A key battle at the bottom end of the Championship table will take place in South Yorkshire on Saturday, as 22nd-placed Rotherham United welcome 23rd-placed Queens Park Rangers.

The visitors travel under new management following Gareth Ainsworth's departure, and they sit a point worse off than the hosts, who suffered a harmful defeat to basement side Sheffield Wednesday on Sunday.

Match preview

Rotherham United will return to action on Saturday on the back of a harmful defeat last weekend, as they now sit five points adrift of safety in the Championship relegation zone with just nine points on the board from their opening 13 outings.

While they do have a game in hand on most sides around them, as their return from the October international break was delayed by a postponement of their scheduled meeting with Ipswich Town, the Millers have shipped 24 goals, with only two sides including Saturday's visitors having conceded more from their 14 matches, while only the bottom two have scored fewer than their 12 goals.

Following that postponement and sat on just six points from 11 fixtures, the South Yorkshire side then hosted Coventry City and picked up a crucial 2-0 victory last Wednesday, thanks to second-half goals from Lee Peltier and Oliver Rathbone, before making the short trip to Hillsborough on Sunday to meet basement side Sheffield Wednesday in a crucial encounter.

The Owls headed into that game on just three points with the Championship's only remaining winless record, but Matt Taylor's men would fall short in disappointing fashion as former Miller Michael Smith's first-half brace condemned them to a 2-0 defeat.

Now sitting five points behind 21st-placed Huddersfield Town and just one ahead of Saturday's visitors and three ahead of their South Yorkshire rivals, Rotherham United will be desperate to correct their form on Saturday at home to the 23rd-placed side before meeting Ipswich in their game in hand in midweek.

They welcome a Queens Park Rangers side who will look to leapfrog their hosts on Saturday in their first game under new management.

The London outfit endured a dismal start to the 2023-24 Championship campaign in their bid to avoid relegation under Gareth Ainsworth, as they headed into the recent international break with just eight points from 11 games having managed two victories and two draws.

Things did not pick up for the R's on their return to action either, as their losing run has since been stretched to six Championship matches, starting with defeats away at Huddersfield Town and West Bromwich Albion, before a 2-1 home loss to Leicester City spelled the end for Ainsworth, as Harry Winks netted the decisive goal for the visitors 10 minutes from time after Andre Dozzell had previously drawn QPR level.

Following Ainsworth's departure, the R's now find themselves six points adrift of safety in 23rd spot after 14 games, and they quickly took steps to appoint his replacement Marti Cifuentes, who takes over a side with the Championship's second-worst record at both ends of the pitch, having conceded 26 goals thus far while only scoring 10.

He will now aim to inspire a quick improvement in his first game as new Queens Park Rangers manager and oversee what would be a crucial win to leapfrog Rotherham and move closer to safety.

Team News

Rotherham United will continue to deal with a long list of injuries, and their selection concerns were only worsened against Sheffield Wednesday as Lee Peltier was forced off, joining fellow defenders Grant Hall, Tyler Blackett and Cameron Humphreys, midfielder Jamie Lindsay and wingers Andre Green and Shane Ferguson in the engine room.

In his absence, with limited options remaining at the back, Daniel Ayala should come in and make his debut for the club after arriving late in October, with the Spaniard set to partner Sean Morrison in the middle of a back four with Cohen Bramall and Dexter Lembikisa operating on the left and right-hand sides respectively.

Taylor may opt to deploy an unchanged midfield trio of Oliver Rathbone, Cafu and Christ Tiehi, although Hakeem Odoffin and Sam Clucas will also push for starting spots, while Jordan Hugill will continue to lead the line having managed three league goals so far this season.

We are yet to see how Marti Cifuentes will line Queens Park Rangers up, but he will be unable to call on the midfield duo of Andre Dozzell and Adam Forshaw, both of whom are suspended with the former sent off in the defeat to Leicester last time out and the latter having accumulated five league yellow cards.

There are also major concerns in defence, with Morgan Fox, Steve Cook and Jake Clarke-Salter all likely sidelined by injuries, although Jimmy Dunne will at least return to contention and will either partner Osman Kakay in the middle of the defence or join Kakay and Reggie Cannon in a back three.

Either way, Dunne's return will allow Sam Field to move back into midfield and fill the gap left by Colback and Dozzell, likely alongside Elijah Dixon-Bonner, while Lyndon Dykes should continue to lead the line with the likes of Ilias Chair, Chris Willock and Charlie Kelman fighting to join him and earn the favour of the new boss.

Rotherham United possible starting lineup:
Johansson; Lembikisa, Ayala, Morrison, Bramall; Cafu, Tiehi, Rathbone; Onyedinma, Hugill, Nombe

Queens Park Rangers possible starting lineup:
Begovic; Cannon, Dunne, Kakay; Adomah, Dixon-Bonner, Field, Paal; Chair, Willock; Dykes

We say: Rotherham United 1-1 Queens Park Rangers

QPR may feel refreshed following Ainsworth's exit and Cifuentes's swift appointment, and they will travel north with a squad keen to impress against a Millers side who are also struggling for form.

Both teams are missing several important players and will feel they cannot afford to lose Saturday's meeting, and we see a low-scoring draw as the most likely outcome at the New York Stadium.


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