Match Preview
Queens Park Rangers vrs Fulham
Championship Match Day 38 2122 at Kiyan Prince Foundation Stadium
Saturday 2nd April 2022 KO: 15:00pm
Referee:
Gavin Ward (Surrey)
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Championship Leaders Fulham make the shortest of trips to Queens Park Rangers on Saturday afternoon knowing that victory will put the club on the brink of securing promotion to the Premier League.
At a time when the leaders sit 14 points clear of third position, QPR have dropped down to eighth spot in the Championship standings, a consequence of losing four of their last five league fixtures.
Requiring no more than 12 points from nine matches to secure a return to the Premier League, most people associated with Fulham will be anticipating the moment where another stint in the top flight is confirmed.
However, that will not be the mindset of head coach Marco Silva, who has witnessed his team claim just one point from games at Barnsley and West Bromwich Albion.
When all is said and done, the performances during that double-header are unlikely to cost the Cottagers, but Silva will be demanding vast improvements at a time when he wants to set standards ahead of next season.
Those disappointing results came on the back end of a relentless run of fixtures, however, and that is something which should be taken into consideration when deliberating over whether Fulham's slump could continue.
Although players being away on international duty has not helped matters, two-and-a-half weeks will have passed since their last fixture come Saturday, enough time for a squad of his depth to establish some freshness in their legs.
From QPR's perspective, they have put themselves at risk of undoing all of their hard work from earlier in the season with what could prove to be a disastrous run of form.
In the middle of a five-game period, a comeback victory came at rivals Luton Town, but the Hoops have lost from winning positions in three of the other four fixtures.
With difficult encounters also to come in the short term, Mark Warburton knows that his team must find a level of performance which they have not produced since January to remain in the promotion mix.
Five of their remaining eight games will also be played away from their home ground in the capital, increasing the need for defeat to be avoided against their neighbours.
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