On the return to league action after the recent international break, Queens Park Rangers and Sunderland will square off at Loftus Road on Saturday in the sixth round of Championship fixtures this term.
Both teams picked up important victories before the break, with the hosts now in 17th spot with six points from their five games and the visitors just one point better off.
Match preview
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After a concerning second half to last season, which eventually saw them finish 20th in England's second tier with just a six-point lead over the drop zone, Queens Park Rangers headed into the new term with the aim of improving under the management of Gareth Ainsworth and preserving their Championship status in more comfortable fashion.
The opening day did not do much to ease the Hoops' concerns, though, as they travelled to Watford and were on the wrong end of a 4-0 thrashing, as Tom Dele-Bashiru had the hosts ahead inside the first minute before Imran Louza, Matheus Martins and Vakoun Issouf Bayo all helped themselves to first-half goals.
Ainsworth's men would quickly bounce back and score their first points with a 2-1 triumph away at Cardiff City, thanks to goals from Sinclair Armstrong and Kenneth Paal, but they were unable to build on that in the following weeks, initially dropping out of the EFL Cup at the hands of Norwich City, before suffering narrow league defeats in tough tests against Ipswich Town and newly-relegated Southampton.
Such results, despite encouraging displays, left QPR on just three points from four outings heading into their final game before the break with a trip to Middlesbrough awaiting, and the London outfit ended their losing run and doubled their points tally in impressive fashion, leaving the Riverside with a 2-0 victory as Andre Dozzell opened the scoring from range on the stroke of half time before Jack Colback doubled his side's lead 19 minutes from time.
Having headed into the break with some positivity in the camp, Saturday's hosts will aim to pick up where they left off on their return on Saturday and make it back-to-back league victories to further improve their start to the term.
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They meet a Sunderland side who also headed into the break on the back of a victory, having bounced back from a tough start to the campaign.
After climbing from League One and seeing former manager Alex Neil replaced by Tony Mowbray, the Black Cats finished in the playoff places last term in their bid for a second straight promotion with the Premier League in their sights, but they fell short to eventual winners Luton Town in the semi-finals, eventually losing 3-2 on aggregate.
They would then turn their focus to their second straight Championship campaign and their first full term under Mowbray with the aim of continuing to build towards a return to the top flight, but the Stadium of Light outfit were made to wait for their first points, initially suffering a 2-1 defeat at home to newly-promoted Ipswich Town in their curtain-raiser before they lost by the same scoreline away at Preston North End.
The Black Cats then hosted Rotherham United and put a first victory on the board, being the right end of a 2-1 scoreline on that occasion thanks to Jobe Bellingham's brace, and after earning a commendable point from a goalless draw away at Coventry City, they went into the break on a high, having met Southampton in a tough test and dished out an eye-catching 5-0 beating, as Jack Clarke opened the scoring inside a minute and Pierre Ekwah netted a first-half brace before Bradley Dack and Chris Rigg capped off a memorable outing at the Stadium of Light in the second period.
Having already grown into the campaign after their slow start, Sunderland will seek to make it four league games unbeaten including three victories on their trip to Loftus Road on Saturday in their bid to establish themselves in the leading pack.
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Team News
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Gareth Ainsworth will likely deploy an unchanged QPR starting XI from their win away at Middlesbrough prior to the break, with his back three having been bolstered with the summer arrivals of experienced duo Morgan Fox and Steve Cook, who should be joined by Osman Kakay in front of fellow summer signing Asmir Begovic.
The Hoops boss added further experience with the addition of Jack Colback, and he should certainly keep his place in the engine room alongside Sam Field, allowing Andre Dozzell to operate as part of an attacking trio.
Despite competition from Chris Willock, Dozzell and Ilias Chair should again be given the nod on the flanks, either side of Sinclair Armstrong, who has established himself as a key man up front at Loftus Road, having contributed a goal and an assist in the Championship so far this term.
Similarly to their hosts, Sunderland may also look to field an unchanged starting team at Loftus Road, following their thrashing of Southampton at the start of the month, although Alex Pritchard, Jewison Bennette and Chris Rigg are all fighting to come in from the start after appearing off the bench, with Bennette having set up 16-year-old Rigg for their fifth goal in that contest.
Mowbray has lined up his Black Cats in a 4-2-3-1 shape this term, despite the lack of a clear striker with Ross Stewart missing the start of the campaign through injury and then departing for Southampton, meaning summer signings Bradley Dack and 17-year-old Jobe Bellingham will take on the attacking responsibility through the middle, with Mason Burstow having also arrived on loan from Chelsea to provide further competition.
They were flanked by Abdoullah Ba and star man Jack Clarke against the Saints, although Patrick Roberts may return to contention in time to retake his spot on the right-hand side from the former, while Pierre Ekwah, who netted a brace in the 5-0 win, is bound to keep his place alongside Dan Neil in the engine room and Dan Ballard and Luke O'Nien will continue to partner up at the heart of the back four.
Queens Park Rangers possible starting lineup:
Begovic; Kakay, Cook, Fox; Smyth, Colback, Field, Paal; Dozzell, Armstrong, Chair
Sunderland possible starting lineup:
Patterson; Hume, O'Nien, Ballard, Cirkin; Neil, Ekwah; Roberts, Dack, Clarke; Bellingham
We say: Queens Park Rangers 1-2 Sunderland
Queens Park Rangers are bound to have some renewed optimism, having bounced back from a tough start to the campaign with a hard-fought win before the break, but Ainsworth's men do lack some of the quality that Saturday's visitors possess, and we see the Black Cats going from strength to strength with another three-point haul.
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