West Ham United face Queens Park Rangers in the Championship at the London Stadium on Friday night.

The Championship is back in action this weekend after the extended three week international break with the West Ham and QPR getting the action back began with an exciting clash under the lights in East London.

West Ham and QPR poised for Friday night showdown after solid Championship starts

West Ham go into the game as favourites but it might be a stern test for Nuno Espirito Santo’s men against a QPR team who have also had a solid start to the season.

West Ham’s four-match winning run was halted before the international break as they were held to a 2-2 draw by local rivals Millwall at The Den. But they did come back from two goals down to secure a point against the Lions. They are now second in the table, two points behind leaders Swansea City.

QPR responded well in their last game when they came back from 2-0 down to draw 2-2 with Preston North End at Loftus Road despite playing with 10 men for over 75 minutes. Julien Stephan’s side are winless in their last four games but they are sixth in the table.

Table of championship (as it was on 7th October)

P

GD Pts.

1 Swansea City 8 7 17 2 West Ham United 8 11 15 3 Middlesbrough 8 4 15 4 Wolves 7 5 14 5 West Brom 8 2 14 6 QPR 8 3 13 7 Stoke City 8 1 13 8 Bristol City 8

-1 13

West Ham have had a number of players away on international duty so it remains to be seen what form the squad will be in for the encounter but Nuno will be pleased to hear an ominous QPR injury update.

West Ham United news: Julian Stephan gives alarming QPR injury update

Last season QPR were sitting eighth at the midway stage before injuries thwarted their play-off quest and Stephan may already be worried that history is repeating itself as the treatment room starts to fill up.

The R’s have a number of injury concerns ahead of their trip to the London Stadium, but especially in the forward areas with striker Rumarn Burrell, who has scored two goals in nine appearances so far this season, already confirmed to be out with an injury picked up while on international duty with Jamaica.

Richard Kone is a doubt after suffering a knee injury in a crunching tackle playing for the development team last month. Justin Obikwu only returned to training on Tuesday following his latest injury setback, leaving uncertainty whether he will be available to face West Ham.

If both Kone and Obikwu are unavailable then the Hoops would normally turn to Rayan Kolli to deputise in the number nine role but he has yet to feature in a single matchday squad this season with Stephan recently hinting that the 20-year-old’s poor work ethic and lack of commitment were the reasons for his absence.

Kolli has shown glimpses of potential since his breakthrough at Loftus Road, scoring 11 goals in 57 senior appearances for QPR so far, but Stephan insisted that his situation is “not aligned” with the current injury crisis and stressed that he will leave him out of the squad again if he feels he does not “deserve” to be included.

Julien Stephan comments will delight West Ham United and Nuno Espirito Santo

QPR on their day are one of the most dangerous attacking sides in the Championship so West Ham and Nuno will be glad to hear of their injuries.

The R’s are a menace the Hammers can’t ignore, even without a proper striker, with Stephan’s men creating plenty of opportunities in their recent four-game losing spell and feeling they should have more points in the bag.

If Kone and Obikwu are discarded with Burrell then there is a good chance Stephan might give Kolli a chance and having been frozen out for the whole season so far, the Algeria international will want to make a point to his manager if he gets on the pitch which could make him tricky for West Ham to deal with.

QPR had the second-worst defensive record in the division last season, but so far this term they have conceded only seven goals, with only leaders Swansea City conceding fewer. So, the Hammers’ assault will have to be at its best to break down an increasingly tenacious Hoops rearguard.

However, the Hammers have scored 13 goals in their previous three home games, three more than the R’s have in their eight league outings, so they will be hopeful of grabbing another three points on the board at the London Stadium.