QPR manager Mark Hughes admits his relegation-threatened side need to "stand up and be counted" sooner rather than later. The west Londoners have eight games remaining to stave off relegation from the Barclays Premier League, where they currently languish 18th in the standings. The Rs have a set of unenviable fixtures in the run-in and welcome high-flying Arsenal to Loftus Road on Saturday. Earlier this week QPR captain Joey Barton described the match as "more than a game" and claimed "people's careers are on the line". Asked about the comments, Hughes said: "I think Joey was trying to emphasise the importance of the game. "I think we all understand we want to stay in the Premier League and that is our aim. We are fully focused on that challenge. "If we can play as we did against Liverpool [where QPR won 3-2] against the top sides we are coming up against then that will go along way to whether we stay in the league. "It is down to us and I that's the point Joey was making. "We all have to stand up and be counted and make sure that we give it our best shot. That is certainly what we will be doing." The Rs face trips to Manchester United, Chelsea and Manchester City before the season's close and play an Arsenal side looking for an eighth successive win. "Arsenal are playing exceptionally well, obviously they're winning games and their confidence is growing as a consequence of that," Hughes said. "I think the key thing to that is they have got lot of width and pace to their play at the moment. "Maybe earlier in the season when they were struggling a bit the threat from wide areas possibly wasn't as forthcoming as it is at the moment. "The likes of [Bacary] Sagna and [Kieran] Gibbs are now playing and giving them a real option out wide, which all the good Arsenal teams had in the past." QPR, by contrast, come into the match off the back of last weekend's 3-1 loss at Sunderland, which was compounded by Djibril Cisse's red card. Cisse will be joined on the sidelines by Armand Traore, who is a week away from returning from a hamstring injury. Long-term absentees DJ Campbell and Heidar Helguson are making good progress and, while not ready to return against Arsenal, could be involved in next weekend's trip to Manchester United.
Arsene Wenger warned Arsenal must concentrate on delivering another performance rather than harbour hopes of overhauling Manchester City to claim second place. The Gunners have recorded seven straight wins in the Barclays Premier League to climb up into third place above Tottenham. City head to Emirates Stadium on Easter Sunday, and then host current leaders Manchester United on April 30. Mathematically, if Arsenal were to win all their remaining eight games and City buckle under the pressure, the current 12-point gap could soon be eaten up. Wenger, though, wants his rejuvenated squad to just concentrate fully on the job in hand at Loftus Road. "I see us fighting like mad to win the game. That is all I see, I don't see further," the Arsenal boss said. "We are focused on QPR, believe me. "We know that is always a tricky game for everybody and that is what is important to us. "After that we focus on the next one and our capability to finish the season in a strong way depends on just how much we focus on every game." Given the way Spurs saw their own advantage over the Gunners crumble, Wenger accepts things can change "very quickly" in a short space of time. The Arsenal manager continued: "Our sport is fragile and we have learned something this season from a very difficult period. Urgency and focus are vital to keep your level up. "What we can hope for is to be third. We can be fourth, we can be fifth, we can be sixth, we want to be as high as possible and that depends on our consistency now. "We are in a position that nobody expected us to be in and we want to strengthen that position from now on. That depends on our performances." Wenger is expecting a stern test from a battling QPR side, who recovered from 2-0 down with 15 minutes left to beat Liverpool in their last home game. He said: "QPR is a side which has quality players and is in a difficult situation. "Certainly you expect them to fight not to go down, but I believe the key will be on our side - no matter what QPR's quality or problem is, it will be important for us to go out and show how much we want another win."
QPR V Arsenal - view commentary, squad, and statictics of the game live.
Source: PA
