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

Queens Park Rangers play host to Huddersfield Town on Sunday afternoon with the opportunity to move outside of the Championship relegation zone.

Just three points separate the 21st and 22nd-placed teams in the standings, with Huddersfield having the opportunity to move clear of their opponents.

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Match preview

With six of his seven defeats as QPR head coach coming by one-goal margins, Marti Cifuentes would have felt that his side are not far away from turning the corner.

However, an eight-game winless streak in all competitions meant that confidence was low ahead of an important London derby against Millwall last weekend, the Hoops at risk of being cut adrift in the bottom three.

In response, QPR delivered a 2-0 victory to ease any pressure on their boss, posting their first triumph since the success over Hull City on December 9.

QPR now have three clean sheets in eight games, an indication that foundations have been laid at Loftus Road, but there is the pressure to deliver results as soon as possible.

Although they possess the worst home record in the division, QPR have collected seven points from their most recent six games on familiar territory at a time when Huddersfield have been less than impressive on their travels.

Darren Moore would have been content with the point that was earned from the 1-1 draw at Blackburn Rovers last weekend, particularly with his side having hit back from conceding an early goal.

Nevertheless, it extended their winless streak away from home in the Championship to five matches, six if you include the 5-0 reverse at Manchester City in the FA Cup.

As long as Huddersfield remain outside of the bottom three, Moore may remain in a job, but he has now reached a point where just three victories have been posted in 22 games.

If a 10th defeat is suffered on Sunday, Huddersfield will end the week in the relegation zone, leaving their hierarchy with a dilemma over how to approach the closing four days of the transfer window.

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Team News

Cifuentes is unlikely to see any reason to tinker with his QPR XI side after they ended the club's winless streak.

Lyndon Dykes was deployed in a deeper role behind Sinclair Armstrong, which paid off with the latter scoring just his second goal of the season.

As it stands, Rayan Kolli and Charlie Kelman are the only players to definitely miss out through injury.

Moore may take a similar approach with his Huddersfield side, with Josh Koroma likely to keep his place ahead of Bojan Radulovic in attack and Radindo Balker potentially having to remain patient for his debut.

Huddersfield possess an extensive injury list and were dealt a further blow earlier in the week when it was revealed that defender Ollie Turton had suffered a setback in his recovery from a serious knee injury.

Queens Park Rangers possible starting lineup: Begovic; Cannon, Cook, Clarke-Salter, Paal; Colback, Field; Willock, Dykes, Chair; Armstrong

Huddersfield Town possible starting lineup: Nicholls; Spencer, Helik, Lees; Thomas, Matos, Hogg, Rudoni, Jackson; Koroma, Healey

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We say: Queens Park Rangers 2-1 Huddersfield Town

With this being the most important game of the season for both teams, we expect a combination of combative action and nerves. Each side will take confidence from their last performance, yet we feel that QPR will do just enough to earn a crucial win on familiar territory.

For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.

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