Frank Lampard's Coventry City will hope to bounce back from FA Cup disappointment when they host Queens Park Rangers on Tuesday in the Championship at the Coventry Arena.
Coventry are 12th in the second tier with 41 points and are only four points from sixth-placed Blackburn Rovers, who occupy the final promotion playoff spot, while QPR are in 13th place with the same number of points as their opponents and beat Blackburn 2-1 on February 4.
Match preview
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The hosts were eliminated from the FA Cup on Saturday after losing 4-1 against Ipswich Town, though they can perhaps count themselves unfortunate considering they produced more non-penalty xG, more shots and their tally of two big chances was just one fewer than Ipswich's figure.
Coventry also succumbed to a 2-0 defeat at the hands of Leeds United in the Championship on February 5, a match in which they faced six big chances and over 3.5 xG while creating just one big chance themselves.
Lampard's side have conceded six goals in their last two games, more than they had shipped in their prior nine matches.
Though the Sky Blues were beaten in their past two, they did triumph in their previous five in all competitions, scoring eight, conceding two and keeping three clean sheets in that time.
The hosts' two losses in their two most recent outings both came at home, but they were undefeated in the eight prior games at Coventry Arena.
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Meanwhile, QPR failed to create any big chances against Blackburn and only won thanks to Jack Colback's powerful volley from a central area just outside the box in the 76th minute.
The visitors earned a point against their hosts earlier in the season when they drew 1-1 on October 22, with neither side managing to produce one xG that day.
Boss Marti Cifuentes's team have scored 35 goals and conceded 40 times in the league this campaign, and these are the division's joint 11th worst offensive and joint 11th best defensive records respectively.
QPR are in mixed form considering they have been beaten in three of their last six games while winning the other three.
Cifuentes's side have won two of their three most recent away fixtures, though it should be noted that those victories are their only wins in their last eight on the road, with the club drawing three and losing three in that period.
Team News
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The hosts will be without midfielder Ben Sheaf until later this month, and his absence could mean that Lampard starts Victor Torp, Jamie Allen and Jack Rudoni in a midfield three.
Ellis Simms and Brandon Thomas-Asante could play together up front given Ephron Mason-Clark and Haji Wright have been ruled out.
Oliver Dovin will almost certainly be stationed in goal, and he is likely to be protected by defenders Joel Latibeaudiere, Bobby Thomas and Liam Kitching.
QPR also have injury issues of their own, with centre-back Jake Clarke-Salter not scheduled to make his comeback from a hip injury until the middle of March.
Steve Cook and Ronnie Edwards started in central defence against Blackburn and there is no reason to think they will not be selected again.
The visitors will also have to contend with the absences of Karamoko Dembele, Lucas Andersen and Zan Celar, and that could mean Paul Smyth, Michael Frey and Koki Saito will feature in a front three.
Coventry City possible starting lineup:
Dovin; Latibeaudiere, Thomas, Kitching; Van Ewijk, Torp, Allen, Rudoni, Bidwell; Thomas-Asante, Simms
Queens Park Rangers possible starting lineup:
Nardi; Dunne, Cook, Edwards, Paal; Morgan, Field, Chair; Smyth, Frey, Saito
We say: Coventry City 2-2 Queens Park Rangers
QPR should be confident of creating chances on Tuesday given Coventry have looked vulnerable defensively in their recent matches.
However, the visitors do not boast the strongest record on the road and have struggled for consistency, so it would not be surprising if they squandered a lead.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Lewis Nolan
