Emmanuel-Thomas’ late strike gives QPR dramatic victory

QPR 4 Bolton 3

Jay Emmanuel-Thomas smashed home an injury-time winner for QPR, who came back from two down before snatching a victory to ease the pressure on Chris Ramsey.

There were three goals inside the opening 13 minutes at Loftus Road, where Gary Madine and the Hammersmith-born Liam Feeney scored for Bolton before Emmanuel-Thomas pulled one back.

Leroy Fer equalised just before half-time and Tjaronn Chery struck on 62 minutes, brilliantly steering a right-footed shot into the far corner of the net from near the left-hand edge of the penalty area.

Substitute Wellington Silva, on loan from Arsenal, seemed to have rescued a point for Wanderers after darting in from the left and thumping an unstoppable shot into the bottom corner with five minutes remaining.

But Emmanuel-Thomas, from a similar position to Chery’s earlier goal, sent a glorious effort past keeper Ben Amos in the final seconds.

Ramsey, without top scorer Charlie Austin and under fire from fans following a poor start to the season, made four changes to his starting line-up and an awful start was the last thing the Rangers head coach needed.

The diabolical defending which has marred​ QPR’s campaign so far was evident again when Madine was left unmarked to head in Feeney’s left-wing cross on eight minutes.

Worse followed for the hosts three minutes later when keeper Rob Green was unable to hold Darren Pratley’s shot and Feeney was on hand to score.

But Emmanuel-Thomas, making his first league start since being signed in the summer, hauled the R’s back into the game by heading in Chery’s cross.

Amos had produced an early save to keep out Nedum Onuoha’s header from Daniel Tozser’s free-kick when the scoreline was goalless.

He did so again to prevent Onuoha making it 2-2 after the Rangers captain was again found by a Tozser free-kick.

And Gabriele Angella headed over from another Tozser free-kick four minutes before the interval.

QPR’s equaliser arrived when Fer eventually bundled the ball in after Amos had saved his header from Matt Phillips’ cross.

Forward Emmanuel-Thomas, playing because Austin and Jamie Mackie are both injured, was at the centre of much of Rangers’ best work.

Tozser, meanwhile, was recalled along with defender Grant Hall and the fit-again Fer, with Alejandro Faurlin, James Perch and Massimo Luongo dropping to the bench.

Any hopes Ramsey had that the changes might lead to an immediate improvement were quickly crushed.

But his team, while always looking vulnerable at the back, found a way back into the match.

After Chery put them ahead, Phillips should have made it ​4-2 ​but side-footed wide after being put through by Fer.

And Sandro, on as a substitute for his first appearance of the season, saw a thumping shot pushed away by Amos before Silva fired past Green and Emmanuel-Thomas had the final word with his second goal of the game.​