Queens Park Rangers

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Puma's Rainbow ball will return to the English Football League as part of an on-going campaign against discrimination and homophobia.

The special edition rainbow ball was introduced in 2024 to mark LGBTQ+ History Month and will be used at every EFL game from 20 February until 1 March.

Manufacturers Puma will make a donation to Football v Homophobia for every goal scored with their rainbow ball across the Championship, League One and League Two.

The donations will help support education against homophobia and promote inclusion across the season.

The EFL have released a video, external to coincide with the campaign which features a Preston North End fan who was charged with a hate crime following homophobic chanting during an FA Cup fixture against Chelsea.

The rainbow ball will also feature in EFL partner EA Sports' FC 26 video game.

"The rainbow ball is a powerful symbol of the values we uphold across the EFL all season long," EFL chief executive officer Trevor Birch said.

"It not only reflects our longstanding commitment to ensuring the League is representative of all its diverse communities, but also reminds us that we all have a role to play in creating an environment in which everyone feels they truly belong."

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QPR head coach Julien Stephan admitted his side made it 'too easy' for Blackburn in their 3-1 home defeat to the Championship strugglers.

Rangers cancelled out Mathias Jorgensen's opener through Koki Saito's clinical finish, but then conceded again either side of half-time as Jorgensen scored his second and Ryoya Morishita was left unmarked to head in.

"I think we started the game well," Stephan said. "In the first 20-25 minutes we showed some good movement and we had two or three good chances to score the first goal.

"It's a question of efficiency – Blackburn had two shots in the first half and scored two goals. It's unusual for us to concede three goals and it was too easy for the opponents to score these three goals.

"The players found the solution to equalise and it was a good goal, but when we conceded the third goal I think we dropped mentally and we played too many long balls, we didn't find the connections.

"Now it's question of how we are able to react and improve and make sure we don't drop like this mentally after we concede a goal."

Blackburn Rovers will hope to escape the bottom three as they make the trip to Queens Park Rangers on Saturday (15:00 GMT).

Rovers, who are currently without a manager, have only one win across their past 10 league games and are kept in the danger zone by goal difference.

That victory came against basement side Sheffield Wednesday but the Hoops will prove a much tougher task, with the hosts keen on staying in contention for the play-off places.

• Following their 1-0 win in November, QPR are looking to complete their first league double over Blackburn since 1970-71.

• Blackburn have lost three of their last four league games against QPR (W1), as many as they had in their previous 21 (W12 D6).

• Only three sides (Coventry, Ipswich and Birmingham) have scored more home goals than Queens Park Rangers in the Championship this season (28).

• Blackburn have won just two of their last 16 league games (D7 L7), a run which started with a 1-0 defeat to QPR at the end of November.

• Nicolas Madsen has twice as many assists (6) and has created twice as many chances (50) than any other QPR player in the Championship this season.

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QPR manager Julien Stephan defended their seven-game winless away run in the Championship following their goalless draw with Charlton at The Valley.

Rangers missed the chance to move closer to the play-offs, but Stephan preferred to concentrate on their third successive clean sheet on the road.

The Frenchman told BBC Radio London: "It was two different halves. The first half, too shy in between with the first line of pressure, not enough intensity, so they used a lot of long balls. So, except for the first five or 10 minutes, the first half was not good enough.

"But we showed a strong reaction in the second half. I think we fixed a couple of problems during half-time in the dressing room and the players did very well.

"When we had the ball, we had some good movements. We had probably the best situations, especially at the end of the game. But we have to have more efficiency in this kind of game if we want to win and transform a draw into a win because I think in the second half, we had enough to win this game.

"It's a third draw in a row for us away, a third clean sheet in a row as well away. Unfortunately, it's the third game as well without a goal scored, but if we can win at home and draw away, then that's not too bad."

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A London derby kicks-off the Championship weekend on Friday night as QPR head from West to South East to take on Charlton (20:01 GMT).

The Addicks are 17th with a three-point cushion over the relegation zone after their eye-catching 2-0 win at Leicester on Saturday, which ended a run of nine away games without a win.

The Hoops are 11th, four points outside the play-offs after winning for the first time in five on Saturday, coming from behind to stun leaders Coventry 2-1.

Julien Stephan's side don't have a good record at The Valley, however, and are winless in seven away games in all competitions, though three of their past four league games were drawn.

• Charlton have lost just one of their past 10 home league games against QPR (W6 D3), and have won each of the past three in a row without conceding.

• Following their 3-1 win in August, QPR are looking to complete their first league double over Charlton since 2007/08.

• Charlton have only failed to score in one of their past 24 home league games, netting in each of the past 11 since a 1-0 loss to Leicester in August.

• QPR are winless in their past six away league games (D3 L3). After both scoring and conceding in the first four in this run, the past two have both finished 0-0.

• Eight of Charlton's nine league wins this season have been to nil – the Addicks have won just one of their 20 league games when conceding at least once this term (D7 L12).

Queens Park Rangers head coach Julien Stephan has warned his players to be ready for a "different" game when they visit Charlton Athletic on Friday.

The R's go into the match following an impressive 2-1 comeback win against league leaders Coventry City on Saturday. They are 11th in the table, four points off the top six.

"We need to be ready to play a man's game, a very physical game probably," Stephan told BBC Radio London. "It's a derby game, and they have their way to play. It's different compared to Coventry, but this is the Championship.

"It's very hard but this is the challenge for all the teams. If you play against different styles of football every week, you need to find solutions and keep a strong mentality.

"We are into the last three months of the season now. It's not about the position in the table, it's just a question of freshness, ambition and mentality."

Charlton also come into the game on a high following their key 2-0 win at Leicester City which took Nathan Jones' side up to 18th, three points clear of the relegation places.

Stephan said: "We need to be able to deal with all the situations. It's also an away game so a different atmosphere. We need to be ready, and to play with ambition. That is very important for us, and for Charlton as well."

QPR's win over Coventry followed a stoppage-time defeat by Wrexham in the previous match.

Frenchman Stephan, 45, is in his first spell in English football after arriving from Rennes in the summer, and says inconsistency is the nature of the game.

"Football is strange. One week you can be 2-1 up at 90+1 and lose in 90+4 (against Wrexham) or be 1-0 down to the best team in the league and win 2-1 (against) Coventry," he added.

"We also saw it when we came from behind at Bristol City in October. When you experience that as a team, you are able to repeat that in the long term, and push the players to show their character and quality.

"I tell the players they must always trust and believe they can change momentum very quickly."

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Today is the final chance of the season for your Championship team to do transfer business.

The window closes at 19:00 GMT, meaning teams - and fans - can avoid the usual late-night transfer scramble.

It has already been a busy window - for some teams anyway - but whether it turns out to be a day of transfer action or a pretty quiet one for your club, you will be able to keep across it all on BBC Sport.

Follow our live text coverage throughout the day here

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Queens Park Rangers head coach Julien Stephan has praised his side after they came from a goal down to beat Championship leaders Coventry City 2-1.

Stephan's side had gone behind after Josh Eccles' header early in the second half.

But goals from Richard Kone and Nicolas Madsen secured a memorable win for the R's - who had been beaten 7-1 by Coventry earlier this season.

"I think it was a great game, a great win. All the credit to the players because I think they played with a lot of ambition today, quality as well," Stephan told BBC Radio London.

"I think we had probably three or four good situations in the first half, concede a goal early in the second half with the first situation for them, but the players showed today great, great, great character and great desire to change the momentum.

"If I have to sum it up it's the situation when we equalised through Richard Kone and how Nico Madsen ran to take the ball and put the ball immediately in the middle.

"It means a lot for me in terms of character and how the players wanted not only a draw, but a win today, and they did everything to have this win, so big, big credit to the players."

Image source, Opta

Table-topping Coventry and QPR will both be seeking a spark as the Sky Blues head to West London on Saturday (15:00 GMT).

Monday's defeat at Norwich made it seven games without a win on the road in all competitions for Frank Lampard's side, four of them defeats, though they remain three points ahead of second-placed Middlesbrough, with Ipswich a further five back.

The R's are 12th, four points adrift of the play-off places going into the weekend programme, but have won just one of their seven games since Christmas, against rock-bottom Sheffield Wednesday, and have lost two of their past three at home after a four-match winning streak.

• QPR were beaten by a six-goal margin in this season's reverse fixture against Coventry (1-7 in August 2025), which remains their joint-heaviest defeat in a Championship match (since 2004-05).

• Coventry have already scored seven goals against QPR this season; the last time they scored 10+ across home/away games against an opponent in a single league campaign was in 1963/64, also against QPR (10).

• QPR have only won one of their past seven games in the Championship (D3 L3). Since Boxing Day, only Blackburn and Sheffield Wednesday (both 0) have fewer league wins in the second tier.

• Coventry have lost three of their past six league games (W2 D1), more defeats than they suffered across their first 23 matches in the Championship this season (W15 D6 L2).

• Based on xG on target faced (excl. own goals), Coventry's Carl Rushworth has prevented more goals than any other goalkeeper in the Championship this season (+6.6 – 32 conceded from 38.6 xG on target).

Image source, EFL

A new initiative highlighting the work of football club charities has been launched by the English Football League (EFL).

'Scan to Smile' will be rolled out in stadiums across the EFL from Friday until the end of January, with supporters invited to scan QR codes on posters displayed around grounds.

Each scan will unlock a short, uplifting story from a person whose life has been positively impacted by the support of their local club charity.

The subjects tackled include mental health support, combating loneliness, improving physical wellbeing, employability and confidence.

The EFL said it hoped the initiative would use "the reach and influence of football to offer fans a moment of positivity on matchday".

Trevor Birch, chief executive at the EFL, said: "Behind every club are people whose lives have been positively changed through the work and dedication of their local EFL club charity.

"This initiative gives supporters the chance to see that impact first-hand and reminds us that football truly is a force for good."

QPR have made a £1m offer to Dundee for centre-back Luke Graham, but Portsmouth are expected to make another bid after having a £400,000 offer rejected, while Sheffield United, Aberdeen and Hearts are also interested in the 21-year-old. (LondonWorld), external

Read all the latest EFL transfer rumours in Friday's gossip column here.

This will be Wrexham's first trip to Loftus Road in 22 years and they will be looking to avoid falling to a second successive league double, albeit the last one was in 2004.

QPR's past two league games have finished goalless against Stoke and Oxford United respectively.

• QPR have won each of their past four league games against Wrexham in succession, as many as across their prior 12 matches combined between 1960 and 2001 (D4 L4).

• Wrexham have won just two of their nine away league games against QPR in club history, winning 2-1 in September 1962 and 1-0 in October 1980.

• QPR have kept a clean sheet in each of their past three league games, drawing the last two 0-0. They last went four without conceding in December 2024.

• Wrexham have won each of their past two away league games and will be looking to win three in succession in the second tier of English football for the very first time.

• Wrexham's Sam Smith has scored nine goals in his past 16 league starts, netting in each of his past three in a row.