Josh Murphy inspired Portsmouth to a third victory in a row as they eased Championship relegation fears with a 2-1 win over QPR at Fratton Park.
Winger Murphy curled in a stunning strike in the 48th minute to break the deadlock before a mazy run ended up with him setting up Matt Ritchie three minutes later.
Pompey are now nine points above the drop zone as they move to their longest winning streak of the season, with no Championship team earning more home points than Pompey’s 16 in 2025.
QPR’s first defeat at Fratton Park since 1998 only came after Jimmy Dunne set up a frantic finale with a fine finish in the 74th minute but they stayed 14th.
The first half severely lacked quality, with Pompey failing to register a shot on target despite edging the possession stats.
They had a series of half-chances with Connor Ogilvie bookending the first 45 minutes with a flicked header wide and a shot with too much lift over the crossbar, while Colby Bishop looped a header onto the roof of the net.
But it was the visitors who had the very best chance of the half.
Ilias Chair tried his luck from 30 yards but it was blocked into the path of Michael Frey who instinctively poked towards goal, where birthday boy Nicolas Schmid bravely saved.
The first half’s dreariness only made the opening six minutes of the second all the more thrilling – with John Mousinho’s team talk paying off with a quick-fire pair of goals.
Murphy twice produced moments of magic to stun the away side and put Pompey 2-0 by the 51st minute.
Firstly, he received the ball from Andre Dozzell on the left before skipping forward, cutting in and then bending into the net for his sixth goal of the season.
Then three minutes later, he capitalised on Steve Cook gifting him the ball to carry the ball to the by-line before laying on a plate for Ritchie.
Chances then started to come slightly more regularly at both ends. Southampton loanee Ronnie Edwards nodded a header over for the Rs, before Marlon Pack lifted over the bar from inside the six-yard box.
Portsmouth’s inability to pull clear offered hope for the west Londoners, initially summed up by substitute Alfie Lloyd going agonisingly wide with a shot across goal.
And became a reality when Dunne produced a stunning lobbed finish, after a raking diagonal ball from Chair, to pull one back for QPR.
Chair has now been involved in seven goals in his last 10 league appearances, and could have added a first away goal of the season with a free header, but nodded straight at Schmid.
It set up a nervy ending, but QPR could not fashion another major chance.
[(Djurgardens IF) Strength]: 1. August Priske scored 7 goals in the league this season, showing impressive performances.2. Djurgardens IF won 6-1 over BK Hacken in the last away game, performing excellently.3. Djurgardens IF won the last 2 home games smoothly, revealing decent home form.4. Djurgardens IF scored 13 goals in the last 5 games, averaging nearly 3 goals per game and showing hot offense...
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[(Fluminense (RJ)) Strength]: 1. Fluminense (RJ) are 13th in the table and are suffering a 4-game losing streak in the league. They need to take points to end their decadence, indicating strong motivation in this game.2. Everaldo Stum scored a brace in the last Copa do Brasil game, helping the team beat SC Internacional.3. Fluminense (RJ) secured a 2-1 win over SC Internacional in the last Copa do...
[(Orlando City) Strength]: 1. Martin Ojeda scored 3 goals and made an assist in the last 3 games, showing outstanding form.2. Orlando City boasted stable offense lately, scoring in 17 consecutive games in regular time.[(Orlando City) Neutral]: 1. Both sides have never met before, and this game would be their first encounter.[(Orlando City) Weakness]: 1. Orlando City lost 4-3 through a penalty shoo...
[(Yunnan Yukun) Strength]: 1. Yunnan Yukun are 9th in the Chinese Super League, performing mediocrely in the new season. They hope to take more points at home to move up, indicating strong motivation.2. Yunnan Yukun received 5 wins, 1 draw, and 2 losses in 8 home games, with a win rate of 62.5%.3. Yunnan Yukun won 3-1 over Shenzhen Peng City in the last home game, securing a 2-game winning streak ...
[(JEF United Ichihara Chiba) Strength]: 1. JEF United Ichihara Chiba are 2nd in the J2 League with 41 points, still being in the direct promotion zone but tied for 3rd-placed Vegalta Sendai on points. They need more points to cement their place, showing strong motivation in this home game.2. JEF United Ichihara Chiba recorded 6 wins, 2 draws, and 3 losses at home this season, scoring 17 goals and ...
[(Arminia Bielefeld) Strength]: 1. Arminia Bielefeld finished at the top with 21 wins, 9 draws, and 8 losses in the 3. Liga last season, scoring 64 goals and conceding 36 in 38 league games. The team were finally promoted to the 2. Bundesliga. This is their first home game of the new season, so the team have full motivation.2. Arminia Bielefeld's central forward Julian Kania played 33 league games...
[(SV Elversberg) Strength]: 1. SV Elversberg finished 3rd in the 2. Bundesliga last season. Facing Nuremberg in the first game of the new season at home, they hope to take home advantage to start with a win, indicating strong motivation.2. SV Elversberg changed their head coach in the new season, with German Vincent Wagner taking over to lead the team to play in the 2. Bundesliga. The team signed ...
[(FC Rostov) Neutral]: 1. FC Rostov ended 8 of the last 10 competitive games with UNDERs in O/U.[(FC Rostov) Weakness]: 1. FC Rostov lost 2-0 to Spartak Moscow in the last Russian Cup game, showing poor performances.2. FC Rostov suffered a 1-0 away defeat to FC Dynamo Moscow in the last league game, losing the previous two league matches in the new season.3. FC Rostov received only 1 win, 2 draws,...
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