Chris Ramsey upbeat despite Queens Park Rangers loss

Queens Park Rangers boss Chris Ramsey has insisted that his team are showing signs of progress despite their friendly defeat to Monaco.

The Championship club lost their first match of pre-season on Tuesday as they were beaten 1-0 in Italy by the European heavyweights.

While QPR were on the wrong end of the result, Ramsey believes that his players did themselves proud during the 90 minutes.

"It was a very worthwhile exercise," he told the club's official website. "No-one likes losing, but Monaco are a big club who are going to be playing in the Champions League again this season, so you need to take that into context.

"I thought the players gave their all and stuck to the basic principles of our game and that pleased me. We know there's still a long way to go until the start of the season and there's plenty of work to be done, but I can see signs of progress."

Rangers continue their tour of Italy on Friday when they face Saudi-based outfit Ittihad in Novara.