Championship · Matchday 12 
Our pick1–0Correct result
Swansea's summit lead under pressure as QPR look to close the gap
Swansea sit top of the Championship with a six-point cushion over ninth-placed QPR. Saturday's meeting at Loftus Road could decide whether the gap widens or starts to close.
📍 Loftus Road
Match report
QPR beat Swansea 5-0 in round 12 of the Championship. Richard Kone opened the scoring in the 2nd minute, assisted by Paul Smyth, and doubled the lead in the 9th minute, assisted by Kwame Poku. He made it three in the 15th minute from a penalty. Jimmy Dunne added the fourth in first-half stoppage time (45+1), assisted by Harvey Vale, and completed the scoring in the 86th minute, assisted by Richard Kone. No red cards were shown.
QPR had 40% possession to Swansea's 60%, but they were the more dangerous side, taking 12 shots to Swansea's 8 and forcing 5 shots on target to 3, with expected goals (xG) of 3.3 against 0.27. R. Kone was the top-rated player with a 9.4. Before kickoff, the PreviaXI model gave QPR a 39% chance of winning, 29% for a draw and 32% for Swansea, with a predicted score of 1-0, so the final margin was far wider than that pre-match view.
Goals
- 2'Richard Kone · Paul Smyth · QPR
- 9'Richard Kone · Kwame Poku · QPR
- 15'Richard Kone (pen.) · QPR
- 45+1'Jimmy Dunne · Harvey Vale · QPR
- 86'Jimmy Dunne · Richard Kone · QPR
Cards
- 14'Lawrence Vigouroux · Swansea
- 16'Richard Kone · QPR
- 34'Elijah Just · Swansea
- 54'Marko Stamenić · Swansea
- 59'Paul Smyth · QPR
Match stats
⭐ Top-rated player: R. Kone (QPR) 9.4
Ratings and statistics: API-Football.
Confirmed lineups
QPR · 4-1-4-1
- 1P. CharlesG
- 2K. AdamsonD
- 3J. DunneD
- 5R. EdwardsD
- 12B. KemperD
- 40J. VaraneM
- 17K. PokuM
- 18G. KamaraM
- 20H. ValeM
- 11P. SmythM
- 22R. KoneF
Coach: Julien Stéphan
Swansea · 4-3-3
- 22L. VigourouxG
- 26F. LissahD
- 5B. CabangoD
- 23S. WelshD
- 14J. TymonD
- 8E. JustM
- 6M. StamenićM
- 46S. EustáquioM
- 7M. WidellF
- 33A. IdahF
- 30Joseph OkopuF
Coach: Vítor Matos
Match facts
Recent form
Last 5 league games, latest on the right
Goals per game
| · | Scored | Conceded |
|---|---|---|
| QPR | 1.4 | 1.1 |
| Swansea | 1.5 | 0.7 |
League position
| Pos | Team | P | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Swansea | 11 | +8 | 23 |
| 9 | QPR | 11 | +3 | 17 |
Last meetings
- 2026QPR1-2Swansea
- 2025Swansea0-1QPR
- 2025QPR1-2Swansea
- 2024Swansea3-0QPR
- 2024Swansea0-1QPR
Absences
QPR
- OutI. Chair · Muscle Injury
- OutT. Lamptey · Inactive
- OutA. S. Mbengue · Knee Injury
- DoubtfulR. Burrell · Inactive
Swansea
- OutC. Burgess · Achilles Tendon Injury
- OutJ. Key · Muscle Injury
PreviaXI model
- Predicted score
- 1-0
- Expected goals (model)
- 1.28 – 1.14
- Double chance
- 12 · 71%1X 68% · X2 61%
- Over 2.5 goals
- 44%
- Both teams score
- 50%
- Expected corners
- 9.25.7 – 3.5 · Over 9.5: 44%
- Expected cards
- 3.71.8 – 1.9 · Over 3.5: 51%
Statistical model based on expected goals (xG), results and match statistics from the last two seasons. For information only. How our model works →
Swansea’s grip on the Championship summit will be tested when they travel to Loftus Road, where a QPR side in ninth place need a result to stay in touch with the leaders.
A gap that could widen or shrink
Swansea have 23 points from 11 matches and a goal difference of +8. QPR have 17 points and a +3 record, six points adrift. For the leaders, a win would stretch their advantage and reinforce their status as the side to beat. For QPR, three points would bring them back into the thick of the promotion picture and keep their ambitions alive.
Form on both sides
QPR’s recent run reads one defeat, one win and three draws. They have scored eight and conceded eight in their last five games, so their results have been tight rather than convincing.
Swansea are in far better shape. They have won four of their last five, and in that spell they have conceded just four goals. Their defence has been the foundation of their rise to the top.
Head-to-head
These sides have been closely matched in recent meetings. Swansea have won three of the last five, and QPR the other two. The most recent clash, in April 2026, ended 1-2 in Swansea’s favour at Loftus Road, after the teams had also split their previous meetings in 2025 and 2024.
Team news
QPR will be without I. Chair (muscle injury), T. Lamptey and A. S. Mbengue (knee injury), while R. Burrell is a doubt. Swansea are missing C. Burgess (Achilles tendon injury) and J. Key (muscle injury).
Our prediction
PreviaXI’s model favours QPR, and the reasoning is clear: the home side are expected to create the better chances, and their attacking output at home is enough to make them dangerous. Swansea’s defensive record makes them difficult to break down, so this looks like a tight, possibly physical encounter rather than an open one. A narrow home win fits that picture.
QPR 1-0 Swansea
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