Hoop Dreams - QPR FC

QPR's Carling Cup game in midweek with Accrington Stanley didn't prove to be a beautiful distraction from the league after all but a horrible reminder that this team is currently playing without belief, organisation or spirit. Instead of a rallying call for future league games, that performance was a low point for this season despite the win. What will be key to the club now is how they can perform back amongst the bread-and-butter games of the league.

Unfortunately for QPR, they only have one game to turn things around prior to the international break and it's newly-promoted Scunthorpe away. Following the two weeks off, they have home games in quick succession against Peterborough and Crystal Palace. Before the season started, QPR would surely have been looking for nine points from these three games. Now, to just get that first win would be satisfactory and five points could be a more realistic target.

For the Scunthorpe match, QPR do at least have some new firepower to call on up front. Jay Simpson, a 20-year old prospect at Arsenal, was signed on a year-long loan yesterday and in his previous loan spells at other clubs, he has demonstrated that he could have the ability to kick-start the Hoops' season. He previously spent a year on loan at Milwall, scoring 6 goals in 34 games and ending the season as the fans' Player of the Year. He finished last season on loan at struggling WBA but still managed to find the net twice but his appearances for Arsenal have been restricted to the Carling Cup. His pace and confidence should add something to a faltering forward line and he is immediately available for tomorrow's game.

In terms of other team news, the only real absentees for QPR are Martin Rowlands, who is unlikely to be ready for this game and Lee Cook who is still recovering from a long-term injury. Angelo Balanta and Fitz Hall are both now back in contention for a first-team place.

Magilton reverted to a 4-4-2 formation for the match against Accrington so it will be interesting to see if he sticks with that, as it sucked a lot of creativity out of the team. If he opts for a midfield duo of Mikele Leigertwood and Gavin Mahon he could hand a lot of the attacking potential to Scunthorpe. Perhaps most importantly though, QPR need to find a settled formation soon and use it for long enough to allow the players to grow into it. The tactical confusion on Tuesday night made a mockery of the whole team and cannot be successful against more competitive opposition.

Another key point to look for is if Akos Buzsaky gets a game and how he responds to the mid-week criticism from Magilton. I maintain that he is QPR's most talented player and the one most likely to get this team going but his confidence could have been dented by events in midweek.

Scunthorpe are newcomers to the Championship following their play-off final victory over Milwall last season but they have struggled early on. They did knock out Paulo Sousa's Swansea City in the Carling Cup midweek in a game which bordered on the farcical as Swansea were close to going down to 6 players, which would have led to the game being disbanded. In the league, they've struggled but they've had tough games against Middlesbrough and Cardiff City. Forest had a slow start to the season until they played Rangers so Jim Magilton will hope that his team are not now a scalp for the bottom half of the Championship.

They have a couple of injury worries following their last Championship game against Sheffield Wednesday with defenders Rob Jones and Niall Canavan both likely to miss out. In the form book, QPR have a pretty decent record against the Iron, having won six out of the last eight encounters. Scunthorpe have been shipping goals and currently have the worst goal difference in the Championship and under normal circumstances, this should be an easy three points for QPR. But Tuesday night was woeful. If they respond in the right way, this could be the game where the floodgates open and QPR finally finish a team off as they have been threatening to do. I still think they will be heading into the international break without a win though, which could make for an uncomfortable fortnight for the manager.

PREDICTION

DRAW

Oh, this was dire. If QPR play worse this season and still win they will be incredibly fortunate. They could only just muster a victory over a team two divisions below them in a ground that was only a quarter full. On top of that, for the first time this season, team spirit seemed to have evaporated and the performances as a whole are now getting worse game by game. Despite the win, few who took part could be happy with their contribution.

Jim Magilton did make changes to try and test out his squad, though this meant a return to the dreaded Leigertwood-Mahon partnership in midfield. That left Akos Buzsaky on the left wing and Hogan Ephraim on the right, with Rowan Vine partnering Patrick Agyemang up front. The defence saw Matt Connolly at left-back with Gary Borrowdale rested for the first time this season, Kaspars Gorkss and Damion Stewart alongside each other in the middle and Peter Ramage at right-back. Man Utd loanee Tom Heaton made his debut in goal and would prove to be one of the few bright points.

Vine had a decent effort early on, twisting and turning in the box before forcing a low save from Alan Martin in the Stanley goal and Stanley also looked dangerous on the break, Michael Symes powering a shot across goal soon after which brought a good reaction save from Heaton. Already, the signs that QPR were struggling were there for all to see. The shape of the team looked poor, passes were going wayward and certain key players couldn't raise their games.

Magilton specifically singled out Buzsaky after the match and the wisdom of that will be proved in the weeks ahead, but he certainly had a very poor game. The impetus to create is so often laid on his shoulders, particularly in a formation with Mahon and Leigertwood sitting back in the middle, so when he has a poor game, it is very noticeable and has a very detrimental effect on the team. Most surprisingly, he looked tired even in the first half and was labouring to keep up with the game.

A lack of discipline and team spirit was now creeping into the Rs performance as well. Before the half was out, Vine and Agyemang were arguing with each other over their positioning with the former player also berating Ramage for a missed ball. Vine did have one final chance to open the scoring when played through on goal, but again struck directly at Martin. The resulting corner from Buzsaky went to no-one and this was repeated on a number of occasions throughout the game.

Half-time and cue boos from the 5000 supporters who could be bothered to turn up, which just about drowned out the 50 or so Stanley fans who sang throughout the entire game. Magilton quickly switched things around at half-time, with Gorkss making way for Borrowdale and Agyemang being replaced by Adel Taarabt. To be forced to make changes so early though showed a lack of confidence in his starting players and mirrored the confusion on the pitch. If you turned to look at Magilton or John Gorman at any point during the game, you would see two men caught in a losing battle to communicate some kind of message that just wasn't getting through.

Taarabt looked to make an immediate impact but still suffers from poor decision-making and a wayward shot and towards the end of the game, dabbled in some unsuccessful step-overs which were just embarrassing considering the circumstances. Ephraim was also getting more involved and he sent a stinging shot in the direction of goal early in the half, but Martin dealt with it comfortably.

It served as a range-finder though and soon the winger went one better and produced an effort which was the equal of his curled effort in the opening round. A Ramage cross found Ephraim on the edge of the box and after some quick control, he flicked a lob into the far corner to open the scoring.

Wayne Routledge came on straight away for Mahon and demonstrated why he should now be considered a certain starter. He is one of the few players in the squad to have some self-belief at the moment and set about the Stanley defence immediately. He settled the tie on 90 minutes with a cracking drive from the edge of the area, after ten minutes in which the Hoops sat back and came close to conceding an equaliser. There was still time for the whole defence to go to sleep allowing Symes a goal from point-blank range which Stanley and their supporters deserved.

QPR have clearly not found form yet this season and any pre-season hype has long been extinguished, but this was the first game where I began to doubt Magilton's control and influence over the team and where the desire of the players could be called into question. Their abject first-half performance should have inspired anger in them, but it only served to accentuate their petulance as numerous players began to bicker with each other on the pitch.

By openly criticising the team performance and singling out Buzsaky, perhaps Magilton is trying to re-assert some authority and try to halt what looks like a game-on-game decline, despite the victory. Its effectiveness will be proved quickly as QPR will not be able to reproduce this kind of display and expect any kind of reward. A win in the league is a necessity now before the atmosphere at Loftus Road turns more poisonous.

HIGHS - Hogan Ephraim now pushing for a first-team place; Matthew Connolly putting in an assured performance at left-back and even more so when switched to the middle; Tom Heaton's excellent debut which saved the team from a real embarrassment.

LOWS - Poor performance from Buzsaky which led to the manager criticizing him; non-existent team spirit and confusion over positioning across the pitch; a quarter-full Loftus Road which put the Briatore 'project' into sharp focus.

QPR - Heaton, Ramage, Stewart, Gorkss (Borrowdale 46), Connolly, Mahon (Routledge 68), Leigertwood, Buzsaky, Ephraim, Vine, Agyemang (Taarabt 46)

Subs not used - Cerny (GK), Helguson, Pellicori, Balanta.

Goals - Ephraim 68, Routledge 90 + 1.

Bookings - Ramage

Accrington Stanley - Martin, Kempton, Edwards, Winnard, Murphy (Kee 73), Procter, Joyce, Ryan (Turner 81), McConville (Grant 73), Miles, Symes

Subs not used - Dunbavin (GK), Richardson, Mullin, King

Goals - Symes 90 + 4.

Bookings - Ryan

Referee - C L Pawson

Attendance - 5203

Away from their current tribulations in the league, QPR can at least take in the distraction of the Carling Cup tonight, allowing manager Jim Magilton further time to test his squad out. In terms of a second round draw, a home tie with Accrington Stanley, currently four places from the bottom of the league, is not one to pack the supporters in and there will be more than a few empty spaces around Loftus Road (I don't think Naomi Campbell will be up for this one?) It does, however, give the Hoops an excellent chance of remaining in the hat for the third round draw.

In terms of team selection, Magilton should have enough confidence in his squad to make a few changes and I'd expect Matt Connolly, Gavin Mahon, Hogan Ephraim,Rowan Vine and Patrick Agyemang to all be pushing for a place. In terms of absences, Fitz Hall is missing following an injury he sustained on Saturday against Nottingham Forest, so Kaspars Gorkss is likely to start. Magilton could also give a start to his current goalkeeping understudy Tom Heaton, who is on loan from Manchester United. Akos Buzsaky only made the bench on Saturday as well and he looked hungry for some playing time following his long-term lay-off, so he might feature. Martin Rowlands has still not recovered from the injury sustained on the opening day but Angelo Balanta could be back. No news yet on Lee Cook.

Their opponents tonight are household names but that is more attributable to a 1980s advert for milk over any footballing achievements: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bBOIXO-X1QU. In the advert, two young lads describe how if they don't drink milk, they could end up having to play for Accrington Stanley. The National Dairy Council originally wanted to use Spurs in their script: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/lancashire/4788038.stm. Tottenham Hotspur? Who are they? Exactly.

The Lancashire club shouldn't be completely underestimated as opponents though despite their relatively lowly position in League Two, where they have spent the previous three seasons. The club, which folded in 1966 only to reemerge four years later, has come close to some big scalps in this competition. This is the fourth season in a row in which they have faced a Championship side, in which time they've knocked out Nottingham Forest and narrowly missed out to Watford on penalties and by single-goal margins to Leicester City and Wolves.

John Coleman, their manager for the last 10 years (pictured on the left), overseeing three promotions to take them into the league, has close to a full squad to call on. The main problem for Accrington this season has been scoring goals (where have I heard that before?) Much of that responsibility often lies on 35-year old Paul Mullin, the club's record appearances holder who is now in his second spell with the Stans.

They also have a smattering of younger players who could give QPR a fright. Michael Symes could return from injury tonight and he has the distinction of playing up front with Wayne Rooney in the Everton youth set-up. Midfielder Jimmy Ryan, last season's top scorer, also has Merseyside pedigree as a part of Liverpool's FA Youth Cup winning teams in 2006 and 2007 and is also regularly capped for Republic of Ireland U21s.

I'm not even going to bother predicting scores for QPR games anymore because I clearly had some kind of brain freeze before the weekend when I seriously thought they could put three past Nottingham Forest. I don't expect them to win this game as comfortably as they did the Exeter City tie in the first round, despite the home advantage, but they have more than enough talent to prevent any shocks tonight.

QPR's sluggish start to the season could quickly be in danger of turning into a nightmare one and at the moment, manager, supporters and observers alike are frantically trying to work out how a team with such big-name backing and with some truly talented players can continue to under-perform, to the extent that the team are still to win this season.

It's seven games without a victory stretching back to last season, but at least at that point QPR had the excuse of not having anything to play for. Their form since this season has kicked off is far more troubling for their supporters. With a new manager and a number of new players, QPR still haven't been able to rouse themselves to a victory or even to score more than twice in a game. The two goals at home have looked pretty similar but where one was a fluke (Peter Ramage's cross/shot on the opening day), Mikele Leigertwood's effort in this game to open the scoring was definitely planned. But once again, it took an infrequent scorer within the QPR squad to conjure a goal out of nothing. Bread and butter chances for the club's strikers continually go begging, leading many to the conclusion that the missing link is a new frontman.

Jim Magilton is clearly aware of this and from his post-match comments, he's now getting a bit sick of hearing about it. But just because an opinion is widely-held does not make it wrong. In fact, it might just be true. QPR's lack of goals from last season has now extended into this one and is the key reason why this club is very unlikely to get promoted. It's time to start lowering expectations I'm afraid.

For this supposedly must-win game, the manager shuffled the pack again and changed his system from the 4-5-1 experiment at Bristol City to a traditional 4-4-2. He did stick with an unchanged defence for the first time this season though with Peter Ramage at right-back, Fitz Hall and Damion Stewart in the middle and Gary Borrowdale on the left. He was repaid with a workmanlike if far from stellar performance from the two centre-backs, but conversely, poor matches from both full-backs with Peter Ramage back to some of his old-tricks of losing possession and looking very slovenly at the back. It left Magilton cursing defensive frailties after the game, but I don't think this was solely the fault of the back four as Forest were afforded possession all over the pitch.

In the midfield, Leigertwood retained his place and he seems to be guaranteed a starting role under Magilton, which on the basis of his goal is currently deserved. For patches of the game, he worked tirelessly. At other times, towards the end of the match, his concentration slipped and he got sloppy in possession, but if he can remove these lapses of concentration from his game, he should be one of QPR's most consistent performers this season. He was partnered by £3.5 million man Alejandro Faurlin in the middle, leaving two wingers, Wayne Routledge in his customary position on the right and Adel Taarabt moved on to the left rather than take up his recent role as a centre forward. That left Heidar Helguson up front with Alessandro Pellicori, who was making his home debut along with Faurlin.

On the bench were two of QPR's best performers from last season – Kaspars Gorkss and Matthew Connolly – and the change in system also meant there was no place for Akos Buzsaky. Rowan Vine and Patrick Agyemang were the back-up strikers with Gavin Mahon also sitting out another game.

For Forest, there was an opportunity to select two former Hoops players. One, Lee Camp, made the team as he is now their first-choice keeper but Dexter Blackstock was left on the bench, with Billy Davies preferring to go with Dele Adebola, a summer signing from Bristol City and 21-year-old David McGoldrick, another pre-season addition from Southampton for £1 million. In my preview, I spoke about Forest's options up front and Davies had the luxury of leaving Blackstock, Robert Earnshaw and Nathan Tyson on the bench.

Pretty much from kick-off, Forest demonstrated that the front two would be a handful for the QPR defence, with Radoslaw Majewski providing capable support from the midfield. Within 5 minutes, Radek Cerny had to pull off a smart double-save, getting down low to a crisp drive from Majewski from outside the area and then getting across quickly to palm away Joe Garner's snapshot. It wasn't the last save Cerny would have to make and for me, he is the best player in the QPR team at the moment, which says a lot about the lack of inspiration up front. But for Cerny, QPR's poor start to this season could have been a disastrous one.

McGoldrick and Adebola soon linked up well, with the younger player clipping a ball into the area which would have landed to Adebola had Hall not got the faintest of touches to direct the ball away from him. Hall had a decent start to this game and justified his selection over Gorkss. QPR were failing to handle the pace of McGoldrick though down the left wing with Ramage often caught in no man's land. After quarter of an hour, Forest had a further chance to go ahead, McGoldrick placing a shot wide of the post from inside the area when he had the time and space to find the net.

In fairness to the Hoops, it was an end-to-end game but that is probably not what Magilton was hoping for with his team selection. Both sides struggled to retain possession for any extended periods of time and though it was exciting to watch, it wasn't the greatest advertisement for Championship football with both teams guilty of mislaid passes and poor control.

QPR were gradually fashioning chances and their first real opportunity came from some quick thinking and skilful play from Helguson, which is not always a common sight at Loftus Road. He latched onto a high ball, got the ball quickly to feet and in the same breath, fed in Taarabt lurking on the edge of the box. Taarabt's decision-making is often shocking though and so it proved, as he latched at the ball, producing a tame scuffed shot past the post when he had to find the target.

I don't know if this facet to Taarabt's game is down to a lack of confidence or over-confidence. He either tries to win games single-handedly or panics when he gets a sight of goal and shoots from anywhere on the pitch, but the result is nearly always the same; another QPR attack petering out. In some parts of Loftus Road he is considered the golden boy, who along with Akos Buzsaky could turn a currently average team into promotion candidates but I don't see it at the moment and I can see why Spurs were not too concerned to lose the player on a year-long loan. If he thinks he is above the Championship he is sorely mistaken because at the moment, his performances barely merit selection in a struggling QPR team.

Where Taarabt should have scored, Gary Borrowdale had to score minutes later, but as a defender he can be afforded a greater degree of leniency than the Moroccan. Some fine play by Routledge down the wing (still the most likely source of a QPR goal), led to a lofted ball into the area which found Borrowdale free at the far post. There were bodies in the box, but the defender panicked and snatched a shot well over the bar.

At least Leigertwood can get the ball on target. On 25 minutes, a quick throw from Routledge found the midfielder on the right wing. He cut in, took a few steps in the direction of the goal and then curled a shot from 25 yards over Camp's head. He only found the net twice last season but if the QPR strikers continue to strike out on a regular basis he will have to pitch in with more efforts like this one. There was a tangible release of tension around the stadium though; as I've said previously, goals are less than frequent occurrences.

That made QPR's ultimate failure to capitalise on this lead all the more surprising. Up to the end of the half, Forest looked the likelier to score, Leigertwood at one point pulling off an excellent last-minute tackle to prevent Chris Gunter a clear run on goal and Cerny providing another fine save low down to keep out a Majewski free-kick.

In the second half, QPR's performance completely fell off as their retention of possession petered out and their attempts on goal dwindled to nothing. Fitz Hall left the pitch at half-time and didn't return due to a sustained rib injury which is likely to keep him out of tomorrow's clash with Accrington Stanley. Gorkss is a more than dependable replacement, but he struggled in the second half along with the whole team and was partly responsible for the Forest equaliser.

Camp lofted a long ball towards the Hoops goal and Adebola flicked on a header with little opposing challenge. The ball bounced in the QPR area, but Gorkss and Borrowdale were both far too hesitant, allowing McGoldrick to ghost in and drive the ball into the roof of the net for his first Forest goal. Cerny didn't stand a chance and he must be getting frustrated that his defence isn't always pulling its weight this season.

Magilton clearly recognised that something had to be done to kick-start a completely lacklustre second-half performance and with half an hour remaining, he took off Pellicori for Rowan Vine. It's hard to knock a player making his first start at home and only his third appearance, but Pellicori was woeful in this game. He was off the pace, lacking in a decent first touch and most surprisingly, he looked out of shape. Admittedly, he wasn't provided anything in the way of goal-scoring opportunities but the best strikers can also make chances of their own. They torment a defence with their work-rate and in the positions they take up. There was little evidence of this from Pellicori on Saturday.

Just five minutes later, Taarabt was removed for Buzsaky and as with QPR's first home game, the Hungarian quickly adapted to the pace of the play. Without a shadow of doubt, Buzsaky is the most talented QPR player on the ball and also the most intelligent in terms of his passing and decision-making, so to start him on the bench seems perverse. If it's a question of finding the right system then so be it, but he's good enough to justify building the team around him. He soon forced Camp into a diving save from a curling free-kick which is another facet of his game which is missed if he's warming the bench.

Both managers were striving to find a solution to what had become an uninspiring stalemate and on 71 minutes, Blackstock finally made an appearance in front of his former fans. Peppered amongst the largely generous applause were a number of boos which seemed pretty moronic. Blackstock gave three seasons of decent if not spectacular service to QPR only to find himself farmed out on loan to Forest despite being the club's top scorer by some distance. To move there permanently must have appealed when QPR didn't move mountains to keep him.

Nathan Tyson soon entered the fray as well but both teams looked unlikely to break the deadlock. Forest understandably were happy with a point, but QPR seemingly lacked the professionalism to turn this into a win, with Buzsaky the only player with the energy or nous to attempt to do so.

That must have been the most troubling aspect for Jim Magilton after the game but even some of his comments suggested a less than complete focus on that first win. Many of the Sunday papers portrayed Magilton in the tea-cup throwing role following the match and though it is true to say that he described this as QPR's poorest performance of the season, I wouldn't have characterised his comments or demeanour as angry. Frustrated, yes, but he did also point out that the most important thing for QPR was not to lose after their defeat to Bristol City.

This could be taken as the manager making the best of a bad situation and no-one would expect him to pour scorn on his own players. At the same time, the suggestion that preventing a defeat was key to the team suggested a lowering of expectations alongside a certain conservatism that will not currently put QPR in good stead if it continues. Forest are a good team who made important additions in the summer with a strong manager with a long-term plan but surely QPR should expect or at least hope to win this fixture at home.

I wouldn't put this all down to the manager by a long shot though. A lot of that conservatism is inherent in the QPR team. A tendency to sit back on a one-goal lead; a tendency to hesitate in front of goal; a return to long balls and rushed decisions under pressure instead of possession play and quick-thinking. The atmosphere by the final whistle was dejected rather than angry with half-hearted boos and a few choice words in the direction of Flavio Briatore's seat (though he wasn't actually at the game, preferring to spend the weekend watching the European Grand Prix). Make no mistake about it though, this was a poor result and an even worse performance.

Accrington Stanley come to Loftus Road next in the Carling Cup and though they may not hit the heights of their five-goal trouncing of Exeter City, QPR should still have more than enough about them to win that game comfortably. But enjoyable as it will be to be in the hat for the third round and a potential tie with a Premiership team, this competition cannot feature too highly in QPR's priorities as they realistically have absolutely no chance of winning it. Getting a first league win is now all-important but when it will come is far from clear.

Scunthorpe United is the next league match and if QPR are ever to get an away win, this game would rank high on a list of potential victories. Scunthorpe are currently struggling with life in the second tier, losing three of their opening four games and shipping four goals on two occasions. Two of those defeats came to Cardiff City and Middlesbrough though, both likely promotion candidates and United look to be a tougher prospect at home than on their travels. If QPR fail to get the first win there, successive home games against Peterborough United and Crystal Palace might do the trick. The longer this run continues though, the more damaging it is to the morale of the team and the supporters and the more damning it is for Magilton's future at the club. The truest thing he said after the game was what QPR need to do in their next game. Win, just win.

HIGHS – Leigertwood's goal and first-half performance; Radek Cerny; Akos Buzsaky's cameo from the bench.

LOWS – Abject second-half display; poor performance from both full-backs, particularly Ramage; Pellicori looking off the pace and out of shape.

QPR - Cerny, Ramage, Stewart, Hall (Gorkss 46), Borrowdale, Leigertwood, Routledge, Pellicori (Vine 61), Faurlin, Helguson, Taarabt (Buzsaky 66)

Subs not used - Heaton (GK), Connolly, Mahon, Agyemang.

Goal - Leigertwood (25)

Nottingham Forest - Camp, Morgan, Cohen, Gunter, Lynch (McCleary 46), Chambers, Garner, McKenna, Majewski, Adebola (Blackstock 71), McGoldrick (Tyson 75)

Subs not used - Smith (GK), Anderson, Earnshaw, Davies

Goal - McGoldrick (58)

Referee - J Linington

Attendance - 13058

Games this early shouldn't be classed as 'must-wins' especially in the Championship which is always guaranteed to be tight and competitive until the season's final moments. But for QPR, their game today against Nottingham Forest is now taking on particularly elevated significance. Lose and fail to score and however premature it would be, doubts will be cast on the ability of Jim Magilton to improve on last season's position and actually get this team in the play-offs. A win could turn what currently looks a dismal start to the season into a much more respectable one and would bump the Hoops up the league. It would also demonstrate that the attacking potential shown in all three opening league games actually has some end product.

In the team news, QPR still cannot call on Angelo Balanta or captain Martin Rowlands who are both yet to recover from ankle injuries but they should be in first-team contention sooner rather than later. Lee Cook, of course, is a long-term absentee.

The team selected today could well be very similar to that selected on Tuesday night despite the defeat. Some key points to look for will be who Magilton opts for as his central defensive partnership – he has yet to pick the same two players in this position for consecutive games. On Tuesday he opted for Damion Stewart and Fitz Hall with less than spectacular results. Stewart and Kaspars Gorkss was the natural partnership last season during which QPR were a difficult team to score against, but Fitz Hall has made a solid start to the season and will be considered for a place.

In midfield, the main talking point will be if Magilton sticks with his 4-5-1 formation, playing one holding midfielder behind three attack-minded players or goes back to a more traditional 4-4-2, with a holding pair, two wingers and two men up front. The logic of a home game would dictate two strikers, though who this should be is hard to judge. Not one of QPR's strikers has made a good start to the season, though in fairness to Rowan Vine and Angelo Balanta they've not had long on the pitch. I'd like to see Alessandro Pellicori play. With the confidence that a home game inspires, it would be a good indication of how well he is fitting into the team. The same goes for Alejandro Faurlin – he wasn't completely on the pace on Tuesday but Magilton has since described that as a 'baptism of fire'. Today's match could be a much more comfortable introduction to the Championship, without trying to diminish the threat that Nottingham Forest pose.

Moving on to the visitors then, no club in the Championship has a bigger history than the Reds, coupled with a feeling that it's glory days are behind it. Investment has gone into the team this summer and there is renewed ambition to move up the Championship table and soon challenge for promotion, but in recent years, Forest have been a shell of the side which twice won Europe's biggest honour. Only last season, they flirted with relegation and stayed up partly due to the contribution of on-loan striker Dexter Blackstock, who has now joined the club permanently from QPR.

That illustrious history (how many clubs across Europe can be twice winners of the European Cup and now be playing in the second tier of their league?) is largely put down to the influence of one man who has been back on the radar recently thanks to the book and subsequent film 'The Damned United' which describes Brian Clough's 44 days in charge of Leeds United. Had Clough's career ended there, he would be seen as a 'nearly-man' of football. Instead he went on to turn a provincial club in the Second Division into the champions of Europe. In his second season at the club, with his right-hand man Peter Taylor now on board, Clough guided the team to promotion and followed it with the League Championship at the first attempt – a feat which hasn't been repeated since and which looking at the closed-shop at the top of the Premiership, now looks very unlikely. It also made Clough the only manager since Herbert Chapman to win the league with two different clubs, having already won the league at Derby County (only Kenny Dalglish has since repeated that feat and no other manager has ever done this with two lower-league clubs).

From there, Forest supporters must have been in dream land as the club went on to back-to-back European Cup wins. If the QPR board need a template for success, they should look no further than Clough, though its debatable how much his outspoken approach to the game would be tolerated nowadays.

His final years were much sadder as he fell into alcoholism and Forest succumbed to relegation in 1992-93, Clough's final season. Since then, the club have been back in the Premiership but also as low as the third tier of English football, the only European Cup winners to suffer this fate. They spent 3 seasons there, only returning to the Championship last season where their safety was only ensured in the penultimate game.

Along with Blackstock though, the club have brought in nine players this summer in an attempt to consolidate their position in the Championship and were even outside bets to go up, though they have suffered an even worse start than QPR with only one point currently on the board.

What Forest have that QPR would kill for is a plethora of strikers to call on. Alongside Blackstock, Dele Adebola also signed on a free in the summer after turning down the opportunity to renew his contract with Bristol City and despite his critics, he does have a proven track record of scoring at this level. They could also call on Robert Earnshaw, who struggled through an injury-hit first season with the Reds but still managed to score in nearly half his games and Nathan Tyson, who without being prolific, has an ability to conjure something out of the blue which could break the deadlock between these two teams.

Forest will be without one of their brightest talents, midfielder Lewis McGugan, who suffered a broken cheekbone against Watford on Tuesday and could face up to six weeks on the sidelines. That leaves a big hole in the Forest midfield and they have also struggled at the back in recent games, though Luke Chambers returns at centre-back following a three game suspension, which will allow Chris Cohen to return to his preferred position in the central midfield. Manager Billy Davies is also without Julian Bennett (knee), Guy Moussi (thigh), Garath McCleary (leg), James Perch (shin) and Kelvin Wilson.

The current form for both sides is poor, with Forest currently in the relegation places with only 1 point from their first three games, though they've had some tough opening fixtures. After a creditable 0-0 draw at Reading on the opening day, they lost 1-0 at home to another promotion candidate, WBA before falling to a much more disappointing 4-2 defeat at Watford on Tuesday.

QPR won this fixture 2-1 last season, Angelo Balanta and Akos Buzsaky getting the goals though Forest played some good football on the day and Billy Davies will hope to stick to those principles this season. The return fixture ended 2-2, Matteo Alberti the surprise scorer, so on recent form there are goals in this fixture. Forest actually have a poor record at Loftus Road, winning only once in their last eight visits back in 1998, and a win for the Hoops today would be a fourth successive home league victory over the Reds.

Most importantly, QPR are a good side and have proved that already this season despite the poor points haul. This is especially the case at home, which is more suited to their build-up play and at times, top-heavy formation. Forest will be looking to hit QPR on the break and with the forwards at their disposal, finding the net is not out of the question. I think there are goals in this one, going on last season's form and the defensive shakiness of both sides this season, but I also think QPR will just shade it. I've tipped them for a win in all but one game this season (Tuesday night's defeat to Bristol City which I thought would be a draw) but a win really is on the cards and possibly even a comfortable one soon if the team can finally gel. Expect Blackstock to find the net as well though - some things are just destined to happen.

PREDICTION

QPR 3 Nottingham Forest 2

Don’t worry about the glass being half empty or half full anymore? It’s been drained of its last dregs now and is being used in a bloody bar-room brawl.

Too dramatic? Where most QPR fans could have been quite evenly split into eternal optimists and doom-mongers before the Bristol City match, most will now surely be predicting gloomy months ahead for the Hoops. No wins from 3 matches and a continued inability to find the net or make reinforcements to the squad add up to a team struggling to stay in contention in the Championship rather than enjoying a blissful honeymoon with new manager Jim Magilton.

At any other club, such negativity would be completely ridiculous. The Championship is a particularly gruelling league; QPR still have 43 games to play between now and next May. They’ve started with 2 tough away games, particularly Tuesday’s match at Bristol City and a home game that they were very unlucky not to win. In every game they’ve played, they’ve dominated the opposition for long periods of the game and with Adel Taarabt and Wayne Routledge in particular, they’re beginning to show an abundance of attacking talent in their squad.

But on the message boards, supporters are already discussing whether Saturday’s match against Nottingham Forest is make or break for Magilton at Loftus Road. Such questions are raised not out of discontent with the new manager but due to a fear that the axe is wielded far more liberally at QPR than at any other club. That another manager will not be given enough time to turn things around. To even talk about sacking a manager this early in the season is ludicrous and there is no indication yet that the QPR board are anything less than pleased with Magilton’s progress, but it should be remembered that Iain Dowie lasted only 12 league games at the start of last season and he had managed two wins by this stage.

What will worry supporters and Magilton as well are that many of the key problems are exactly the same as when Dowie left ten months ago and some have got worse. QPR still have an inability to get results on the road; they still struggle to score more than once in a match and they still have an unbalanced squad and a number of injury-prone stars. At least Dowie could call on Dexter Blackstock to get a reasonable goal tally and QPR’s misery on Tuesday night was compounded by the sight of him notching his second goal of the season for new club Nottingham Forest. They will feel even sicker if he profits from the ‘old-club’ syndrome and bangs one in on Saturday at which point I wouldn’t want to be sat alongside Flavio.

What went wrong against Bristol City then? To even frame it in those terms suggests a skewed vision of what QPR should achieve as Bristol City are one of the league’s better teams and to expect a guaranteed win at their ground would be foolish. But again, looking at the players QPR had to call on and seeing the lengthy spells of the game which they controlled and the chances they created, it does beg the question of how they could suffer through another goalless game and come away with nothing.

Magilton can’t really win when it comes to team selection. If he changes it too much, he is in danger of losing ground in the league while he experiments with his team. If he doesn’t mix it up, how can he ever get a true idea of who his best players are and how best to play them. The defeat against Plymouth surely merited some kind of reaction from the manager as well and he promptly made three changes.

Damion Stewart returned to the side to partner Fitz Hall, which looked like a harsh reaction to Kaspars Gorkss own goal against Plymouth but I wouldn’t read it that way. Hall has done enough since the start of the season to merit inclusion and Stewart is arguably the best defender at the club so his appearance in the starting line-up should shock no-one. What will set off alarm bells is if the manager continues to change his central partnership at the back on a game-by-game basis. He is yet to play the same two central defenders in consecutive matches and when goals are hard to come by, defensive stability is paramount so Magilton should settle on his preferred partnership soon.

Alejandro Faurlin got his first ever start for the Hoops, replacing Gavin Mahon and thereby breaking up his holding partnership with Mikele Leigertwood which I’ve been moaning about recently. The final change saw the scorer of the only goal against Plymouth, Heidar Helguson, drop to the bench in place of Patrick Agyemang. Again, wisdom dictates that it’s best to leave a successful striker in the team, but Helguson is not the answer to QPR’s scoring woes. It’s just unfortunate that Agyemang isn’t either.

This also meant that Magilton was going with an admirably positive system, though with still only one recognised striker on the pitch. Leigertwood as stand-in skipper took his usual marshalling role in front of the defence with new boy Faurlin placed slap bang into the middle of the action just ahead of him. That left what in theory should be a roving trio of Wayne Routledge, Adel Taarabt and Akos Buzsaky, with each player more than capable of swapping positions and cutting in from the wing to add to the attacking options. That left a potential weak link though with Agyemang leading the line alone. This system ultimately didn’t work against Bristol City but it could be profitable in future if a deadlier striker than Agyemang can ensure it’s success.

For all QPR’s attacking promise, it was Bristol City who fashioned the first chance of the game, demonstrating that the pace of their strike partnership of Danny Haynes and Nicky Maynard would trouble the R’s defence. On this occasion, Haynes broke through on goal on the left of the area but opted to shoot early and cleared the bar by some distance.

At the other end, QPR were able to keep possession for spells in the first half, whilst failing to fashion too many clear-cut opportunities. An intricate passing move fed in Buzsaky on the edge of the area but he drilled a shot just over the goal. Not long after, Haynes missed the best chance of the half, once again out-pacing the Hoops defence before dragging a tame shot wide of Cerny’s goal. Despite Haynes' profligacy, Bristol City were clearly the better team of the half with Faurlin in particular failing to find the pace of the game. A debut start at Ashton Gate may have asked too much of him.

The Hoops responded well at the start of the second period with Routledge, as has so often been the case this season, the main instigator of their raids on the Bristol goal. He struck a low shot directly at Dean Gerken early on before providing a trademark slide-rule cross into the box, which Adel Taarabt could only guide on to the post.

Magilton shuffled the pack with 25 minutes to go, removing Agyemang and Taarabt for Rowan Vine and Alessandro Pellicori, with the two forming a more traditional strike partnership. With the club seemingly unwilling to head into the market to provide another goalscorer, Pellicori surely deserves an extended run in the team soon just to test his goal-scoring credentials.

Yet it was Bristol who broke the deadlock with thirteen minutes to go and in emphatic fashion. Maynard picked up the ball on the edge of the area, checked inside to leave Hall sprawling on the floor and belted the ball into the roof of the net. He struggled last season, his first for the club, whilst still notching 11 goals but he has three already this time round and is already justifying his club record fee of £2.25m. It could also be taken as another glaring example of the need to spend some cash to find a decent striker but I don’t want to labour a point. QPR’s combined outlay on their 5 strikers: £1.35 million.

Deep into injury time, it was another instance of the wrong player being in the right position, Leigertwood left completely unmarked in the box, only to procrastinate for so long as to leave Gerken with a simple save at his feet.

Sometimes a solution is so glaringly simple that when it doesn’t materialise, you can’t help but question your initial judgement. QPR don’t score enough goals, therefore they need to buy a striker who can score a lot of goals regularly. What could be more obvious than that? So when the management and Board say quite the opposite, who is misreading the game here? Is it the supporters who chanted Dexter Blackstock’s name after he left the club last season? Or is it the new boss, certain that the players at his disposal are more than adequate? Perhaps the supposed sackfuls of cash aren’t there and the manager’s hands are tied. But that won’t spare him a frosty reception on Saturday if they fail to hit the net again. Should that happen and should you-know-who net for Forest, the jewellery-rattlers seated next to Flavio, Bernie and company will be in for a torrid afternoon.

HIGHS: Still creating a lot; Routledge still standing out as greatly improved from last season; that's it.

LOWS: No goals, no points; tinkering at the back which could harm the defence; a steady start to the season in danger of turning into a very poor one.

Bristol City - Gerken, Orr, McAllister (Velicka 64) (Johnson 75), McCombe, Nyatanga, Elliott, Hartley, Skuse (Fontaine 37), Clarkson, Maynard, Haynes

Subs not used - Basso (GK), Akinde, Sproule, Wilson.

Goals - Maynard (77)

Bookings - McAllister, Fontaine, Hartley

QPR - Cerny, Ramage, Stewart, Hall, Borrowdale, Leigertwood, Routledge, Buzsaky, Faurlin (Helguson 84), Taarabt (Vine 66), Agyemang (Pellicori 66)

Subs not used - Heaton, Gorkss, Connolly, Mahon

Bookings - Stewart, Buzsaky, Faurlin

Referee - Phil Gibbs

Attendance - 14,571 (917 away)

Goals, goals, goals. It’s what QPR need and it should be a mantra in their dressing room prior to kick-off. As goals have such a key importance in the winning of football matches, it, of course, should be taken for granted that the players value them highly but frequent QPR displays over the last year suggest quite the opposite.

There is still no news on a 20-goal a season player appearing out of the ether and Jim Magilton indicated recently that he is happy with the crop of strikers at his disposal. We will have to wait and see which of those players most handsomely repays the manager’s faith but in the meantime, the rest of the team will have to chip in on the scoring front.

That could be helped by the imminent debut of record signing Alejandro Faurlin, pictured on the right (though as his career to date has been in the Argentinean Second Division, very few observers at Loftus Road can give much indication as to his ability). He is included in the match-day squad for tonight’s game where he will most likely start on the bench. Martin Rowlands is close to returning to match fitness, but not in time for this one and it’s a similar story for Angelo Balanta who continues to nurse a leg injury. Both could return for the visit of Nottingham Forest this weekend though.

The line-up will be largely dictated by how much of a tinkerer Magilton proves to be. He might throw his toys out the pram and drop half the team following the last-minute concession against Plymouth but I think that’s unlikely. That game was only three days ago though, so a degree of squad rotation would make sense. Cerny is surely a guaranteed starter despite the arrival of Tom Heaton on loan from Man United. Fitz Hall had a decent game against Plymouth so he may well be retained, but Damion Stewart and Matt Connolly both merit inclusion soon so it will be interesting to see how the defence shapes up.

In midfield, I hope he doesn’t go for the dreaded Mahon-Leigertwood pairing again but Bristol City are a better team than Plymouth so thoughts of safety may take precedence. Until Lee Cook returns QPR cannot call on their best left-sided winger so Akos Buzsaky could be placed there leaving fewer options in the middle and making the inclusion of Mahon more likely. I’d prefer to see Magilton gamble on Hogan Ephraim on the wing, freeing up Buzsaky and then Faurlin once he is fit to contribute more from the middle of the pitch.

Up front, expect Heidar Helguson to start after his goal against Plymouth, most likely with Adel Taarabt who along with Wayne Routledge is currently the most threatening player in the QPR side.

Bristol City would not have been considered a tricky fixture ten or even five years ago, but under current boss Gary Johnson they have developed into potential promotion candidates.

The club was formed in 1897 and they entered the Football League in 1901 where they were the only non-London side south of Birmingham until 1920. Unfortunately for Robins fans, you have to be pretty long in the tooth to have witnessed the club’s best years.

In 1905, the club were searching for a manager and turned to one of their own players, Harry Thickett (third from the left on the back row of the distinguished gentleman pictured here). This is a man who supposedly played on the winning side in the 1899 FA Cup Final wearing 50 yards of bandages to account for two broken ribs so the challenge of taking Bristol City into the First Division must have seemed trivial in comparison. He duly achieved that in his first season and the club then reached the heady heights of second the following season – the highest Bristol City will ever finish unless they win the Premiership anytime soon. Thickett also led the club to their one and only FA Cup final appearance in 1909, which the club lost 1-0 to Manchester United.

Jump forward 100 years and the club were close to achieving lightening-quick progression through the football leagues again thanks to a manager with good form when it comes to promotion. The current Robins manager didn’t have as successful playing career as Thickett, but once behind the dug-out, he has brought success to every club he has been at. Notable achievements include taking Cambridge United from the Conference to within two matches of the First Division in successive seasons as John Beck’s right-hand man; doing much the same for Yeovil Town who he lifted from the Conference to League One and setting in motion the development of the Latvian national team which led to their qualification for Euro 2004.

At Bristol City, in his first season (2005/6) he guided the club out of the relegation places to the comfort of ninth in League One and the following year led them into the Championship. Consolidation doesn’t feature heavily in Johnson’s thinking and true to form, Bristol City reached the play-off final at the first attempt where they fell to a 1-0 defeat against Hull City.

Last season the club finished on identical points to QPR and just pipped them to 10th place in the league due to a marginally superior goal difference. Their recent history shows though that this is a team with the capability to challenge for the play-off spots and coming just days after the hard-fought draw at Plymouth, this is a real early test for Magilton’s men.

The biggest piece of news for the Bristol team tonight is the arrival of Andrius Velicka, a Lithuanian striker brought in on loan from Glasgow Rangers who comes straight into the squad. He struggled for games at Ibrox but could be a useful addition at this level and adds to Johnson’s options up front.

They have shown already this season how hard it is to beat them, though to say they were fortunate to win at the weekend against Crystal Palace is an understatement. I don’t want to go over the controversy over Palace’s clear goal which wasn’t awarded by the referee or the debate over sportsmanship. It wasn’t particularly surprising to see how willing Bristol City were to play on but had the situation been switched, I’m certain Neil Warnock’s team would have done the same. Lightning is unlikely to strike twice tonight. Prior to that game, City were denied a win at Preston North End where a late equaliser made it 2-2 but a win tonight would see them on 7 points and close to the top-end of the table.

This fixture last season ended in a 1-1 draw at almost exactly the same point of the season, Dele Adebola cancelling out a Dexter Blackstock opener for the Hoops. I’ve been predicting QPR to win every game so far this season and they’ve only managed one out of three and I think that previous game is a good marker to how it could go tonight. The Hoops need a win badly to get their season started but I think they’re going to have to wait until the comfort of Loftus Road on Saturday to get it.

PREDICTION

Bristol City 1 QPR 1

Your outlook on QPR's start to the season will largely depend on whether you are a 'glass half full' or 'glass half empty' kind of person. If you're in the former group, you can point to the at times excellent football QPR played already this season, especially in their Carling Cup win, along with the fact that they are unbeaten in the league. If you're more of the latter persuasion, you might argue that QPR have played two of the weaker teams in this league and failed to win a game yet. I can't tell you what to think of course.

They went into their game against Plymouth with the knowledge of a dismal away record last season weighing on their shoulders. QPR hadn't won on the road since January 27th and it was clear that should they want to challenge for the play-off spots, that would have to change.

Therefore, their starting line-up and shape was disappointing. I mentioned in my preview a hope that Jim Magilton would not revert to playing a holding two of Gavin Mahon and Mikele Leigertwood, but that's exactly what he did. For me, it's a system borne of fear and a desire to ensure the opposition fail to score, instead of ensuring QPR do score. It would be wrong to advocate some kind of Ossie Ardiles system of five up front (though it would be a lot of fun to watch) but especially against weaker opposition, QPR need to show more courage on the road. Perhaps following the events of this game, Magilton might consider a touch more daring in future team selections.

The rest of the team was made up of Radek Cerny in goal with Fitz Hall returning to replace Damion Stewart at the back with Kaspars Gorkss as his defensive partner. Peter Ramage also returned to the side to replace Matthew Connolly and Gary Borrowdale kept his place at left-back. Mahon and Leigertwood sat back in the midfield, leaving the attacking impetus to fall to Wayne Routledge on the right and returning Plymouth hero Akos Buzsaky on the left. Up front, Magilton chose to start Adel Taarabt as a striker again, partnering him with Heidar Helguson.

By all accounts, the first half at Home Park was pretty scrappy with QPR shading it in the possession stakes and in chances created. Routledge continued his fine form since the start of the season as one of the main attacking threats for the Hoops and Taarabt was also a constant thorn in the side of the Plymouth defence. It was his hard work which broke the deadlock just before half-time.

After a powerful run down the left, he provided a cross/shot (its hard to tell with Taarabt because he does tend to shoot from any position within 40 yards of goal) which found its way to Helguson who placed a downward header into the net. I'm still not Helguson's biggest fan but he is developing a knack of feeding off half-chances in the box. It is outside the area or running through on goal where he seems to pose absolutely no danger to the opposition.

Into the second half, QPR's relatively conservative formation became even more uninspiring as Magilton shifted to 4-5-1 when he brought on Patrick Agyemang for Helguson on 60 minutes and pulled Taarabt back into the midfield to form an attacking trio with Routledge and Buzsaky. In that sense, the formation still offered enough creative options but it is a system that is relatively new to the Hoops and the team lost a lot of their shape in the final quarter of this game.

More importantly, by leaving on both Leigertwood and Mahon, who was struggling to retain possession, Magilton prioritised holding a 1-0 lead over searching for the second goal to kill this game. QPR struggle to find the net with two strikers up front; if you rely solely on the individual talents of Agyemang to get a goal, you are asking for trouble.

Hogan Ephraim came on for Buzsaky on 73 minutes and despite a rousing reception from all parts of the ground, the ex-Plymouth man had a quiet game. I clearly jinxed him by marking him out as the key difference between the two teams but he will be a match-winner for QPR this season no doubt. This game marked his third in a week for a player who hadn't played since November 2008 so perhaps it was unfair to expect so much from him so soon.

The final change was made with 13 minutes remaining when Taarabt made way for Rowan Vine and the new player was soon presented with a golden opportunity to increase QPR's lead and seal the three points. With five minutes to go, he was played through on goal but he could only direct his effort at Roman Larrieu in the Plymouth goal and he deal with it comfortably.

QPR now reverted to panic mode as their shape and composure began to mirror that of a Conference side. Plymouth needed a goal at all costs so their approach play was far from pretty, but after a series of warning shots, their dedication paid off in the third minute of injury time. A long throw into the melee of the QPR box found Rory Fallon towering above the QPR defence. He directed his header to the far post and Gorkss could only inadvertenty direct the ball into this own net. It was a crushing end for the R's but it was one which could have been predicted considering the defensive attitude they brought to the game, especially in the final ten minutes.

Magilton hinted after the match that the shocking record on the road last season could still be contributing to QPR's inability to see out a game such as this. He also insisted that he had set out an attacking formation with the intent of winning the game. To start two strikers up front for an away game is a positive development and one that QPR did not often deploy last season. But once QPR took the lead, the old tendency to consolidate rather than gamble on a second goal kicked in.

Magilton will point to the players he brought on (Agyemang, Vine and Ephraim) as all potential match winners but they entered the game at the expense of other attacking players and at the expense of the team's shape. That left Mahon and Leigertwood to cancel each other out in the middle of the park and invite Plymouth to get forward. By the end, QPR were reverting to ten men behind the ball and lumping balls forward to Agyemang when even a touch more composure would surely have guaranteed that all-important first away win.

How the team perform at Loftus Road will still be so vital to how their season pans out and in that sense, the opening day result was not a great omen. But the need to increase their points tally on the road is also now paramount. The next game against Bristol City will be a massive marker of how much Magilton can change the mentality of this side.

HIGHS: The form of Wayne Routledge; an improved performance from Adel Taarabt and another game which QPR largely dominated and showed a lot of attacking potential.

LOWS: An inability to see out a win away from home; the negative pairing of Mikele Leigertwood and Gavin Mahon in the middle of the park; further hints that the QPR strikers might struggle to find the net this season.

Plymouth - Larrieu, Timar, McNamee, Sawyer, Seip, Paterson (Duguid 86), Fletcher, Mackie, Judge (Noone 82), MacLean (Sheridan 46), Fallon.

Subs not used - Letheren (GK), Arnason, Summerfield, Johnson.

Goals - Gorkss (og) (90 + 3)

Bookings - Fletcher (90)

QPR - Cerny, Ramage, Hall, Gorkss, Borrowdale, Mahon, Leigertwood, Routledge, Buzsaky (Ephraim 72), Taarabt (Vine 76), Helguson (Agyemang 61)

Subs not used - Heaton (GK), Connolly, Stewart, Pellicori

Goals - Helguson (43)

Referee - Mr R East

Attendance - 11,558 (998 away)

QPR continue their trio of matches in the south-west of England today. Taking the Godfather trilogy as the marker, Tuesday night's performance was the opener, a classic that wowed all who saw it. As a result, today's game should be a bit more challenging and more subtle in its technique, but in the end, even more rewarding and memorable. By the time, they play Bristol City then, QPR will have disappeared up their own arse and will get completely tanked. It's a very tenuous analogy that has little basis in reality but it may yet come true.

QPR turned what looked like a difficult Carling Cup away tie at Exeter City into a comfortable passage to the second round, where they will face the glamour draw of Accrington Stanley (who are they?) at home. With all due respect to the Stans, QPR will be quietly confident of progression to the third round where a Premiership scalp could be waiting. At that stage last season, the Hoops saw off Aston Villa only to be knocked out by Man United in the fourth round. To go as far or further this season could be a welcome sign of the club's progression; judging by the team put out on Tuesday night, QPR's new management are taking this competition seriously.

Martin Rowlands sat it out following his ankle injury on the opening day, we still await news on a likely return date for Lee Cook and new signing Alejandro Faurlin was still not match-fit, but apart from that Jim Magilton had a relatively full squad to choose from and he was afforded the luxury of being able to swap a few players around. Peter Ramage, despite providing QPR's only goal against Blackpool, was swapped for Matt Connolly, which was a decent call by Magilton as both players deserve their share of first-team football and the chance to build up their match fitness. Damion Stewart was also brought in instead of Fitz Hall. It may be too soon to call after only two matches, but Magilton seems to be a fan of Kaspars Gorkss, especially after he showed his attacking danger from set-pieces during this game so it will be interesting to see who he believes is his natural partner in future games. Gary Borrowdale completed the four at the back.

In midfield, Mikele Leigertwood returned to take a defensive role, with Akos Buszaky ahead of him and Wayne Routledge and Hogan Ephraim on either wing. Two of the substitutes from the opening day came into the side as well, Magilton deciding to partner Patrick Agyemang and Rowan Vine up front. There was further good news for Hoops supporters as new signing Alessandro Pellicori finally recieved his international clearance to play and so could be included on the bench.

QPR suffered through a nervous first half in which they failed to impose themselves on the opposition, despite the relative gap in talent between the two teams. Routledge did fire off a warning of the night he was to have with some good link-up play with Agyemang, who played in the winger only for him to blast his shot directly at Paul Jones in the Exeter goal. The time and space that Routledge was finding on the right was not properly acknowledged by Exeter and they would suffer for this oversight in the second half.

Magilton described a fairly lively team-talk at half-time which clearly worked wonders on his players. The manager has talked a great deal about the expectations the players should have for themselves, rather than any imposed from above by the Board and he clearly has already set a high marker for the team. There was a definite renewed sense of pride and professionalism about their second-half display which the Hoops will now hope to carry into the league.

Routledge got the scoring under way just eight minutes into the half. Leigertwood chipped a delightful through ball into his path and he was able to take advantage of some poor positional play by Jones to gently lift the ball over the keeper and into the net.

Against lower-league opposition, the first goal can be so vital and QPR could now relax into the game with the impetus on Exeter to provide more attacking threat. Within ten minutes, the match would be completely over as a contest and Routledge would be the main reason.

For the Hoops' second goal, Agyemang turned provider, driving at the Exeter defence before gently playing the ball into the path of Routledge who struck it first-time past Jones. It was an easy chance for the winger and was borne of Agyemang's tenacious build-up play.

The third came from the spot in circumstances which killed any sporting interest Exeter still had in this tie. A long cross to the far-post found Gorkss in a surprisingly advanced position and he powered a header towards goal which defender Scott Golbourne could only keep out with his hand, drawing a red card from the ref. Routledge stepped up to convert the penalty for an eleven-minute hat-trick, his first in professional football. It was a ruthless display from him, with two excellent finishes amongst the goals and as on the opening day, he is now developing into an important attacking threat for QPR, with the bonus of adding some goals to his game.

Much talk has been made of QPR's supposed deficiencies up front and whilst some critics have gone too far, I am still unsure who in their squad will be capable of providing 20 goals a season. Vine had a quiet game in this one and had less chance to get on the scoresheet than in his brief appearance against Blackpool. Agyemang, on the other hand, made a nuisance of himself throughout the game with some powerful runs and showed his value in creating goals as he was the key architect of Routledge's second. Yet, despite the ease with which QPR now controlled the match, neither player could get on the scoresheet.

Neither remained on the pitch for much longer though as Magilton decided to use the comfort of a 3-0 lead to get a look at some of his other options. Routledge came off for Gareth Ainsworth immediately following his third goal and Vine made way for Pellicori to make his debut at the same time, with Agyemang swapped for Gavin Mahon just six minutes later.

QPR could obviously take their foot off the gas somewhat with Exeter unable to muster any late fightback but it took until the dying minutes for the game to become a rout. Most importantly, it was a striker who now got on the scoresheet, though Pellicori is unlikely to get many easier chances in his QPR career, however long that may be. Leigertwood flicked a decent pass over his head by the goal-line and it found Pellicori in the six-yard box to provide the simplest of touches to claim his first goal for the Hoops. For any new striker, the wait for that opening goal can become a real burden, so to kickstart his account so quickly could be a godsend for Pellicori though we don't yet know where Magilton sees him in his hierarchy of strikers.

The best of the night came within only a minute remaining, with Ephraim staking a claim for a first-team berth with a wonderful curling shot from the edge of the area which left Jones with no chance of a save. Ephraim cut in from the wing and with the merest hint of back-lift, stroked the ball up and over Jones and into the net.

The scoreline by now didn't flatter the Hoops. The improvement in their second-half display was massive and demonstrated a real gulf in ability with the League One team who will be pleased to get back to the bread and butter of league football this weekend. QPR on the other hand will surely always prioritise getting out of the Championship, but with a decent size to their squad now and a relatively easy draw in the next round, they must surely be looking to go at least as far as they did last season in this competition.

HIGHS: Routledge finding his scoring boots, Pellicori notching a debut goal and Magilton demonstrating an ability to rally his players at half-time.

LOWS: Sluggish first-half display, unimpressive performance from Akos Buszaky who may not yet be over his injury, no goals yet for Agyemang or Vine.

QPR team - Cerny; Connolly, Stewart, Gorkss, Borrowdale; Leigertwood, Buzsaky, Ephraim, Routledge (Ainsworth 65), Agyemang (Mahon 71), Vine (Pellicori 65).

Subs not used - Putnins (GK), Ramage, Hall, Alberti.

Goals - Routledge (53, 61, 64), Pellicori (85), Ephraim (89).

Bookings - Ephraim (47)

Exeter team - Jones, Duffy, Seaborne, Taylor, Golbourne, Russell (Logan 73), Harley, Cozic, Sercombe, McAllister (Norwood 72), Stewart (Tully 67).

Subs not used - Marriott, Archibald-Henville, Saunders, Burnell.

Red cards - Golbourne (64)

Referee - Mr S Bratt

Attendance - 4614 (813 QPR fans)

With more than a few Premiership managers unimpressed that there is an England international tomorrow, just days before the start of their season, they should spare a thought for their lower-league counterparts. Not only do they play 8 more league games a season, but they play through the early rounds of the cups as well. So just days after opening with a draw at home to Blackpool, QPR have the opportunity to get their first win of the season when they visit St James' Park, home of Exeter City FC.

QPR TEAM NEWS

It didn't look good on Saturday when Martin Rowlands hobbled from the pitch but the latest news is that the ankle injury he suffered isn't serious. He will definitely miss tonight's game and no return date has been set yet, but it will be a matter of weeks over months and could be as soon as this weekend when QPR travel to Plymouth for the second in a trilogy of matches in the South-West.

Lee Cook is continuing on the road to recovery from his knee injury after undergoing surgery in the summer. The club haven't committed to a return date for the player and are unlikely to rush him back, especially as this injury has caused him so many problems in the last two seasons.

Alejandro Faurlin, the club's new signing from Instituto, is much nearer to first-team contention after a thigh injury. The club website says he will miss out whilst Sportinglife.com claims he will face a late fitness test. You probably have to go with the club on this one. There are similarly mixed signals about Mikele Leigertwood who suffered a similar injury but is a potential choice for tonight.

QPR's other summer signing, striker Alessandro Pellicori, has now been granted 'international clearance' to play. This means, as far as I can understand it, that the Italian FA have now given clearance to the English FA for the player to play in an English league (if someone has a better understanding of the intricacies of work permits, etc, please clear this up). He could be an important signing for QPR because as mentioned previously, I felt Samuel Di Carmine was such a let-down for them. If Pellicori has 10 goals in him, it could make a big difference to their league position. Tonight could be the first indication of how likely that is.

That leaves Heidar Helguson and Adel Taarabt who are both on international duty. Iceland face Slovakia at home and Morocco welcome Congo - both friendlies. The esteemed LoftForWords.co.uk (http://www.clubfanzine.com/QPR/ - this is the marker to aim for with QPR websites. The guy who runs it has a frightening knowledge of QPR and lower-division football in general) reports that Kaspars Gorkss has pulled a Craig Bellamy (http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2009/aug/11/manchester-city-wales-craig-bellamy-injury), by withdrawing from the Latvian squad whilst still being named in the QPR squad for tonight. Perhaps the club will do the diplomatic thing and not risk him. Damion Stewart certainly deserves a start after missing out at the weekend.

THE OPPOSITION

As for the opposition, all their problems seem to lie up front. In a close 2-1 defeat at Elland Road on Saturday, striker Barry Corr was sent off, meaning he will miss this match alongside three other forwards who could all miss out through injury - Adam Stansfield, Ben Watson and Richard Logan.

That leaves Craig McAllister, a summer 2008 signing from Oxford United, who made the vast majority of his appearances from the bench last season, whilst still managing 7 goals. The other option is the relatively untested James Norwood, a 19-year old signing from Eastbourne Town, who play in the Ryman League Division 1 South. A scorer of a pretty remarkable 94 goals in 54 games for them and England Schools, he also has the honour of having part of his wages paid for by the supporters. A branch of the Supporter's Trust started an initiative whereby each pays £19 a month towards his wages, which suggests they can't be too high. So the supposed 'richest club in the world' is facing one where the supporters largely own the club and band together to pay a young striker's wages. Magic of the cup, you couldn't predict it, etc, etc.

PREDICTION

Norwood to grab a winner in the last-minute? This would not be the away trip QPR would have wanted just three days after the start of the season, though it's a journey they will have to get used to with the games against Plymouth and Bristol City to come. Exeter are best known in popular memory for getting a 0-0 draw at Old Trafford in the FA Cup (a game which did wonders for their bank balance) and for welcoming the late, great Wacko Jacko (can you still call him that?) to have a walk around under one of his umbrellas. Since then, they've been relegated to the Conference, taken over by their Supporter's Trust and in the last two seasons, sailed through two successive promotions to now sit pretty in League One. Based just on the hard time that they gave Leeds in their opening game, they are not a team that is easily bowed by big-name opposition (do QPR qualify?). When you add in that they are at home, it's early in the season so form is hard to predict and the fact that QPR are normally woeful in the cups, then it could easily be a home win.

So I'm going to go for QPR to win 2-1 again. If I stick with this score, it will soon be right.

Prediction - 1-2. Away Win.

In slightly backward fashion, I'm still reviewing last season's performances after the start of the new one. Even Charles Dickens serialised his work though. Below is my equivalent of Oliver Twist.

Hogan Ephraim, 29 appearances (27 league), 1 goal.

If you use first impressions to judge a footballer, Hogan Ephraim would be unlikely to get a very fair trial. I could be in a minority of one here, but Ephraim has a similarity to Skeletor (of Masters of the Universe) fame and a pallor which makes Dimitar Berbatov look positively glowing. I thought I was just imagining things until I found an old interview in which he discusses how much he loves Football Manager and the pieces fell into place: http://ultimatefootballmanagercompanion.blogspot.com/2009/03/hogan-ephraim-interview.html). See that's the problem with modern footballers; computer games are now so good that they spend more time indoors than your average supporter (to be fair to him he does admit to never having bought himself on the game because his stats are way too low).

All this could be a very roundabout way of saying I don't have much to say about his season. That isn't entirely true, but he would probably admit himself that he didn't make a great impact on the team in 2008/9. Despite an impressive first campaign with the Hoops in which he made 30 appearances for the club, his second season didn't get started until November. This was clearly down to a change in management with Ephraim featuring far more greatly in Paulo Sousa's plans than in Iain Dowie's.

In fact, Sousa seemed to see a different future for the winger and began to employ him far more centrally. This led to hit-and-miss results with the player clearly finding his feet in a new position and perhaps lacking the physical strength needed to truly impose himself on the opposition. His control and dribbling skills are his most potent weapons but it remains to be seen if the new manager will still place him out on the wing. That QPR have this option is an asset to the squad.

The departure of Sousa may not have helped his progress with the two clearly forming a close relationship, Ephraim going so far as to describe Sousa as like a 'father figure' in an interview. In the end, he made less starts than in his first season, with a great proportion of those coming from the bench and managed only one goal, but if he can lay off his 'seven hour a day' Football Manager habit, he will surely feature more prominently for QPR this season.

Daniel Parejo, 18 appearances (14 league), 0 goals.

It was a case of the club he was coming from being far more exciting than the player himself for Danny Parejo. Signed on a year-long loan from Real Madrid last summer, supporters and neutrals alike couldn't help but wonder if Flavio Briatore's contacts had unearthed access to the type of player QPR would formerly have struggled greatly to attract. Whilst still not being the type of 'marquee' signing that most were expecting, the pedigree of Parejo's previous club and his upbringing within it suggested that QPR were onto a real find.

I got quite easily caught up in the hype surrounding him and fellow loan signing Emmanuel Ledesma. In one early home game, a 2-0 win over Doncaster Rovers, I thought both players were the best things about QPR's attacking play and envisaged a season where they pulled the strings as stalwarts of the side.

The reality was quite different. Parejo was an undoubtedly skilful player with wonderful control but his passing was often wayward or misjudged. His ability to read a game looked decidely poor though this could be attributed to his freshness to the English game. Real Madrid saw fit to recall the player in December to cover injuries to Rubén de la Red and Mahamadou Diarra though he went on to make only 3 appearances and has now moved to Getafe, where he will surely experience more first-team football.

Had he stayed he might have settled in to Championship football and pushed QPR closer to the play-off spots, but I feel the rot had already started to set in and that his heart was never truly at QPR. I don't want to harp on about the Crystal Palace game as I know QPR had worse away performances last seaon (which I luckily didn't witness) but Parejo was woeful that day, disinterested and perhaps even out of his depth in the type of game he should have dominated. He was taken off at half-time in what proved to be his last game for the Hoops. It seemed like a fitting end.

Damiano Tommasi, 7 appearances (7 league), 0 goals.

Who is in charge of transfers at QPR? Do we really have to ask? To say that some of QPR's signings were and remain bizarre is an understatement but that's happens when decisions over player acquisitions fall to a man who has spent his life in Formula One and fashion. The signing of Damiano Tommasi on a one-year deal bore all the hallmarks of a Briatore signing and did leave the impression that he probably conducts these transfers based on who he bumps into at parties.

In truth, I was really impressed by Tommasi on his arrival at the club and his CV suggested he could more than amply cope with the Championship. He had played 262 times for Roma, was an integral part of their Scudetto winning side in 2001 and after suffering a serious knee injury in 2004, he suggested he be put on youth team wages for the good of the club. When you added his wild-man image and advancing years, it was hard not to instantly warm to him and I thought he had the makings of a real cult hero at QPR.

But the problem with the Briatore transfer policy is that players seem to be signed with little thought into how or where they will be deployed. As a result, Tommasi suffered the fate of most QPR midfielders in being switched around, even finding himself on the wing. Despite my reservations about Gavin Mahon, the defensive midfield position is one where QPR have adequate coverage. At 34, Tommasi was the most short-termist of signings and QPR promptly terminated his contract by mutual consent (not quite in the same way they did for Paulo Sousa) after just 7 appearances. He has now moved to Chinese side Tianjin Teda so he is definitely winding up his playing days, if he wasn't already at Loftus Road.

What the signings of Parejo, Tommasi and Ledesma all point to is that you won't get promoted by purely shopping around for short-term loan deals of either untested youth players or ageing veterans. But that's really a subject for another day...

Emmanuel Ledesma, 23 appearances (17 league), 4 goals.

Another loan signing, more initial promise and then eventual disappointment and a quiet exit out the back door. Its certainly a strange way to do business.

If anything, Emmanuel Ledesma was the most promising loan signing to arrive at QPR last season. He arrived in the summer of 2008 from Serie A side Genoa with then manager Iain Dowie trumpeting his technique and his potential to make an instant impact on the side.

This wasn't far from the truth. He grabbed his debut goal for the Hoops in only his second home game and at that point, I thought that he and Parejo would form a promising partnership in midfield. In his next game, a Carling Cup tie against Carlisle United, he produced a hat-trick; in the game after that, at Bristol City, he got sent off. Those three games in succession demonstrated quite a lot about Ledesma; genuine ability despite a tendency to showboat at times; a decent shot and awareness in front of goal and worrying inconsistency and a definite immaturity.

He remained a near-regular in the side until his departure in early January without ever again finding the net or truly hitting the promise of those early weeks. It was another departure by the back door; the loanees at QPR arrive and leave with indecent abruptness, but his loss would not be greatly mourned by QPR's fans. He saw out the rest of last season at Serie B side Salernitana but will drop another division for 09/10 to play with Novara Calcio, which suggests his career has hit something of a road-block in recent months.

Adel Taarabt, 7 appearances (7 league), 1 goal.

The one who nearly got away. Adel Taarabt has now signed on at Loftus Road for another year (as a loan signing of course. You can't expect Briatore and co to actually lay out for transfers, right?) after his seven appearances at the tail-end of last season.

That was far from a foregone conclusion though, despite being one of the few bright points as QPR played out the season with promotion impossible. With most of the team making it very hard to judge if attendance at Loftus Road was still necessary after March, Taarabt could at least be called on to entertain following his loan move from Spurs (where he made 14 appearances from the bench but no starts). Sometimes that entertainment derived from his pace and ability on the ball; on other occaisions, from some of his pitiful dives which bordered on the embarrasing.

He's already shown what he can do in pre-season with a fantastic solo effort in the 3-0 win over Southampton so his presence in the squad for the next 12 months (well, so they say) is a definite plus. With Lee Cook and Wayne Routledge and now the signing of Alejandro Faurlin, he is one of a number of attacking midfield options for QPR which can only help in pushing the team's goals tally higher. That could be the key in a potential promotion campaign.

Jordi Lopez, 10 appearances (10 league), 1 goal.

The one that did get away. The sense behind sacking Paulo Sousa could be debated for a long time but it is clear to me that four to five months is nowhere near ample time for a manager to impose their vision on a club. What will be interesting is how Sousa shapes up this season at Swansea City, a side which finished seven points ahead of QPR last season and who may challenge for the play-off spots again.

What could aid his cause is having Jordi Lopez to call on, another departure from Loftus Road. In ten games at the tail-end of last season, Lopez didn't set the world alight and the club showed that they were more than willing to let him depart by failing to offering him the contract he was looking for, but Lopez still did enough to show that he could bring more to the defensive midfield role than Gavin Mahon. He was composed on the ball and we were beginning to see the elements of his attacking game as well, with some deft passing and incisive through balls. Of all the loan signings (Lopez, though not at a club at the time, has to be considered a loan signing as he only arrived on a short-term deal), this is the one the club should have made greater efforts to retain (excluding perhaps Adel Taarabt who thankfully they have brought back for another season).

Why then did he go? As a free agent, it was obviously at Lopez's discretion as to where he went. Perhaps he had a look at the set-up at Loftus Road and thought he didn't fancy a season of managerial changes and boardroom interference. Apparently QPR didn't offer him the money he was looking for, though surely they would be better equipped to offer a sizeable contract than Swansea City. In short, the club weren't too sure on him and coupled with that, the player had a genuine desire to be reunited with his fellow countryman at the Liberty Stadium. In this respect, Paulo Sousa has something that Jim Magilton does not; a name which has resonance around Europe and which can attract players normally out of QPR's reach. Magilton may well make up for this in other departments and supporters will hope that he shows more tactical consistency than Sousa, but they will also hope that they are not lamenting the two that got away come next May.

Liam Miller, 13 appearances (13 league), 0 goals.

I've spent a fair bit of time criticising the transfer set-up at QPR, whereby the owners, despite a stated desire to be in the Premier League, look unwilling to dip into their pockets on a regular basis for permanent buys and prefer instead to get by with a smattering of loan signings. The benefit of such short-term deals is that if the player cannot hack it, the club can easily get rid of him and this was thankfully the case with Liam Miller.

Miller arrived on a short-term deal at Loftus Road in January, with Paulo Sousa complimenting the player on his 'box-to-box' abilites. There was little evidence of this in his 13 games with the club, as he tended to be firmly rooted in the middle, offering little in the way of attacking options. For a player brought up at Celtic and then Man United, I was definitely expecting a greater degree of composure and touch from Miller. All too often, he would get caught out on the ball in the middle of the park (a frequent problem for QPR, with Gavin Mahon suffering from the same tentativeness when in possession).

In this instance, the short-term nature of QPR's acquisitions played to their advantage. They would have gained little from having Miller at the club for two or three years in my opinion, especially when there are areas of the team in greater need of improvement. Perhaps tellingly, the player, despite still being called up for the Republic of Ireland squad, has not yet found a club for the upcoming season.