Queens Park Rangers vs Coventry City Prediction: QPR will be looking to build on two successive draws

Queens Park Rangers will welcome Coventry City at Loftus Road in Game Week 9 of the English Championship. QPR will be looking to build on two successive draws. Who will come out on top after 90 minutes?

Gareth Ainsworth acknowledges the pressure he is under at QPR, having suffered 13 defeats in his first 22 matches as manager. However, there are positive signs as QPR have lost only one of their last four games in the Championship. Their one loss was due to an early red card, and they have since drawn against Swansea City and Birmingham City. QPR have only conceded one goal in their last three matches with a full team on the field. Currently, they are three points above the relegation zone, so Ainsworth understands the importance of earning more points. A win on Saturday would give him some relief. QPR will be without midfielder Jack Colback for their upcoming match as he serves the final game of his three-match suspension due to a red card received against Sunderland. If there are no further injury concerns, manager Ainsworth may choose to use the same starting lineup as the previous draw against Birmingham. There are options such as Albert Adomah and Chris Willock, and there is a possibility of shifting Lyndon Dykes into a more advanced role ahead of Sinclair Armstrong. 

The possible starting lineup for QPR could be Begovic in goal, Kakay, Cook, and Fox in defense, Smyth, Dozzell, Field, and Paal in midfield, and Dykes, Chair, and Armstrong in the attack. 

On the other hand, Coventry manager Mark Robins is not feeling much pressure despite his team's poor performance, having won only one of their last eight games. However, Coventry is determined to stay in the top six and not fall behind by too many points. Their losses have come from Leicester City and Cardiff City, while draws against Hull City and Huddersfield Town were due to late goals conceded. Coventry has two home matches ahead of the international break and Robins knows they need to turn things around before the break. Coventry City, who came close to securing a win against Huddersfield, might decide to stick with the same starting XI from that game. However, if changes are made, it is likely that Jake Bidwell and Haji Wright will be included in the team as left wing-back and in the attack respectively. 

It is unfortunate that Milan van Ewijk, Ben Sheaf, and Kasey Palmer will be sidelined for the next six weeks due to injury. 

For Coventry City, the possible starting lineup could be Wilson in goal, Thomas, McFadzean, and Binks in defence, Sakamoto, Eccles, Kelly, and Dasilva in midfield, and Ayari, Wright, and Godden in the attack. 

Both teams have been struggling for momentum in the 2023-24 season, so this match is expected to be a tense affair. While QPR will be hoping to perform well at home, we anticipate Coventry to find their rhythm at some point, and this could happen at Loftus Road. We expect under 2.5 goals in the game.