West London neighbours Fulham and QPR lock horns on Friday night for an intriguing Championship clash from Craven Cottage. Mark O'Haire previews the contest.
Fulham v QPR
Friday November 22, 19:45
Sky Sports
Friday November 22, 19:45
Sky Sports
Fulham bounce back before the break
Fulham signed off for the international break with a narrow 1-0 win at Birmingham. Lee Camp's error allowed Aleksandar Mitrovic to score the only goal at St Andrew's as the Cottagers bounced back from a 3-0 humbling at home to Hull to move to within striking distance of the Championship's play-off positions after 16 rounds of action.
Marek Rodak made a point-blank save to deny Birmingham a share of the spoils, whilst substitute Aboubakar Kamara hit the post at the death in an otherwise tame affair. The victory pushed Fulham just two points off the top-six and five points adrift of the automatic promotion positions with boss Scott Parker pleased with his team's reaction.
The Cottagers head coach said: "We all understand what we are as a team technically and what we can do individually but at times this year that has not been enough - and it won't be enough if we want to be successful this year."
Fulham have been dealt a blow with Serbia striker and top Championship goalscorer Mitrovic ruled out here through suspension.
Defensive errors cost QPR
QPR's winless run extended to four games as Rangers were made to pay for a sloppy performance during an enjoyable 2-2 draw against Middlesbrough last time out. Mark Warburton's men made a slow start and were behind early on before fighting back to lead the Teessiders with 20 minutes to play, only to gift-wrap an equaliser to Boro.
Nahki Wells continued his excellent form for the Rs, and central defender Grant Hall was also on the scoresheet. Visiting goalkeeper Darren Randolph then made a string of fine saves to ensure Middlesbrough kept QPR at bay in the second-half before Wells' appalling back pass allowed the guests to earn an unexpected share of the points at Loftus Road.
Rangers are yet to keep a clean sheet under Warburton's watch but the Rs boss said: "We defend as a team and attack as a team and we had a lot of possession in the second half in a good position at 2-1. If we take responsibility at the other end and put the ball in the back of the net then it relieves that burden and that (the back-pass) is not the main talking point."
Cottagers odds-on favourites to succeed
Fulham have suffered a solitary loss in seven league meetings against QPR (W4-D2-L1) and come into this contest with a sole reverse in seven Craven Cottage showdowns against Rangers over the past 20 years (W1-D1-L5). The two teams played out an entertaining 2-2 draw in their last encounter here back in March 2018.
Fulham 1.81 have tabled only four triumphs from their last 12 league outings (W4-D5-L3) and failed to deliver top honours in five (W0-D3-L2) matches against top-half teams. The Cottagers have scored at least twice in five of their eight games on home soil but will have to contend with the absence of suspended 12-goal striker Aleksandar Mitrovic here.
Only six clubs boast a better points per-game record on the road than QPR 4.70 thus far with Rangers picking up four away victories from seven (W4-D0-L3). However, 21 of the Rs 24 point-tally has been accumulated against teams below them in the Championship standings with W1-D0-L5 delivered against top-10 outfits during Mark Warburton's reign.
Goals expected at the Cottage
No second-tier side is returning a higher goals per-game figure than QPR (3.50) this season with a huge 12/16 (75%) of their league matches featuring Over 2.5 Goals winners. Half of those 16 fixtures have even broken the Over 3.5 Goals barrier with 12 tussles seeing both sides score. The visitors have shipped at least two goals in each of their last eight games.
So while Fulham have followed suit with only seven Over 2.5 Goals winners, backing a high-scoring shootout with the Cottagers onside is preferred. The hosts boast the third-best performance data figures in the division and should be well capable of avoiding defeat; taking Fulham double chance and Over 2.5 Goals at 2.00 holds plenty of appeal.
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