Lawro's Prediction for Chelsea v QPR

[THFC6061]

Chelsea v QPR (Sunday, 13:30 BST)

There will be a lot of focus before this game on Chelsea captain John Terry and QPR defender Anton Ferdinand following the incident at Loftus Road in October when it is alleged Terry made racist comments towards Ferdinand.

Hopefully, after this game, people will just be talking about the football in what I think will be an ultra-competitive and hard-fought west London derby.

This looks a tricky game for Chelsea, especially because their manager Roberto di Matteo will rotate his squad for it. He has to because he has had four massive games in the past two weeks.

QPR are scrapping for survival and will be ready for what will be the biggest game of their season, firstly because they will be battling to get any sort of result on the road to complement their healthy home form and secondly because it is against their west London rivals.

Di Matteo has had a simply unbelievable run since he took over as interim Blues boss at the start of March and his is an amazing story.

True, he has had the run of the ball at times but his side have also produced some incredible performances too.

Their two displays against Barcelona in the Champions League semi-final were outstanding because beating Barca over two legs is obviously so much more difficult that doing it in a one-off game. I just did not think it could happen.

You cannot speak highly enough about the way the players took to the way Di Matteo structured the team in those two ties against Barca, and it was the same against Arsenal last weekend too.

He has every chance of getting the job on a permanent basis but that decision is down to one man - Roman Abramovich. He will look at the situation and think he can get anyone he wants.

Prediction: Chelsea 1-1 QPR


Here are all of Mark Lawrenson's Premier League predictions for the 2011-12 Season, together with how the League Table would look like if all his forecasts were correct…

Lawro's 2011-12 Predictions

[QPR_NW10]

Cracking paragraph of informative journalism to open his report - i had no idea Lawro...that's for that information.

But 1-1, can see it. want a win though.

[Ginger Ninja]

Would be over the moon with 1-1

[Kirill]

I also think it will be a score draw.

[Terry-Mancini-123]

He's gotten our last few wrong and is trying to redress the balance. I still prefer it when he tips us to lose though, doesn't seem.... natural to him to tip fifth from bottom to get a draw at fifth

[stanistheman]

I hope he is right this weekend as he has also gone for defeats for Villa Wigan Blackburn & Bolton

[Del]

He's gotten our last few wrong and is trying to redress the balance. I still prefer it when he tips us to lose though, doesn't seem.... natural to him to tip fifth from bottom to get a draw at fifth

There's a lot more to it than that though obviously... local derby so form goes out the window, their exursions midweek in Spain and rotation, and the whole racism affair.... This is anything but a textbook match.

[taarabt7]

I hope he is right. I'll be over the moon with a draw. I'm backing us to beat Stoke at home, but I don't think we will get anything from the Man City game. Four points should be enough

[Deadend_Friend]

I put a quid on Mackie to score first and 1-1 draw @ 110/1. Hoping he's right, I'd definetly take a point if you offered it me one now!