QPR welcome Ipswich Town to Loftus Road for their third game of the Championship season this Saturday. The Hoops have had a mixed start to the season whereas their opponents have won both games they have played and look like a team to watch this season.
After two games The Hoops sit 16th in the Championship on three points. QPR find themselves at the bottom of the pile of the six teams on three points due to their inferior goal difference. Having scored only twice but conceding five times, the second most in the league so far, leaves The Hoops with a negative three goal difference.
In their opening game of the season, QPR faced Watford, who after a disappointing season last year were looking to get off to the right start this season. Watford ran riot with Tom Dele-Bashinu scoring in the first minute, followed by goals from Imran Louza, Matheus Martins and Vakoun Issouf Bayo giving The Hornets a 4 - 0 lead going into half time. However, QPR could only manage one shot on target for the entire game as it finished 4 - 0.
QPR managed to get their first points of the campaign when they travelled to Cardiff. A goal from Sinclair Armstrong and Kenneth Paal gave The Hoops enough of a lead that a late Ike Ugbo goal couldn’t steal a point as QPR won 2 - 1 for their first win of the season.
Ipswich currently sit top of the Championship with six points from a possible six points in the best start they could have hoped for in their return to the league. The Tractor Boys and Leicester are the only teams on six points in the Championship, but Ipswich have the slightly superior goal difference. Kieran McKenna’s side have found the back of the net four times so far and have only conceded once giving them a goal difference of three, one better than Leicester.
The Tractor Boys opened their season with a trip to Sunderland. Nathan Broadhead gave Ipswich the lead in added time in the first half before George Hirst doubled their lead in the second half. Before Sunderland could mount a comeback they were taken down to ten men when Trai Hume was sent off for a second yellow card offence. Dan Neil did manage to score for Sunderland but Ipswich still took the 2 - 1 win.
Between their two Championship games, Ipswich faced Bristol Rovers in the First Round of the League Cup. Goals from Jack Taylor and Sone Aluko gave The Tractor Boys the 2 - 0 win and the spot in the Second Round. Another 2 - 0 win came against Stoke last time out where Luke Woolfenden and Kayden Jackson scored to give Ipswich all three points.
QPR and Ipswich have met 79 times in their histories, with the two teams being on equal terms. Both The Hoops and The Tractor Boys have won the fixture on 30 occasions with the other 19 meetings ending in a share of the points.
The two teams haven’t met since 2018 and in the last five games QPR have won four times with the fifth game ending in a draw. However, momentum suggests that the win may go Ipswich’s way this weekend.