Hoop Dreams - QPR FC

As far as fighting talk goes, it is unlikely to have Crystal Palace quaking in their boots. But you can't really blame Neil Warnock for trying to be diplomatic ahead of Saturday's vital game between his former club and his current one. He knows that he is going to get a difficult reception to say the least, though he still defends his choice of upping sticks to move to QPR a little over a month ago.

As reported in the Evening Standard, Warnock has said he is really not looking forward to this weekend's fixture.

"I won't take any pleasure from going back," he said.

"It's a no-win situation. I want both to stay up."

That is far from certain though. Three points currently separates five teams around the final relegation spot, with even second-from-bottom Plymouth not ready to surrender their Championship status, sitting four points from safety.

QPR do have the advantage of heading the struggling bunch who could still feasibly be drawn into the bottom three and have a game in hand over Sheffield Wednesday and Crystal Palace, so their fate is firmly in their hands. But another defeat this weekend could severely dent the team's confidence, which has been gradually eroded since Warnock's winning start against West Brom and Plymouth.

The R's boss would desperately have wanted to return to Selhurst Park with QPR's safety already guaranteed, but now he faces either ceding further ground in the relegation battle for his new team or sticking a nail in his old team's coffin.

"I'm sure I'll get some stick. But the administrator was more than happy to get half a million quid for me, wasn't he?," he said, in reference to the deal which allowed cash-strapped Palace to receive compensation on his departure.

"The Palace fans are the best I've ever worked in front of."

One player who could be drafted in to help keep Palace at bay is Dusko Tosic, a Serbian international who is on loan from Portsmouth. The left-back is yet to make an appearance for the first team, but impressed in a reserve game yesterday, a 2-1 win over Brighton & Hove Albion. On the other flank, he was joined by Moritz Volz, still to sign a permanent deal with QPR despite reports that the club had offered him a contract. With both pushing for first-team action though, there could be a new look to the QPR defence before the end of this season, especially as the first team has kept just one clean sheet in an incredible 32 games.