QPR given huge injury boost ahead of Championship fixtures vs Millwall and Blackburn Rovers

The Queens Park Rangers head coach Marti Cifuentes has given his fans some necessary positivity following his side’s 2-1 defeat to Crystal Palace in the EFL Cup third round. It was a tough battle at Loftus Road as the home side welcomed back former Hoops star Eberechi Eze for the first time since his departure in 2020.

However, while many fans were excited to see the grand return of the England international, he would ultimately be their undoing after assisting Eddie Nketiah’s opening goal in the first half and scoring what would prove to be the winner shortly after Sam Field’s equaliser.

Cifuentes’ squad must now return their focus to the Championship as they prepare to welcome Millwall to W12 this weekend. With just one win from their opening five matches, the Rs will be desperate to get some more points on the board and as they hope to do so, they are now set to welcome back Jack Colback to the squad with his head coach confirming his absence against Crystal Palace was more precautionary.

The midfielder played the full 90 minutes against Sheffield Wednesday on Saturday but was not even in the match-day squad that faced Palace last night (Tuesday 17 September). When asked about the 34-year-old’s omission, Cifuentes confirmed that while the Rs star had sustained a knock on his shoulder, he highly anticipates that he will be back in time for Saturday’s London derby.

“He got a feeling against Sheffield, a knock on his shoulder”, Cifuentes confirmed. “So he was feeling a bit in pain and we felt the best (thing) was to give him proper treatment so he is ready for Saturday”.

The Spanish head coach also confirmed that 19-year-old Rayan Kolli’s continued absence from the squad stems from wanting to rest the forward following his recent experiences with the Algerian U20 squad. Cifuentes expects to have both Colback and Kolli available for selection ahead of Saturday’s 3pm meet with Millwall at Loftus Road.