Middlesbrough v QPR team news with 3 doubts and 14 outs as hosts handed 'nightmare' blow
QPR and Middlesbrough are both looking to bounce back from defeat on Tuesday night.
QPR have now lost three Championship fixtures in a row after a 1-0 defeat to West Brom on Saturday and the games don’t get any easier with fixtures against Middlesbrough and Leeds United up next.
Marti Cifuentes takes his side to the Riverside Stadium on Tuesday night with the hosts targeting the play-offs and needing a response after losing 1-0 to Swansea City at the weekend.
Both QPR and Middlesbrough have fitness worries to contend with. Here’s your team news.
Middlesbrough team news
Middlesbrough suffered nothing short of a nightmare injury in their loss to Swansea City. Dael Fry started that game as the club’s only fit senior centre-back but limped off in the second half with a calf issue.
George Edmundson was said to be out for a ‘number of weeks’ at the start of March so won’t face QPR. Rav van den Berg has a knee injury and his return date is not known while Luke Ayling picked up a problem against Derby County at the start of the month and is not expected to have recovered in time to face the R’s.
The injuries don’t end there. Darragh Lenihan, Sol Brynn, Seny Dieng, Riley McGree, Alex Bangura and Ben Doak are all on the road to recovery from injury.
Doubts - Dael Fry. Outs - George Edmundson, Rav van den Berg, Luke Ayling, Darragh Lenihan, Sol Brynn, Seny Dieng, Riley McGree, Alex Bangura, Ben Doak.
QPR team news
QPR were without striker Michael Frey and midfielder Jonathan Varane against West Brom with the club confirming late ‘minor injuries’ to the duo. Neither made the trip to the Hawthorns as a ‘precaution’ but it remains to be seen whether they are fit for Middlesbrough with such a quick turnaround.
Both of those injures come in positions where the R’s are already depleted due to injuries. Last week, it was confirmed that midfield linchpin Sam Field might not play again this season.
A statement on the club website confirmed: “Unfortunately, Sam Field sustained an ankle injury following a tackle in our fixture at Portsmouth on February 22nd. The midfielder will now start a rehabilitation process with a projected return to full fitness in 6-9 weeks.”
Striker Rayan Kolli has enjoyed a breakthrough season but hasn’t featured in the squad since the 2-1 win over Blackburn Rovers last month. The 20-year-old is set to rejoin full training with the squad in the middle of March which points to a comeback soon, but Middlesbrough is likely to come too early.
Zan Celar and Jake Clarke-Salter remain sidelined with longer term problems. Celar is said to be ‘progressing well’ but no comeback date was issued with Clarke-Salter making ‘early progress’ following hip surgery in January.
Meanwhile, January transfer signing Harvey Vale continues his rehab on a back injury having arrived from Chelsea but isn’t expected to feature this season.
Doubt - Jonathan Varane, Michael Frey. Outs - Sam Field, Rayan Kolli, Zan Celar, Jake Clarke-Salter, Harvey Vale.
In other news, this is why Tottenham Hotspur loanee Yang Min-heyok is taking the next steps of a ‘golden boy’ journey at QPR.