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

Relegation-threatened Portsmouth will attempt to end a five-game winless run when they head to Loftus Road for Saturday's Championship clash against Queens Park Rangers.

Pompey are languishing in 20th place in the Championship table, while the R's are 10 points better off in 16th position.

Match preview

Queens Park Rangers' 2025-26 campaign appears to be heading to an uneventful conclusion, with the R's sitting 10 points clear of the drop zone and 10 points adrift of the playoffs ahead of matchday 39.

The R's alleviated any realistic relegation concerns with a 3-1 victory in last Saturday's away clash against Leicester City, bringing an end to a run of four consecutive defeats.

Harvey Vale netted in the closing stages of the first period to cancel out Jordan James's opener, before a Ben Nelson own goal and a Ronnie Edwards effort proved enough to secure all three points for Julien Stephan's side.

After enjoying success on their travels, they will now return to Loftus Road, where they have lost their last three home games by a combined 9-1 scoreline.

Those displays clearly demonstrate why QPR have the joint second-worst defensive record in the division, with 60 goals conceded in 38 matches.

They will hope that a game against a low-scoring Portsmouth side will offer the chance to put in an improved defensive display, with the hosts looking for their first head-to-head win in the league since recording a 2-0 victory in February 2011.

Portsmouth looked to have taken a significant step towards safety when they picked up back-to-back away wins over Charlton Athletic and Millwall.

However, John Mousinho's side have failed to build upon those two successful trips to London, having mustered just one point from their previous five outings.

After losing to Wrexham and Hull City, Pompey conceded a stoppage-time equaliser in a frustrating 1-1 draw against Blackburn Rovers at Ewood Park.

They were then beaten 2-1 at home by Swansea City before falling to a 1-0 loss in Monday's clash against Derby County at Fratton Park.

Sammie Szmodics's seventh-minute effort proved enough to condemn Portsmouth to a fourth consecutive home defeat, leaving them just a point clear of Oxford in 22nd position.

With Pompey desperate to return to winning ways in their final outing before the international break, they can draw inspiration from the fact they have won three of their previous four matches against QPR, including a 2-1 victory in last season's trip to Loftus Road.

Queens Park Rangers Championship form:

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Portsmouth Championship form:

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Team News

QPR remain without Steve Cook, Nicolas Madsen, Karamoko Dembele, Ilias Chair and Rumarn Burrell.

Forward Justin Obikwu has recovered from a shin injury and is in contention to feature in the matchday squad for the first time since he arrived from Coventry City in January.

While Obikwu could make the match, Stephan may decide to stick with the same lineup that started the recent win over Leicester.

As for Portsmouth, they are unable to call upon Josh Knight, Ajibola Alese, Andre Dozzell, Mark Kosznovszky, Josh Murphy, Franco Umeh and Thomas Waddingham.

Winger Harvey Blair should be fit to feature on the bench after missing Monday's loss due to a groin issue.

Forward Colby Bishop will be hoping to earn a recall after being dropped for the recent defeat against Derby.

Queens Park Rangers possible starting lineup:

Walsh; Mbengue, Dunne, Edwards, Norrington-Davies; Vale, Hayden, Morgan, Smyth; Kolli, Kone

Portsmouth possible starting lineup:

Schmid; Devlin, Poole, Ogilvie, Swanson; Pack, Adams; Alli, Chaplin, Caballero; Bishop

We say: Queens Park Rangers 1-1 Portsmouth

Buoyed by their recent win over Leicester, QPR will be targeting three more points in Saturday's contest, but they have found victories hard to come by in recent meetings with Portsmouth, and with that in mind, we think they will share the spoils with a score draw.

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