MX23RW : Saturday, December 28 17:39:20| >> :120:32736:32736:

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
1Leeds UnitedLeeds23146343152848
2Sheffield UnitedSheff Utd23155332131948
3Burnley2313823092147
4Sunderland23128336201644
5Blackburn RoversBlackburn2211562720738
6Watford2211473229337
7Middlesbrough23106741311036
8West Bromwich AlbionWest Brom2381142718935
9Sheffield WednesdaySheff Weds239683133-233
10Swansea CitySwansea238692724330
11Bristol City237972728-130
12Norwich CityNorwich237883935429
13Millwall227782220228
14Derby CountyDerby2376102929027
15Coventry CityCoventry2376103234-227
16Preston North EndPreston2351172329-626
17Queens Park RangersQPR2351082331-825
18Luton TownLuton2374122539-1425
19Stoke CityStoke2357112332-922
20Oxford UnitedOxford Utd2256112439-1521
21Portsmouth214892637-1120
22Hull City2347122132-1119
23Cardiff CityCardiff2246122137-1618
24Plymouth ArgylePlymouth2246122249-2718


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!