Hughes seeks happy travels

Queens Park Rangers manager Mark Hughes wants his team to replicate their home form on the road when they travel to West Brom on Saturday.

The Welshman’s side have won their last three games at Loftus Road including a midweek 3-0 result against Swansea, as they continue to fight for Premier League survival.

QPR go into the match at the Hawthorns two points clear of the relegation zone but Hughes says he is wary their inconsistent away form could prove costly.

“We were delighted with the performance (QPR’s 3-0 midweek win against Swansea), the result was obviously paramount for us, getting three points was really important and hopefully we’ll take that confidence into the game at the weekend,” Hughes told reporters.

“We had a similar situation where we had a great midweek performance and result against Liverpool and then the away game we didn’t play that well against Sunderland.

“We want to improve on that and capitalise on the confidence that we gained from the game against Swansea.”

Joey Barton returned to form in midweek, scoring his side’s opening goal against Swansea and putting in a typically industrious performance out of midfield.

The former Newcastle man has come under criticism for a loss of form this year, particularly from QPR fans who jeered Barton after the 3-2 defeat of Liverpool last month.

While conceding his captain has not replicated his form of seasons past, Hughes is happy that Barton’s impact is being felt at such a crucial stage of the campaign.

“Joey has done OK, he’s got high standards himself and maybe he wasn’t reaching them,” Hughes said.

“It came to a head in the Liverpool game where his form on the night wasn’t where I needed it to be and there was a reaction from the crowd.

“But in fairness since he’s come back our fans have been brilliant with him, they want him to do well, they want him to be successful here.

“I think Joey’s feeding off that and enjoying what he’s producing at the moment and obviously the team is playing well in our home games.

“Now everybody is back on board and looking positive, which is exactly what we need at this stage of the season.”