Rayan Kolli came off the bench to score twice late on as Queens Park Rangers beat Sheffield Wednesday 3-0 in freezing conditions at Loftus Road, ending the hosts’ three-game run without a win. Rumarn Burrell had earlier struck his 10th goal of the season to put QPR in front, but it took until the final 10 minutes for the scoreline to reflect their long spells of dominance.
Julien Stephan’s side controlled the first half, restricted Wednesday to three attempts in the entire match and appeared to be heading for a routine victory, yet a churn of injuries and the awful state of the pitch turned the contest into a more awkward affair than the score suggests. Wednesday, with a youthful squad and only three senior players in the starting XI, improved markedly after the break and briefly had the home crowd frustrated before Kolli struck.
The win lifts QPR up to ninth in the Championship and within two points of the play-off places with the afternoon’s other kick-offs still to come. For bottom side Wednesday, rooted on -7 points and with seven of their nine substitutes aged 21 or under, this was another defeat but one in which manager Henrik Pedersen could point to genuine progress, particularly after half-time, despite the harsh-looking margin.
Burrell Makes Amends Before Injury Upends the Script