't sit too kindly with a board which required a simple 4-4-2 approach to the game and which favoured high-scoring matches over defensive solidity. The resoluteness of QPR's back-line last season could be largely attributed to Sousa's organisational skills and compares favourably with the absolute shambles in terms of defending for much of this season. The number of goals conceded by Rangers in this campaign would have been unlikely under Sousa's watch and Neil Warnock is only now starting to address the problem.

A quick look at Swansea's record this season confirms that the Portuguese certainly knows a thing or two about preventing the opposition from scoring. No side has conceded fewer than the Swans, not even Newcastle with their considerably larger resources and numerous players with Premiership experience.

Admittedly, the goals haven't flown in at the other end, which was also a problem during his time at QPR and was probably a more truthful reason behind his sacking, but despite a few recent blips, Swansea still look nailed on to be in the play-offs this season and their league form could stand them in good stead for the crucial knock-out games. That's because they are very hard to beat with only the Toon Army suffering fewer defeats. Come the play-off semis or the final, it would be unsurprising to see them nick promotion by the odd goal.

All that has little to do with QPR of course, except for a vague wondering over what might have been. But it certainly adds an extra spice to this weekend's clash, even if one of the chief architects of Sousa's departure, Flavio Briatore, has now firmly taken a back-seat when it comes to the team's affairs. Had Sousa brought his promotion-chasing side to west London a month ago, it could have been very embarrassing for the Hoops. As it stands now, they have every chance of putting history behind them and showing that under their new manager, their future is as bright as Sousa's own.

Over the last six league games, both teams have identical records with three wins, a draw and two losses, which is more satisfactory for Rangers' current requirements than Swansea's. The Evening Standard, in a brief article today, borders on characterising Saturday's game as a clash of two footballing philosophies - Sousa's possession-heavy, quick-passing side against Warnock's in-yer-face, direct Rangers. It's a little early to know what style of football Warnock is intending to play, though he is clearly appreciative of the talents within his squad and has some understanding of the Loftus Road crowd's fondness for attractive, attacking football.

It is fair to say though that QPR will have to be at the top of their game to break down the Swans' defence, though anyone at Warnock's opening two games will know that he has already inspired them to some adventurous football of their own at Loftus Road. Though Rangers would love to be facing up to their old boss as fellow promotion candidates, it will still be a fascinating encounter for their fans. They will just hope that, as another Portuguese manager did on his return to west London this week, Sousa doesn't get the last laugh.