Premier League preview: QPR v Chelsea

John Terry

It's QPR versus Chelsea at Loftus Road on Saturday. Or Anton Ferdinand versus John Terry in handshake-gate as some media sources have been billing it.

This will be the third time the two sides have met since the unsavoury Terry and Ferdinand racism incident happened almost 12 months ago and has since gone through a court of law, where the former England captain was found innocent. Yet the FA enquiry is yet to be heard - why and how this ugly issue has stretched on for this long is a question the authorities need to answer. Hopefully football can do the talking this weekend.

Both Terry and Ferdinand will renew acquaintances at Loftus Road, in front of a ferocious west-London derby atmosphere.

There are certainly plenty of sub-plots to this historically volatile derby that stretches back through the decades, even without the Ferdinand/Terry saga. And though it might surprise to some, it actually involved the game of football rather than politics. The two teams met every season between 1973 and 1995 in the league, and were involved in some titanic battles, where players such as Stan Bowles, Kerry Dixon and Gary Bannister made heroes of themselves within the supporter base due to their derby exploits. Last season was the first league fixture for 15 years between the sides. Chelsea had two sent-off in the reverse fixture which was won 1-0 by Rangers, and then gained revenge in the FA Cup, where a debatable penalty decision won by Daniel Sturridge was the only goal of a pretty forgettable game.

Terry, of course, then scored one of six goals they put past QPR at Stamford Bridge in April. There are certainly scores to be settled emotionally and mentally from last season but it’s hard to see how QPR can stop the rampant attacking force of Chelsea, who are 1.87 to continue their 100% record in the league this season.

From a betting angle though, backing the game to produce goals looks the play.

The Blues have scored in each of their last 13 games, including eight in three league games this term. Boss Roberto Di Matteo has installed an attacking ruthlessness into his side, spearheaded by their new creator extraordinaire Eden Hazard. QPR have conceded nine in three games, and manager Mark Hughes still has yet to find a settled back four to build his team around. Chelsea themselves though, have yet to find the balance in their play defensively and, despite the return of Terry and Ashley Cole from injury, are vulnerable. This should result in an open game between the sides, who both possess good attacking weapons.

The Over 2.5 Goals market (1.97) price looks about right, so backing Chelsea to win in a game where both teams score looks the sensible play. Splitting your stakes between Chelsea to win 2-1 (9.6) and 3-1 (18.0) looks the right way to attack this market.

There are six matches scheduled to kick-off at 3pm. Man City will probably have one eye on a mid-week trip to Real Madrid against Stoke and could be on the end of a shock at the Britannia. Aston Villa take on Swansea, Arsenal’s clean sheet record probably won’t come under threat versus Southampton, whilst Manchester United take on Wigan and West Brom travel to Fulham.

Recommendation:

0.5pts on Chelsea to win 2-1 (9.60)

0.5pts on Chelsea to win 3-1 (18.0)

Lewis Jones

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