English Premier
2012-08-18 - QPR vs Swansea
A Sports Betting Pick by Auls
Football: English Premier League
Saturday 18 August 2012 - Kick Off 3pm
QPR
QPR survived by the skin of their teeth last season, but I am sure I am not the only Manchester United fan that still wishes they hadn't heard about that until the final whistle had blown on the end of season. Mark Hughes didn't have much of a chance as manager of Manchester City, but I think he is a good manager and one that should get Rangers far up the table from a relegation scrap this season.
The team finished 1 point clear of Bolton Wanderers last season to ensure survival, but they did have a 7-5-7 record at Loftus Road where they scored 24 goals and conceded 25. You have to expect an overall improvement in the team after they were allowed to invest in some solid Premier League players in the off-season.
It has been said that Mark Hughes' methods take a few months to really sink into the players as he makes sure they work really hard in training to be that little fitter than their opponents come match day. With the added 2 months to work with his players in the off-season, QPR look set to survive another year in the League.
Rob Green, David Hoilett, Ji Sung Park and Fabio Da Silva should all make their debut for Rangers in this game, while Alejandro Faurlin is back in contention having missed a large chunk of last season with an injury.
Swansea
It was a change of manager at the Liberty Stadium that took the headlines for Swansea as Brendan Rodgers took over from Kenny Dalglish as the next manager of Liverpool. They have employed Michael Laudrup to continue the passing game that Rodgers had used, but it will be interesting to see how they do in the second season in the Premier League now that their opponents will know what to expect.
The 'second season syndrome' has been a problem for promoted sides in recent seasons and they have lost influential Joe Allen from the middle of the park. They finished 11th in the Premier League last season having been one of the favourites for relegation, and they were 4-4-11 away from home, scoring 17 goals and conceding 33.
Swansea began to struggle a little bit away from home at the end of last season, losing 3 of their last 4 League games, but that might have been down to the accumulation of a long season. There were some bad press that the team were predictable in their play and didn't have a 'plan B' and that is something that Laudrup will have to work on.
Michu was the main signing for the Swans and should be available for selection. The losses of Steven Caulker and Gylfi Sigurdsson will have an effect as will be the absence of Joe Allen.
Head to Head
QPR hammered Swansea 3-0 here towards the end of last season, although that was a game that was much more important to the home side as they were fighting relegation.
However, that means they have now won 4 of their last 5 home games against Swansea, scoring 7 goals here in the last two seasons while keeping 2 clean sheets.
Prediction
I feel these two teams may be going in opposite directions in the Premier League this season and I really like some of the signings made by Mark Hughes.
QPR should be much further from the relegation battle as they do have a Premier League feel to their squad now, while Swansea may just have a tough season in store as a new manager tries to get his methods across to them, while also trying to avoid 'second season syndrome' after a successful year last time out.
The home team showed enough adventure at Loftus Road to think they are capable of winning this game and they look worth chancing at odds against in this one.
Rangers have beaten Swansea comfortably at home in the last couple of seasons and they may be able to record another win with a clean sheet in this one.
The Statistics :
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The Pick :
QPR 2-0 Swansea
