Preview: Queens Park Rangers vs. West Bromwich Albion - prediction, team news, lineups

The R's shared the points at Carrow Road with fellow promotion chasers Norwich City on Wednesday night, whereas 24 hours earlier West Brom earned only their third win of the season at home to Blackpool.

Match preview

A pair of tricky away assignments in the last week have halted QPR's good form in the Championship, after Michael Beale's men were defeated 2-0 at Birmingham before most recently being held to a goalless draw against Norwich.

Alarm bells will not be ringing in the capital just yet however, as Rangers have enjoyed a marvellous start to the campaign under first-time manager Beale, sitting fourth in the league and only two points off Blackburn Rovers in second place.

The Londoners now face two home matches in the space of four days before heading to Coventry City for their final fixture before the World Cup break, and will be boosted in all three by the return of Chris Willock, who made a substitute appearance against Norwich last time out after five games sidelined with a hamstring injury.

Despite not playing since his side's win at Sheffield United in early October, Willock is the club's leading goalscorer so far with six strikes, a total he will be confident in adding to against a West Brom side who have only kept one clean sheet on the road this year.

Beale was brought into QPR to build on the work of former boss Mark Warburton and to make the team serious promotion contenders after several mid-table finishes, a task the 42-year-old is carrying out admirably as the Championship approaches its World Cup break.

In front of a sparsely-populated Hawthorns on Tuesday night, Corberan secured his first win as Albion boss courtesy of Okay Yokuslu's late winner against Blackpool, a result that lifted the Baggies off the bottom of the Championship and into 23rd position.

A maiden victory for the ex-Huddersfield Town man was desperately needed in order to improve the mood in the Black Country after what has been a sobering downfall since relegation from the Premier League 18 months ago, a period that has seen the quality of the playing staff drop significantly and increasing concerns about the competency of the club's ownership.

West Brom will now look to record back-to-back wins for the first time this season as they travel to West London, with all three points on Saturday potentially good enough to take the Baggies as high as 19th and away from the relegation zone for a few days at least.

Despite their lowly league position, West Brom have been able to earn results on the road this season, having only lost three of eight games away from home, albeit only managing to take maximum points once which came at the expense of Paul Ince's Reading.

Although pre-season hopes of promotion seem out of reach now, Albion will be keen to pick up enough results to avoid an unfamiliar Championship survival scrap and start this new era under Corberan in a positive manner before he can bring in his own recruits in the January transfer window.

Queens Park Rangers Championship form:

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West Bromwich Albion Championship form:

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Team News

QPR will be without the services of both Jake Clarke-Salter and Tyler Roberts until after the World Cup following injuries they picked up in their side's recent loss at Birmingham.

Willock made a 33-minute cameo at Carrow Road on Wednesday night for the R's and should be fit enough to play from the start here as Beale's men look to avoid going three games without a win.

Irish centre-back Jimmy Dunne remains out with a leg injury and is unlikely to feature until after the World Cup break, meaning Leon Balogun and Rob Dickie will maintain their places in the middle of the backline for the visit of the Baggies.

West Brom's Karlan Grant is a doubt for Saturday's trip to London after receiving a heavy kick against Blackpool on Tuesday that saw the forward substituted in the second half.

Daryl Dike and Semi Ajayi began individual training for the first time this week following their respective injuries and although Saturday will come too soon for both of them, they could feature for Albion before the World Cup break, returns that would improve the side massively.

Queens Park Rangers possible starting lineup:

Dieng; Laird, Dickie, Balogun, Paal; Field, Amos, Willock, Chair, Iroegbunam; Dykes

West Bromwich Albion possible starting lineup:

Palmer; Furlong, Bartley, O'Shea, Townsend; Yokuslu, Gardner-Hickman, Wallace, Swift, Phillips; Grant

We say: Queens Park Rangers 2-0 West Bromwich Albion

QPR have failed to win in their last two games but a home fixture against a struggling West Brom will be perceived as a good opportunity to get back to winning ways, especially if talisman Willock starts after his return from a hamstring injury.

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