QPR vs Coventry prediction: ENGLAND: Championship betting tips on match 2023-04-14 14:00.
QPR manager Gareth Ainsworth believes his players have shown they have what it takes to be successful in their relegation battle. The R’s came from two goals down to draw 2-2 with West Brom on Easter Monday, prompting the boss to state “five more of those performances and we’ll be safe,” a bold claim considering QPR have been in freefall for months.
The stalemate at the Hawthorns may have ended Rangers’ streak of four successive defeats, but they have still only picked up one victory in 18 league outings since mid-December (D6, L11). With Ainsworth being their third permanent boss of the campaign it would be impossible to portion the blame solely to him, but that run of form means QPR are only two points above the bottom three, leaving them at serious risk of dropping down to the third tier for the first time in 19 years.
The visit of Coventry City to West London might provide the perfect opportunity to get back to winning ways given the Midlands side have lost five of the last seven meetings between the two sides (W2). The Sky Blues continue to be one of the surprise packages this season, with only three points separating them from the play-offs as they look to end a 22-year absence from the Premier League.
That promotion push has been hindered by a run of four draws in their last six outings (W1, L1), including a 2-2 stalemate with Watford on Monday which Mark Robins admitted was “no good.” Even so, the boss has this week been nominated for the Championship Manager of the Season award, while striker Viktor Gyökeres, the club’s top scorer with 19 goals across all competitions, is shortlisted for the Player of the Season gong.
Players to watch: Chris Martin netted QPR’s equaliser against West Brom last time out, but has picked up just one victory across his last eight goalscoring appearances (D3, L4). Coventry midfielder Jamie Allen has opened the scoring with four of his six league goals this season and now goes in search of improving his poor record against the R’s, having won just two of his eight H2Hs (D1, L5).
Hot stat: QPR are the only team in the Championship not to score a single home goal in the 15 minutes immediately after half-time.