Hoop Dreams - QPR FC

QPR are still firmly in the driving seat when it comes to assuring Championship football next season, but their most recent results don't inspire great confidence and they could soon reach a stage where they need other teams to do them a favour.

They could help themselves immeasurably though by achieving their first win in eight games tomorrow. That would lift them onto 51 points and open up a six-point gap between themselves and their opponents Crystal Palace. Conversely, Palace will move a point ahead of Rangers should they win. When you throw in the fact that both sides have been managed by Neil Warnock this season, with Palace in a dire position following his departure and a ten-point deduction (though the blame for that cannot be placed at Warnock's door), you have the makings of an explosive Championship game. And it should be sunny. I can't wait.

Palace Team News

Former QPR manager Paul Hart could call on the services of striker Alan Lee and defender Danny Butterfield, as the pair have recovered from groin and hamstring injuries respectively and will undergo fitness tests before the game.

Lee was signed this season from Ipswich Town and with Clinton Morrison and Dougie Freedman departing the club, has made 39 appearances, scoring five league goals.

Butterfield has been the club's main right back this season, but also scored a 'perfect' hat-trick against Wolves in the Cup this season - his first goals in six years - when Palace's financial constraints meant the player was forced to play up front. It got Paul Merson very excited on Sky:



Left-back Lee Hills also returns following a suspension.

QPR Team News

As I reported earlier today, Radek Cerny will return to the QPR starting line-up for the first time since January when he played in the team's third round FA Cup defeat against Sheffield United. Considering Carl Ikeme's final game for the R's, Monday's 4-0 embarrassment at Leicester City, in which the young Birmingham-born goalie went walkabout for the Foxes' second goal, that may not be considered a hardship by QPR supporters. But Cerny was in less than commanding form before his spell on the sidelines and will want an error-free game to build up his own confidence as quickly possible.

Another new face to the team, one who has yet to play for QPR, could be left-back Dusko Tosic, a loan signing from Portsmouth. The Serbian international has turned out for the reserves but is yet to make a first-team appearance.

Matt Connolly remains doubtful as he struggles with an ankle injury.

Form

Palace resembled a team in free-fall even prior to Neil Warnock's departure. In February they suffered costly home defeats against Coventry City and Reading before a difficult March in which they went six games without a win. They've picked up the pace in the last three games though with wins over Watford and Preston and a draw at Middlesbrough's Riverside Stadium. Selhurst Park has been far from a fortress this season though; nine teams have visited and come away with all three points.

If Rangers fail to win tomorrow, it will be eight games without a win. They are grappling their way to Championship safety by picking up the odd point here and there, rather than making the decisive dash for safety which looked so likely after Neil Warnock won his first two games in charge. Since then, the R's have drawn five games and lost two and still only picked up one clean sheet since last October. Only Swansea, Bristol City and Ipswich Town have provided more stalemates than Rangers this season.


Prediction

First to the teams vying with QPR to stay clear of the bottom three. Plymouth (23rd - 41 points) and Watford (21st - 45 points) meet at Vicarage Road; a defeat for the away side would surely condemn them to relegation. Rangers supporters will also look towards Sheffield Wednesday's result; they're three points behind QPR but with an inferior goal difference and they have a tricky visit to Middlesbrough to contend with. That leaves Scunthorpe, just a point behind the Hoops, who travel to Preston looking to get the win which would put them on the verge of safety. Therefore, it would take a big swing in terms of goal difference for Rangers to end up in the bottom three tomorrow, not that their supporters will want to contemplate that eventuality.

Looking at their own game and despite their recent form, Rangers on paper should be favourites. They have the more experienced coach, they have a more settled side and they have a nucleus of talented players, including Adel Taarabt who on his day is one of the most talented players in this league. But I'm not sure they are as aware of the precariousness of their position as say Palace, who have been facing the possibility of dropping a division since their points deduction. I still think it's very unlikely that QPR will be in the bottom three come the final day but I can't help feeling they're going to do it the hard way and leave the issue open for a couple more weeks yet.

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