BARCLAYS PREMIER LEAGUE
Venue: Loftus Road Date: Monday, 1 October Coverage details: Live on BBC website, updates on Radio 5 live
TEAM NEWS
QPR are missing four defenders as Anton Ferdinand, Jose Bosingwa and Fabio all have hamstring problems, while Armand Traore has a leg injury.
Adel Taarabt, however, could return after recent hamstring strain.
West Ham midfielder Gary O'Neil has recovered from a knee injury, and Yossi Benayoun could make his first start since moving back to the club on loan.
Modibo Maiga could keep his place with on-loan Liverpool striker Andy Carroll (hamstring) still unlikely to play.
MATCH PREVIEW
Though reports say that Sam Allardyce's medium-term future at West Ham is in some doubt, with the manager expected to have to wait until his contract expires at the end of the season before discussing a new deal, life at Upton Park is relatively rosy.
The club bounced back immediately after being relegated to the Championship and now sit pretty in the Premier League's mid-table - 10th coming into this game - having made a decent start to their season.
But there's a pronounced contrast at the club which lies some way west of the Hammers within the capital's endless sprawl.
Bottom-of-the-table QPR escaped relegation by the skin of their teeth last season, and then spent a lot of money this summer to ensure that their team is upwardly mobile. Clearly, it has not worked out like that so far - the Hoops have two points from a possible 15 - but boss Mark Hughes insists they must not panic, and that circumstances are mitigating.
LAWRO'S PREDICTION
Mark Lawrenson
Football Analyst
"I thought QPR were very good in the first half against Tottenham last week. You could see their team coming together and, when they click, they look like they really should be halfway up the table rather than in the relegation zone."
Read Lawro's full prediction and score
"For the most part our performances have been fine up to a point," he said. "Obviously we need to see games out. We have selection problems at the moment in a key area of the field in defence.
"We have had too much of a turnover in terms of selection and personnel changes so that doesn't lend well to having that continuity of performance. We've created some decent football in the initial period, but it was always going to take time.
"We're not going to hide behind the fact it is not the best of starts nor the start we wanted.
"We understood that it could happen and that it would take us time to get the team functioning as we wanted. The way I w**k and my staff w**k is we don't get too high and we don't get too low.
"What we do every single day is make sure the team is prepared and we give them the best chance to be successful. Over the long term that has been proved in all the teams I have been involved with."
In short, Hughes is adamant his methods will put the struggling west Londoners on the right path. Pressure - what pressure?
MATCH FACTS
Head-to-head
These two clubs have only met six times in the Premier League, with all those matches between 1993 and 1996.
West Ham only won one of them, with the Hoops winning three times (they drew twice).
In 57 matches between the two clubs across all competitions, the Hammers have 20 victories to QPR's 19.
QPR
Have conceded 11 Premier League goals so far this season. Only Southampton (15) have shipped more.
The Hoops have scored three Premier League goals so far this season. Only Norwich (2) have fewer.
Bobby Zamora - QPR's only Premier League goalscorer this season - scored 18 goals in 79 league appearances for West Ham from 2005 to 2008. He has failed to score in two league matches against them since leaving, losing on both occasions.
West Ham
Have kept three clean-sheets in total this season - the same as Arsenal and West Brom. Only Chelsea (4) have kept more.
The club have not won in their last eight Premier League away matches (since a 3-1 victory at Blackpool in February 2011).
Kevin Nolan has scored three of the club's five Premier League goals this season, netting in each of their home matches. He is already a quarter of the way to his best Premier League scoring season of 12 goals (for Newcastle in 2010/11).
Last edited by Admin on Mon 01 Oct 2012, 12:36 pm; edited 5 times in total