Match ends, Queens Park Rangers 1, Aston Villa 0.
QPRQueens Park Rangers1Aston VillaAston Villa0
Queens Park Rangers continued their fine form in the Championship by beating Aston Villa at Loftus Road to record their fourth win in a five-match unbeaten run.
After Jack Grealish had hit the post with a long-range free-kick for the visitors, Pawel Wszolek put the R's ahead seven minutes before the break with an emphatic finish off the underside of the bar.
Tammy Abraham deflected a free-kick wide after the break and Rangers keeper Joe Lumley denied Yannick Bolasie with a low stop as Villa sought an equaliser.
But the hosts survived pressure in the second half to move up to seventh in the table, one point off the play-offs, while Villa have won just one of their past seven games.
After tasting victory in his first game in charge against Swansea, Dean Smith has now seen his Villa side fall to back-to-back defeats and slip to 16th, six points off the top six before the rest of the weekend's fixtures.
Both sides had chances in a lively opening quarter of an hour, with John McGinn and Grealish firing wide and Luke Freeman and Eberechi Eze testing Villa keeper Orjan Nyland.
The hosts took the lead when the Villa defence momentarily switched off, with Wszolek running between James Chester and Neil Taylor to latch on to Geoff Cameron's lofted through ball and power in from 14 yards out.
Toni Leistner and Angel Rangel put in crucial blocks to help secure a third successive clean sheet for Steve McClaren's side, who have recovered remarkably after losing their first four games of the season.
QPR manager Steve McClaren:
"I am so proud of the players and the staff. It has been a tough week and we have got three wins and three clean sheets.
"We had to win a big game at home and this was it. We needed to score first and defend the box for our lives to hold on.
"The players showed great character and it is a platform in terms of what we can do. We need to take advantage and not let things slip."
Aston Villa boss Dean Smith told BBC WM:
"We were good tonight and created some big chances. We were the aggressors throughout the game.
"It is frustrating because we gave a poor goal away and did not make the most of our opportunities.
"We gave it everything and on another day we win that game 3-0. Sometimes it is small margins which separate you.
"The spirit was there for all to see and I won't get too downhearted about it because the players are showing me what good players they are."
Line-ups
QPR
Formation 4-2-3-1
- 13Lumley
- 22Rangel
- 37Leistner
- 33LynchBooked at 29mins
- 3Bidwell
- 5CameronSubstituted forScowenat 70'minutes
- 21LuongoBooked at 82mins
- 23WszolekBooked at 80mins
- 10EzeSubstituted forSmithat 90+1'minutes
- 7Freeman
- 16HemedSubstituted forWellsat 62'minutes
Substitutes
- 1Ingram
- 4Hall
- 8Cousins
- 11Scowen
- 17Smith
- 20Osayi-Samuel
- 32Wells
Aston Villa
Formation 4-4-1-1
- 1Nyland
- 21Hutton
- 4Tuanzebe
- 5Chester
- 3Taylor
- 27El MohamadySubstituted forBolasieat 62'minutes
- 20BjarnasonSubstituted forWhelanat 41'minutes
- 7McGinn
- 26Kodjia
- 10Grealish
- 18Abraham
Substitutes
- 6Whelan
- 8Lansbury
- 9Hogan
- 11Bolasie
- 14Hourihane
- 15Jedinak
- 31Bunn
- Referee:
- Darren England
- Attendance:
- 16,036
Match Stats
Home TeamQPRAway TeamAston Villa
- Possession
- Home32%
- Away68%
- Shots
- Home16
- Away18
- Shots on Target
- Home7
- Away5
- Corners
- Home5
- Away9
- Fouls
- Home23
- Away12
Live Text
Post update
Full Time
Second Half ends, Queens Park Rangers 1, Aston Villa 0.
Post update
Offside, Aston Villa. Jack Grealish tries a through ball, but Jonathan Kodjia is caught offside.
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Attempt missed. Jack Grealish (Aston Villa) left footed shot from outside the box misses to the right following a set piece situation.
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Glenn Whelan (Aston Villa) wins a free kick on the left wing.
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Foul by Pawel Wszolek (Queens Park Rangers).
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Corner, Aston Villa. Conceded by Angel Rangel.
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Attempt blocked. Tammy Abraham (Aston Villa) right footed shot from the centre of the box is blocked. Assisted by John McGinn.
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John McGinn (Aston Villa) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
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Foul by Matt Smith (Queens Park Rangers).
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Corner, Queens Park Rangers. Conceded by Ørjan Nyland.
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Attempt saved. Josh Scowen (Queens Park Rangers) right footed shot from outside the box is saved in the top centre of the goal. Assisted by Nahki Wells.
Substitution
Substitution, Queens Park Rangers. Matt Smith replaces Eberechi Eze.
Post update
Jonathan Kodjia (Aston Villa) wins a free kick in the attacking half.
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Foul by Toni Leistner (Queens Park Rangers).
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John McGinn (Aston Villa) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
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Foul by Pawel Wszolek (Queens Park Rangers).
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Ørjan Nyland (Aston Villa) wins a free kick in the defensive half.
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Foul by Massimo Luongo (Queens Park Rangers).
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Corner, Queens Park Rangers. Conceded by Neil Taylor.
Comments
Join the conversation
As for Villa, yet another big old club who seem to think that getting back up after being relegated is going to be easy, only to find out how tough the championship really is !!
Villa hardly had a shot to really test the goalie despite the possession they had .
Makes my day when people post on here talking about subjects they no nothing about.
Like how to spell the verb "know", you mean?
and
John Terry we know what you said!