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Saturday 21st March 2009
Loftus Road Stadium
Referee: G K Hegley
Kick-off: 15:00
Queens Park Rangers (11th) V Bristol City (8th)
By the godfather

After an impressive performance and result against Swansea City, Queens Park Rangers face play-off chasing Bristol City on Saturday at Loftus Road.

Bristol City

When Bristol City were promoted to the Championship in 2007, many expected them to struggle at the bottom of the table. However, under talented manager, Gary Johnson, City stunned the pundits by reaching the play-off final at Wembley Stadium. Unfortunately for the Robins supporters, they lost to Hull City and missed out on promotion to the Premiership.

The 2008/09 season got off to a bad start for Johnson’s men, with the club sinking into mid-table mediocrity. However, a recent run of form has seen the Robins climb the table and establish themselves as serious play-off contenders.

City come into this game on the back of a 1-1 draw with play-off rivals Cardiff City. They currently lie in 8th position, four points off 6th place. They cannot afford to drop points at Loftus Road if they are to keep up the pressure on the top six.

Men to watch

Bristol City’s top scorer is 22 year-old Nicky Maynard who has ten goals to his name this season. The talented striker started his career with Crewe Alexandra, where he netted a superb total of 37 goals in 59 appearances. His impressive performances attracted the interest of Bristol City, who paid over £2 million to sign him during July 2008. Maynard’s pace and eye for goal will certainly pose a threat to the Queens Park Rangers defence on Saturday.

Dele Adebola usually partners Maynard in attack. The 33 year-old always seems to cause QPR problems with his sheer strength and aerial ability. He had spells with Birmingham, Crystal Palace and Coventry City before joining City in January 2008. Adebola has bagged nine goals this season.

On the left flank, Gary Johnson has Michael McIndoe at his disposal. The skilful 29 year-old joined Bristol City before the start of the 2007/08 campaign and has since established himself as a first-team regular with some impressive performances on the wing.

As well as McIndoe, Bristol City also have the pacey Ivan Sproule. The 28 year-old winger joined the Robins during the summer of 2007 and has since made over 65 appearances for the club. The former Hibernian man has also played for the Northern Irish national team on 11 occasions. Johnson could also pick 30 year-old Jamie McAllister on Saturday, who can play either at full-back or as a winger.

In central midfield, Johnson could select Gavin Williams. The Welsh international has played a key role this season since joining the Robins from Ipswich Town last summer. The 28 year-old has also played for Yeovil Town and West Ham United.

Gary Johnson could also give a start to his son, Lee Johnson, on Saturday. The 27 year-old joined Bristol City in 2006 and has since made over 100 appearances for the club in the heart of midfield. He has also spent time with Brighton, Yeovil and Hearts.

At the back, Liam Fontaine should retain his place in the starting line-up at Loftus Road. The talented centre-half signed for Bristol City in 2006 after successful periods with Yeovil and Kilmarnock. At only 23 years of age, he has already made over 100 appearances for the Robins.

Jamie McCombe usually partners Fontaine in the heart of defence. The talented 26 year-old had spells with S****horpe United and Lincoln City before joining Bristol City in 2006.

Gary Johnson also has reliable left-back, Bradley Orr, who signed for City in 2004 from Newcastle United. The 26 year-old has since made over 180 appearances for the club.

In goal, Adriano Basso has become a favourite with the fans at Ashton Gate since joining the club in 2004. The Brazilian played a massive part in City’s promotion bid last year with some superb goalkeeping performances. However, he did make a terrible error last Sunday against Cardiff, dropping Eddie Johnson’s strike and allowing Ross McCormack to smash home a late equaliser. Maybe his confidence will be low – let’s hope Rangers can capitalise.

Previous Matches

August 2007 – John Gregory’s QPR side took a deserved point from Bristol City thanks to a last-gasp equaliser from Damion Stewart. Lee Johnson opened the scoring in the 32nd minute, pouncing on a poor clearance from John Curtis and firing home. Dexter Blackstock bundled home the leveller only two minutes later. After Martin Rowlands had hit the woodwork twice, Scott Murray appeared to have handed City all three points, curling a 20-yard shot into the top corner in the 90th minute. However, Stewart grabbed a point for the Rs in the 92nd minute, heading past Basso from close range.

QPR Manager, John Gregory: "This was a fixture I didn't really want for the first game of the season. You try and avoid the clubs that have just been promoted. So my boys really did fantastically well. At times we outplayed them. Had it not been for one or two very good saves by the goalkeeper in the second half we should have won by two or possibly three clear goals."

Bristol City 2-2 QPR

February 2008 – QPR annihilated Bristol City at Loftus Road, beating them 3-0. Luigi Di Canio’s team got off to a great start, Patrick Agyemang scoring a brace in the first half. Akos Buzsaky sealed the victory after the break with a stunning strike from outside the area. This was a superb performance from the Rs.

QPR Performance Manager, Joe Dunbar: “We were all quite pleased with the performance. We played very well from the off. There were long periods when City didn't get the ball and I don't think we dropped our tempo even when we were 3-0 up”.

QPR 3-0 Bristol City

September 2008 – Iain Dowie’s QPR side escaped Ashton Gate with a point despite playing the majority of the second half with ten men. Dexter Blackstock put Rangers in front early on, before Dele Adebola equalised with a powerful header. Emmanuel Ledesma was dismissed after the break for a second bookable offence, but a solid defensive performance and some goalkeeping heroics from Radek Cerny ensured that the Rs went away with a point.

QPR Manager, Iain Dowie: “Emmanuel showed his inexperience with a silly tackle to get himself sent off. I thought our defending from then on was outstanding. We know we have quality players, but you also need resilience in the Championship."

Bristol City 1-1 QPR

League Form

Queens Park Rangers: LDLDW (Last match – QPR 1-0 Swansea).

Bristol City: DLLWD (Last match – Bristol City 1-1 Cardiff City).

QPR Team News

Dexter Blackstock and Wayne Routledge missed the Swansea game through injuries and could return on Saturday. Whether Lee Cook will be back is unclear – there is nothing on the official website about this. Rowan Vine played in a reserve game during mid-week and scored a penalty – he could be involved against Bristol City. Akos Buzsaky, Martin Rowlands and Patrick Agyemang remain long-term absentees.

Prediction

Bristol City will provide a stern test for Rangers on Saturday. They are strong all over the pitch. I just hope that QPR’s creative players will be able to cope with the Robins’ physical style of play. I think that this will be a very even encounter, finishing in a 1-1 draw.

Queens Park Rangers 1-1 Bristol City