Middlesbroughvs.QPR

The visitors will also be keen to return to winning ways after losing each of their last three Championship matches.

Match preview

Middlesbrough are sitting in ninth position in the Championship table after winning 14, drawing eight and losing 14 of their 36 matches this season.

Boro experienced a five-game losing run until they got back on track with consecutive wins over Stoke City and Derby County.

However, Middlesbrough were unable to make it three successive victories in Saturday's away clash against Swansea City, as they fell to a narrow 1-0 defeat following Eom Ji-Sung's first-half effort.

As a result, Boro are now five points adrift from sixth-placed West Bromwich Albion, leaving them with work to do in the final 10 games if they are to secure a playoff berth for the second time in three seasons.

Michael Carrick's side may have drawn a blank on Saturday, but they will still enter Tuesday's fixture as the division's third-highest scorers with 55 goals to their name this season.

They recorded four of those goals in November's reverse fixture, with a 4-1 away win representing their third victory in four head-to-head matches against QPR.

QPR are in a comfortable midtable position after collecting 44 points from 36 league matches, leaving them 11 points adrift of the top six and 12 points above the drop zone.

The R's will be disappointed by their recent run of results, having lost four of their previous five games, including their last three outings against Portsmouth, Sheffield United and West Bromwich Albion.

They would have been particularly disappointed with Saturday's away clash against the Baggies, considering they played the entire second period with a one-man advantage after Darnell Furlong was sent off in first-half stoppage time.

QPR failed to find a response to Adam Armstrong's first-half penalty as they fell to a fourth consecutive away defeat.

Marti Cifuentes's side will be desperate to end their away day woes in Tuesday's trip to Teeside, with the visitors looking to claim their first away win since beating Hull City 2-0 in January.

The R's may be able to draw inspiration from the fact they recorded a 2-0 victory on their most recent visit to the Riverside Stadium in September 2023.

Middlesbrough Championship form:

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Queens Park Rangers Championship form:

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Team News

Middlesbrough are unable to call upon Rav van den Berg, George Edmundson, Darragh Lenihan and Luke Ayling, while Dael Fry was forced off with a calf problem in Saturday's defeat to Swansea, meaning Boro could go into Tuesday's fixture without a natural centre-back.

The hosts are also having to cope without Sol Brynn, Seny Dieng, Alex Bangura, Riley McGree and Ben Doak due to injury.

Jonny Howson could come into the side to operate as a makeshift centre-back, while there may also be starting places for Samuel Iling-Junior and Kelechi Iheanacho after the pair featured as half-time substitutes at the Swansea.com Stadium.

As for the visitors, they are expected to be without the services of Jake Clarke-Salter, Sam Field, Harvey Vale, Zan Celar and Rayan Kolli.

Midfielder Jonathan Varane and forward Michael Frey will have to be assessed after the pair sat out the defeat to West Brom with minor injury issues.

Liam Morrison and Alfie Lloyd are pushing for starting spots after appearing as half-time substitutes at the Hawthorns.

Middlesbrough possible starting lineup:

Travers; Dijksteel, Howson, Giles, Borges; Morris, Hackney; Iling-Junior, Conway, Azaz; Iheanacho

Queens Park Rangers possible starting lineup:

Nardi; Dunne, Cook, Edwards, Paal; Morgan, Colback; Yang, Chair, Saito; Smyth

We say: Middlesbrough 2-1 Queens Park Rangers

Written by

Ben Sully

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