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Leicester logo
Premier League
May 24, 2015 at 3pm UK
 
QPR logo

5-1

Vardy (16'), Albrighton (42'), Ulloa (51'), Cambiasso (52'), Kramaric (86')
FT(HT: 2-0)
Austin (57')

Preview: Leicester City vs. Queens Park Rangers

Sports Mole previews the final day Premier League clash between Leicester City and Queens Park Rangers at the King Power Stadium.

Leicester City will be looking to cap their miraculous push to safety by beating Queens Park Rangers on the final day of the season at the King Power Stadium.

R's boss Chris Ramsey will be determined to ensure that his side do not finish bottom of the Premier League in his first game in permanent charge of the club by earning a positive result.



Leicester

Leicester manager Nigel Pearson on May 9, 2015© Getty Images

The Foxes completed their miraculous surge to survival in their goalless draw against Sunderland last week.

Nigel Pearson's men looked dead and buried back in March when they were seven points adrift of safety and all but certain to be relegated back to the Championship.

However, the Foxes had other ideas as they recorded four victories on the spin to lift them above QPR and Burnley to give them hope of staying in the top flight.

Vital wins over Newcastle United and Southampton followed to put them on the brink of an amazing run to safety before they finally got over the line at the Stadium of Light.

The Foxes' defensive record has been one of the main reasons for their remarkable escape from the bottom three. Pearson's side have kept five clean sheets in their last nine games, doubling their tally from the first 29 matches of the campaign.

Goals have also flowed from their attacking players in recent weeks, with Jamie Vardy's good form rewarded with a call-up to the England squad. Meanwhile, Leonard Ulloa, Riyad Mahrez and Andy King have also netted crucial strikes.

Leicester can round off an excellent final two months of the campaign with a victory over the R's that would see them finish in 14th place in the Premier League.

Such a high-placed finish would have been unthinkable back in March, and Pearson deserves a huge amount of credit for masterminding his team's miraculous push to stay in the top flight.

Recent form: WWLWWD



QPR

QPR boss Chris Ramsey on May 10, 2015© Getty Images

The R's will end their miserable season at the King Power Stadium with the hope of a victory to avoid finishing bottom of the Premier League.

The club's relegation back to the second tier of English football was confirmed two weeks ago when they were hammered 6-0 by Manchester City at the Etihad Stadium.

Ramsey was appointed as the club's permanent successor to Harry Redknapp, despite his failure to guide QPR to safety in his fourth months in charge.

Ramsey was dealt an extremely tough hand when Redknapp decided to leave the team in January as the players have not been able to produce their best form, leading to their drop into the Championship.

The 53-year-old has been able to guide his team to sporadic moments of joy with away wins over Sunderland and West Bromwich Albion, but the nine defeats the club have suffered in his 14 games in charge have doomed them after just one season in the top flight.

QPR's main problem this season has been their defensive record as the club have shipped the most goals in the Premier League, conceding 68 in their 37 matches. The statistic will be infuriating to the club's owners considering their heavy investment in Rio Ferdinand and Steven Caulker last summer.

However, Ramsey's men can still end the season on a high note following their victory over Newcastle United last week, meaning that they can avoid finishing bottom of the league with a win at the King Power Stadium in a potential last hurrah for Charlie Austin wearing a Hoops shirt.

Recent form: DLDLLW



Team News

Charlie Austin of QPR scores his team's third goal during the Barclays Premier League match between Queens Park Rangers and Leicester City at Loftus Road on November 29, 2014© Getty Images

Leicester will definitely be without Danny Simpson as the club have ruled him out of contention to examine the findings of the assault case against him.

David Nugent will miss out due to a calf injury, while Matty James is also missing due to a long-term knee injury.

QPR will be without Robert Green and Steven Caulker as the duo sustained a concussion and a broken hand respectively in their win over Newcastle last week.

Alex McCarthy will replace Green between the sticks, while Yun Suk-young could come into the side for Caulker, with Clint Hill moving across to centre-back.

Ramsey will also likely hand opportunities to young players in the final game of the season so Reece Grego-Cox, Darnell Furlong and Brandon Comley could feature at the King Power Stadium.

Leicester possible starting lineup:
Schmeichel, Wasilewski, Huth, Morgan, Albrighton, Cambiasso, Mahrez, King, Schlupp, Ulloa, Vardy

QPR possible starting lineup:
Green, Onuoha, Hill, Dunne, Suk-young, Phillips, Barton, Henry, Hoilett, Fer, Austin



Head To Head

QPR recorded a 3-2 victory over the Foxes earlier in the campaign as a second-half strike from Austin edged them to victory.

Nugent scored the only goal of the game last season to guide Pearson's men to the three points in the last clash at the King Power Stadium. Meanwhile, Vardy scored at Loftus Road in a 1-0 win for the Foxes as they recorded the double over the R's.

Over the course of history, QPR hold a slight edge as they have won 26 of the contests against Leicester, who have won 22, while 10 of the matches have ended in draws.



Video Preview

Hit play below to see what the Sports Mole Sofa had to say about this encounter:


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We say: Leicester 3-1 QPR

Leicester are on the up and will be determined to end the season in style in front of their home fans. Vardy will be boosted by his England call-up and he, along with Ulloa, should pose a lot of problems for the QPR backline, which will see Pearson's men cruise to a comfortable win.



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Wes Brown of Sunderland tackles Jamie Vardy of Leicester City during the Barclays Premier League match between Leicester City and Sunderland at The King Power Stadium on November 22, 2014
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Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Leicester CityLeicester443041086394794
2Leeds UnitedLeeds44279880374390
3Ipswich TownIpswich432611685533289
4Southampton442591085612484
5West Bromwich AlbionWest Brom4420121267442372
6Norwich CityNorwich442191477611672
7Hull City441912136556969
8Coventry CityCoventry4317121468551363
9Middlesbrough44189176460463
10Preston North EndPreston44189175661-563
11Cardiff CityCardiff44195205061-1162
12Bristol City441611175147459
13Sunderland44168205251156
14Swansea CitySwansea441511185762-556
15Watford441217155958153
16Millwall441411194355-1253
17Stoke CityStoke441311204460-1650
18Queens Park RangersQPR441311204157-1650
19Blackburn RoversBlackburn441310215874-1649
20Plymouth ArgylePlymouth441212205869-1148
21Sheffield WednesdaySheff Weds44138233968-2947
22Birmingham CityBirmingham441210224864-1646
23Huddersfield TownHuddersfield44917184774-2744
RRotherham UnitedRotherham44412283285-5324


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