MX23RW : Saturday, December 14 09:06:09| >> :120:16278:16278:

Preview: Swansea City vs. Queens Park Rangers

Sports Mole previews the Premier League clash between Swansea and QPR at the Liberty Stadium as the Hoops go in search of a first away point since their promotion.

Queens Park Rangers will climb out of the Premier League relegation zone if they collect their first away point of the season against Swansea City on Tuesday.

The Hoops moved off the foot of the table and consigned Leicester City to bottom spot with a 3-2 triumph in a thrilling spectacle at Loftus Road over the weekend.

However, they have lost all of their six away games since promotion from the Championship, and may continue to struggle at the Liberty Stadium, where the Swans will be determined not to pass up another home win.

Garry Monk insisted that his side should have comfortably beaten Crystal Palace on Saturday, when a Mile Jedinak penalty cancelled out Wifried Bony's opener as the Swans had to settle for a 1-1 draw in Wales.

It was Bony's 18th goal during 2014 - no Premier League player has scored more during that time period - but City, who have lost more points from winning positions than any other side this season, could not make it count.

They would be only one point adrift of table-topping Chelsea had they held on to all their leads, but Monk will still be fairly content with their eighth-place standing after 13 games of his first full term in charge.

His opposite number on Saturday has 30 more years in the management game under his belt, and keeping Rangers in the top flight this campaign will prove to be another tough challenge for Harry Redknapp.

The 67-year-old may have a striker who can score the goals to fire Rangers to survival in Charlie Austin, who has notched five times in as many outings and bagged another winner against Leicester.

Bobby Zamora is expected to be restored as his partner on Tuesday after overcoming a back injury. Niko Krancjar is the most likely to be sacrificed should Redknapp revert back to his favoured 4-4-2 formation.

Richard Dunne is available again having served his ban and should regain his place from Nedum Onuoha. Left-back Yun Suk-young faces a late fitness test on a knee problem, with Armand Traore on standby.

The Hoops are still without Sandro, Alejandro Faurlin and Adel Taarabt, while Rio Ferdinand and Jordan Mutch will have to settle for spots on the bench after their recent returns from suspension and injury respectively.

A calf problem continues to sideline Federico Fernandez for the Swans, while his fellow South American summer signing Jefferson Montero is also a doubt with a leg injury and may not be risked.

Nathan Dyer could be recalled to start a game alongside Wayne Routledge for the first time since October 19, while Jonjo Shelvey should be preferred to Tom Carroll, despite conceding a penalty versus Palace.

Swansea beat QPR 5-0 and 4-1 in 2012-13 - the last season in which both teams were in the Premier League.

Swansea:

Form in Premier League: LWDWLD
Form in all competitions: WLDWLD

Possible starting lineup: Fabianski; Rangel, Bartley, Williams, Taylor; Ki, Shelvey; Routledge, Sigurdsson, Dyer; Bony

QPR:

Recent form: LWLDLW

Possible starting lineup: Green; Isla, Dunne, Caulker, Yun; Vargas, Henry, Barton, Fer; Austin, Zamora

Sports Mole says: 2-0


ID:191170: cacheID:191170:1false2false3false:QQ:: from db desktop :LenBod:restore:7727:
Written by
Joe Fish
No Data Analysis info

Previews by email

Click here to get Sports Mole's daily email of previews and predictions for every major game!


Restore Data
Share this article now:
Mile Jedinak of Crystal Palace celebrates scoring his team's third goal with team mates during the Barclays Premier League match between Crystal Palace and Liverpool at Selhurst Park on November 23, 2014
Read Next:
Preview: Swansea vs. Crystal Palace
>
rhs 2.0
Today's games header
Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Sheffield UnitedSheff Utd20135228111742
2Leeds UnitedLeeds20125336142241
3Burnley2010822471738
4Sunderland20107329151437
5Blackburn RoversBlackburn1910452317634
6West Bromwich AlbionWest Brom2071122314932
7Middlesbrough209473425931
8Watford199462725231
9Swansea CitySwansea207672119227
10Norwich CityNorwich206863530526
11Bristol City206862525026
12Sheffield WednesdaySheff Weds207582329-626
13Millwall196762017325
14Derby CountyDerby216692626024
15Preston North EndPreston2041062026-622
16Luton TownLuton2064102335-1222
17Coventry CityCoventry205692529-421
18Stoke CityStoke205692126-521
19Queens Park RangersQPR204972026-621
20Oxford UnitedOxford Utd194692030-1018
21Portsmouth193882134-1317
22Cardiff CityCardiff1945101730-1317
23Plymouth ArgylePlymouth1945101940-2117
24Hull City2037101828-1016


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
Argentina's Lionel Messi kisses the World Cup trophy after collecting the Golden Ball award on December 18, 2022Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!