Austin gives QPR victory over Leeds

QPR 1 Leeds United 0

Charlie Austin scored with his first touch after coming on as a substitute to give QPR a deserved win at Loftus Road.

Austin, who has been nursing a calf problem, headed home Alejandro Faurlin’s 58th-minute corner – his eighth goal of the season and his team’s first goal in five matches.

It gave Rangers victory in what is expected to be their final match under interim boss Neil Warnock, who is set to make way for a new head coach next week, with Burton manager Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink currently the club’s preferred choice.

Austin brought the game to life following an uninspiring first half in which Chris Wood had Leeds’ best chance and Grant Hall went closest for Rangers.

Liam Cooper lifted the ball forward and after Rob Green hesitated, Wood rounded him but was left at an acute angle and keeper Green had time to get back into position before the striker sliced a shot high and wide of the target.

At the other end, Rangers felt they might have had a penalty for a push by Giuseppe Bellusci on Junior Hoilett. Seconds later, Hall headed over from Faurlin’s right-wing corner.

And a couple of minutes before the interval, R’s captain Nedum Onuoha fired narrowly over with a firmly-struck 30-yarder.

Otherwise, the hosts struggled to create chances before Warnock, who handed 20-year-old winger Michael Petrasso his full QPR debut, made a double change by bringing on Austin and Tjaronn Chery.

The deadlock was broken less than two minutes later and Austin then headed wide from Matt Phillips’ free-kick.

Austin remained in the thick of the action and would have netted again had Marco Silvestri not produced a fine save to keep out his header from Phillips’ corner.

By this stage it was one-way traffic and Faurlin and Phillips both fired wide before Silvestri saved at point-blank range from Chery, who should have scored after being teed up by Austin.