QPR’s promotion hopes waning badly as Wigan wait to cash in
Published:Forget automatic promotion, at this rate QPR’s form is such that the Hoops may even careen out of the play-off picture altogether, while momentum-riding Wigan set about trying to reel second-placed Burnley in.
Aside from the obvious blow of losing top goal scorer Charlie Austin to a serious shoulder injury at the end of January, it’s difficult to fathom how a squad with the quality available to Harry Redknapp have so quickly vacated the automatic promotion spots.
A torrid run has seen the R’s pick up just eight points from the last 27 on offer, in turn facilitating a slide into fourth, with the gap to second-place Burnley now a full 10 points.
For these reasons the Queen’s Park natives have seen their odds to gain immediate promotion back to the Premier League skid out to 5/2, with chairman Tony Fernandes feeling moved to support his manager on Twitter.
“I stand by my players, full stop, and my manager. A leader stands behind his troops. Now is the time we should rally round Harry and the players.”
Rally they might, but shorn of their Irish international defender Richard Dunne for three games due to a red card against Sheffield United last time out, a sixth loss in seven away games could be on the cards next up at Middlesbrough.
And while QPR make a dog’s dinner of their promotion push, Uwe Rosler’s wand-waving over at Wigan makes the Latics the far likelier of the fallen Premier League duo to make the swiftest possible top-flight return.
Having harvested 19 of the last 21 points available to them, Wigan are flying in fifth-place and the 12/5 concerning their own promotion is far more palatable than QPR’s price as a result.
With QPR and Burnley still to play, Rosler’s revitalised Latics look the best value pick for promotion in the second tier.
All Odds and Markets are correct as of the date of publishing.
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