Preview: Millwall vs. Queens Park Rangers - prediction, team news, lineups

Aiming to distance themselves from the relegation dogfight at the foot of the division, Millwall will welcome strugglers Queens Park Rangers to The Den in the Championship on Boxing Day.

The Lions have stumbled to successive draws recently when maximums were massively required, while QPR have hit a slight downturn in form since the festive period commenced.

Match preview

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Since the four-goal demolition of basement dwellers Sheffield Wednesday during his first match in charge, Millwall manager Joe Edwards has endured a seven-game winless streak at the club, and recent stalemates against fellow strugglers Huddersfield Town and Stoke City have not provided much Christmas spirit around The Den.

The Lions were the visitors to the bet365 Stadium for Steven Schumacher's coronation in the Potteries after joining from Plymouth Argyle earlier in the week, and although youngster Aidomo Emakhu had a gilt-edged chance to secure three points late on, Millwall had to hold on for the most part to earn a share of the points.

A first clean sheet in six matches pleased Edwards and highlighted the improving performances of goalkeeper Matija Sarkic, who has taken time to find his feet in between the sticks after replacing Polish veteran Bartosz Bialkowski, with the 26-year-old's goal-costing errors against Ipswich Town and Sunderland now fading into distant memory.

Ahead of a third-straight fixture against a team directly around them in the Championship standings, Millwall are sitting in 20th place, three points ahead of Tuesday's visitors to The Den, although it is unlikely that Marti Cifuentes's men will overtake the Lions even if the R's win due to an inferior goal difference.

Millwall's South London home was a real fortress in past campaigns as Gary Rowett's side looked to break into the top-six picture, but the Lions have won just two of their 11 matches at The Den this season, last tasting success in front of their own supporters against bottom side Rotherham United on September 20.

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Since collecting a maximum of nine points from matches against Alex Neil's Stoke, Preston North End and Hull City, Queens Park Rangers have only managed to earn one from their most recent triplet of contests, losing narrowly at home to Russell Martin's Premier League-chasing Southampton on Saturday.

Despite their lowly league position, QPR have talents such as playmaker Ilias Chair who can cause the division's best outfits major problems - as shown by the Moroccan's first-half display against the Saints - but the visitors from the South Coast produced the game's only decisive moment, with Taylor Harwood-Bellis firing home at the back post following a set piece.

Due to the stuttering form of Millwall and Darren Moore's Huddersfield Town - neither side have won in their last five matches - the R's are not miles away from safety in spite of their poor recent results, with the West Londoners lying two points behind the 21st-placed Terriers at the halfway point of the season.

Cifuentes will be hoping for an improvement from his side's last outing in the second tier, when QPR threw away all of the points at Hillsborough against Sheffield Wednesday, with an 86th-minute equaliser from Bailey Cadamarteri and a 94th-minute winner from Anthony Musaba wiping out the R's opener.

QPR currently have three players leading their Golden Boot race with three strikes each, although Chris Willock has especially impressed since the arrival of Cifuentes, with the attacker finding the net and providing an assist in the 2-0 win over Hull on December 9.

Team News

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Millwall remain without the services of midfielder Casper de Norre, with the summer arrival from OH Leuven still recovering from a calf injury sustained at the end of November.

The attacking contingent in the Lions' squad are set for a reshuffle after they failed to find the net in Staffordshire on the weekend, meaning the likes of Duncan Watmore and Tom Bradshaw could earn starts.

Supporters have been calling for youngsters Emakhu and Romain Esse to be handed more playing time, and considering the congested fixture schedule between now and the New Year, Tuesday could be the moment for Edwards to unleash at least one of the duo into the starting XI.

QPR are sweating over the fitness of joint-leading marksman Willock ahead of a Boxing Day trip to The Den, with the 25-year-old being forced off due to an injury in the late stages on the weekend.

With Morgan Fox still in the medical room because of a long-term knee injury, Cifuentes should stick with a centre-back pairing of Jake Clarke-Salter and Jimmy Dunne.

The visitors may opt to rotate their offensive ranks in this one, so Sinclair Armstrong, Paul Smyth and Ziyad Larkeche could earn starting berths following cameos off the bench against the Saints.

Millwall possible starting lineup:

Sarkic; Leonard, Harding, Cooper; Norton-Cuffy, Saville, Flemming, Mitchell, Wallace; Bradshaw, Watmore

Queens Park Rangers possible starting lineup:

Begovic; Adomah, Dunne, Clarke-Salter, Paal; Dozzell, Field, Dixon-Bonner; Smyth, Chair, Dykes

We say: Millwall 1-2 Queens Park Rangers

Millwall were able to keep their first clean sheet in six matches last time out, but the Lions failed to consistently threaten a Stoke side who have been in a real rut of late.

QPR were impressive in stages of their contest with Southampton despite defeat, so we reckon that the R's will produce a plucky away performance to earn maximum points at The Den on Boxing Day.

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