Queen’s Park Rangers v Aston Villa Betting Tips

Sunday’s Championship match is between two clubs who have already had to change manager this season yet still find themselves stuck in mid-table

Despite appointing Ian Holloway back on 11th November to help boost their season, Queen’s Park Rangers are having a nightmare at the moment having lost their last four league matches which puts them down in 18th and just three points above the relegation zone.

It had all started so well under the Bristolian with a 2-1 win against promotion hopefuls Norwich City back in mid-November, however, things have gone rapidly downhill since then and Rangers have plummeted like a stone; resulting in some fans even calling for Holloway to go.

Goals have been a big problem for the London side with just one goal in those four defeats. Defensively they do not look too bad and only the 3-0 loss away at Ipswich Town can be classed as a ‘thrashing’, otherwise they have only lost by one goal. If they can get a decent striker in January then they can start turning those narrow losses into draws or maybe even wins.

Home form has been poor for Rangers this season, and not just under Holloway, with just three wins at Loftus Road all season. However, they may fancy their chances against an Aston Villa side who have stuttered recently.

Steve Bruce got off to a wonderful start in his role as Aston Villa boss and he led his side to a run of seven matches without defeat, however, they have now lost two of their last four. The Lions lost in poor fashion against Norwich City in midweek with Bruce bemoaning the lack of effort on the part of his players, apologising for what he called a ‘pathetic’ display. If Villa have any chance of making the play-offs this season, they need to up their standards again.

Former Birmingham City manager Bruce has come in and made Villa a harder side to beat, despite recent results going against them, with his side still yet to concede more than one goal in any match under his leadership. The Midlanders spent a lot of money on strikers in the summer (£22m), they do tend to struggle for goals, however, Bruce has had to focus on the shambolic defence first and will no doubt turn his attentions to the misfiring front-line in due course.

Villa have had a poor away record for a long time and, despite Bruce coming in, their victory away at Reading back in mid-October is still their only away win in the league since beating AFC Bournemouth 1-0 on the opening day of the 2015/16 season. However, going to a Q.P.R. team with troubles of their own, Villa will feel they can improve that record on Sunday.

The away side have been made the favourites here and, even though they are poor on the road, I would back definitely back them at 7/5. Bruce is a wily manager who knows how to take points from important and difficult situations. Additionally, Rangers lack confidence at the moment and are likely to be on the end of a Villa backlash after their loss against Norwich.

With Q.P.R. struggling for goals, I cannot see them scoring against a Villa defence that now looks well drilled under Bruce’s guidance, whilst I also do not think Villa are capable of handing out a thrashing. With this in mind, the combined scored bet of  ‘Aston Villa to Win 1-0, 2-0 or 2-1’, at 19/10, is one to be on.

See more tips here.