QPR v Aston Villa: QPR to win – 6/4
Who could have predicted after they were tanked 7-1 away to West Brom in August and everything seemed already lost under Steve McClaren, that Queens Park Rangers would now be one of the form teams in the Championship?
The R’s and their once belaughed new boss deserve enormous credit for a turnaround that has seen them claim 20 points from their last ten games and they now sit just four points off the Play-Off places in the Championship table.
Aston Villa provide the opposition at Loftus Road and there’s no doubt new manager Dean Smith will be looking to cure his charges of the away sickness (which continued at Norwich in mid-week) that has plagued them this season. It’s now six winless away trips for The Villans, with Smith himself without an away victory in nine games, if you include his time at Brentford.
We can’t see him finding that remedy in London tonight either and we’re backing QPR to score a home success in this one at 6/4.
Both teams to score: No – Evens
Despite what that 7-1 horror show from earlier in the season suggests, one of the areas McClaren looks to have improved of late is the QPR defence.
Only one goal has rattled the Rangers net in the last four games and they’ve seen off the likes of Reading, Ipswich and Sheffield Wednesday in those with impressive shut-out victories.
Amazingly, Villa have managed to score in every Championship game so far this campaign, but we reckon that trend will come to an end later and we’re tipping ‘No’ on the both teams to score at Evens market because of QPR’s new found defensive solidity.
Tomer Hemed to score anytime – 2/1
One of the key men in QPR’s recent results has been Israeli frontman Tomer Hemed, who grabbed himself a brace in his last two games.
Hemed once plundered the Championship for 17 goals in his first season at Brighton and he looks to be finding his feet again in the division after a couple of years struggling in the Premier League.
We expect he’ll score many more than the three he has this season so far and we fancy Hemed to pick off another one at anytime later tonight at 2/1.
Shoot over to all the latest Championship odds at PaddyPower.com* All odds correct at time of posting.