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As a third of the football season has now passed it is appropriate to reflect on the position in the Championship and specifically the situation that Queens Park Rangers, sponsored by Bahrain's Gulf Air, find themselves in.
Much was expected of them following the takeover by Formula One businessmen Flavio Briatore and Bernie Ecclestone but as it stands their plans of joining the elite next year are looking a little jaded following defeat at promotion rivals Ipswich on Saturday.
It has been an up-and-down season so far for Rangers and it is now vital that they put the kind of run together that can at least secure a play-off place.
Leaders Wolves and Birmingham are beginning to put daylight between themselves and the chasing pack and if the Blues win their game in hand they will be 11 points clear of QPR and that is a significant gap, albeit not an insurmountable one.
Who will be in charge of the Loftus Road team is another question entirely as whilst caretaker coach Gareth Ainsworth has made a reasonable start following Ian Dowie's sacking it is impossible to know who will be his permanent successor. Rumours and message boards are rife with speculation featuring a return of legendary former England boss Terry Venables and up-and-coming Darren Ferguson, manager at Peterborough United.
Whoever it is will need to do two things; firstly buy well in the transfer window and secondly, create a winning run of games during the final parts of the season that gives one team the momentum to take them through the lottery of the play-offs. Automatic promotion is not an impossibility but currently they do not have the consistency to challenge the leaders and unless it happens soon then it will be too late.
The last three games are a case in point as they were all difficult ones given the added problems of Dowie's departure. A decent draw away to Birmingham was followed by Saturday's defeat at Ipswich, a game they could have won had they taken their chances in the first half. In the end, two goals from substitute Jonathan Stead sealed the three points for the 'tractor boys' and they are now only one point behind Rangers.
It could have been a very different game had Ipswich keeper Richard Wright not put in a superb first half display to thwart QPR but the London team cannot afford too many more of these hard luck stories if they are to win promotion this year.
As Ainsworth commented after the game "to concede two goals from set pieces was disappointing but I can't fault the lads' effort" and maybe the admission that they may have been tired following Tuesday's 10 men heroics against Birmingham were more telling.
It is Rangers's away form that must improve though, as they have only won one game and taken a mere six points from a possible 24 and compare this with Wolves who have 16 from the same on offer then the difference is plain to see. In addition, they have only scored two gaols away from home compared with 12 at Loftus Road which slightly contradicts Ainsworth suggestion that "we know we can score goals". Fourteen in 15 matches is not a good enough ratio to secure an automatic play off place - in fact QPR have scored fewer goals than any side in the top 10.
There is every possibility that the next four games will not only decide Ainsworth's future but also the aspirations of QPR for the rest of the season. Back to back home games against promotion rivals Cardiff and Burnley - the latter which three lucky GulfWeekly competition winners will see first hand - followed by games against strugglers Watford and Charlton will be crucial leading up to the Christmas merry-go-round.
A minimum of nine points would be the aim from these games otherwise a new manager may well be planning for next year rather than pushing for promotion this season.
In between all these games is an away tie against Manchester United in the Carling Cup fourth round and whilst this is a very pleasant distraction let's hope it is not too much of one given the priority is definitely the league.
The next few weeks and the January transfer window are vital for so many reasons but the club do have the quality of players currently and the resources to add to the squad to make this a defining moment. The only question is ... are they actually able to do it? We shall know the answer to this by the end of the year.
