QPR draw with Preston in opening game

QPR 1

Whiteman (OG, 41′)

Preston 1

Osmajic (48′)

QPR had to settle for a point in their first match of the season and first under new head coach Julien Stephan.

Milutin Osmajic’s equaliser earned Preston a draw after Ben Whiteman’s first-half own goal.

A draw was perhaps unsurprising given that QPR have not won their first game of the season since 2020 and Preston have not done so since beating them in 2018.

Rangers, without a number of injured players, went ahead on 41 minutes courtesy of a mixture of brilliance from Kader Dembele and good fortune.

Dembele did superbly on the left flank, nutmegging Jordan Storey and holding off Thierry Small before sending the ball across the face of the six-yard box, where Andrija Vukcevic attempted to cut out the danger only for the ball to then ricochet off team-mate Whiteman and into the net.

Both teams had threatened before that, with Lewis Gibson heading narrowly wide from a cross by Small, who also had an effort saved by Rangers keeper Joe Walsh.

At the other end, Kwame Poku fired over from close range after being found by Ilias Chair’s cross, Dembele headed over – also from a Chair cross – and keeper Daniel Iversen saved strikes from Dembele and Brazilian left-back Esquerdinha, who was making his debut.

The hosts deserved their half-time lead but Preston hit back just three minutes into the second half.

Rangers were undone by a long kick from Iversen, and Osmajic, who netted 15 goals last season, strolled through and lobbed Walsh to open his account for this season.

Having provided the assist for the equaliser, Iversen then kept his side on level terms by diving to his left to push away a venomous left-footed strike from Dembele.

Walsh, meanwhile, had a let-off when he fumbled Stefan Thordarson’s low cross and Osmajic’s goalbound follow-up was blocked by Sam Field.

QPR: Walsh, Morgan (Cook 82) Morrison, Mbengue, Esquerinha (Adamson 67), Field, Madsen, Dembele (Vale 82), Chair, Poku (Kolli 67), Celar (Burrrell 67).
Subs not used: Nardi, McCann, Sutton, Bennie.