Queens Park Rangers are looking to put their league woes behind them as they face AFC Bournemouth in the FA Cup this weekend.
QPR currently find themselves second-bottom in the EFL Championship and are struggling notably.
They came into the season under the guidance of manager Gareth Ainsworth with many fancying them to have a difficult season, and things went almost exactly as expected with Ainsworth relieved of his duties as manager not long into the campaign.
Martí Cifuentes has since taken charge of the Hoops and while they’ve improved on the whole, they’re still looking like they’re in pretty deep trouble.
After a decent run of form that made them look as though they were starting their ascent up the league table, they’ve regressed back down to their initial level as they enter this game winless in their last five games having won four of those.
Their most recent game saw them fall to a 1-2 defeat to Cardiff City at Loftus Road, a disappointing result as that was a hugely winnable fixture.
The FA Cup has not been a pleasant endeavour for QPR in recent seasons as they come into this one having lost four of their last five games in this competition, losing to lower-league opposition in both of the last two seasons.
A good cup run would probably do them a lot of good in terms of confidence building, but given the difficulty of the tie they’ve been handed that feels unlikely.
After a terrible start to the season, Bournemouth are coming into this game in much better shape than they were a couple of months back.
The Cherries were looking like a nailed-on relegation candidate not long back but a good run of form has seen them rocket up to 12th in the league table under Andoni Iraola.
Their most recent game did see them lose a tricky game away at Tottenham Hotspur 3-1, but prior to that they were unbeaten in eight games with seven of those ending in wins.
They’ve also been notably strong away from home, with Iraola’s men having won four of their last five games on the road.
Iraola’s side should be looking at this competition with wide eyes and see a huge opportunity to make a deep run, given they look more than well-equipped to remain in the league this season.
Both of the last two seasons have seen Bournemouth knocked out of the FA Cup by lower-league opposition so they’ll be determined not to make that mistake again.
For our QPR vs. Bournemouth prediction, we’re going for a 3-1 win for the away side.
Don’t forget to check out the rest of our previews, tips and offers for this weekend’s action.