FootyChatter.com

A win was what Queens Park Rangers, bottom of the Championship, required. In the end a point against Stoke was something to still embrace, particularly after an agonising first-half miss from the hosts’ struggling centre forward Zan Celar. Signed in the summer from the Swiss side Lugano, Celar stepped up for a penalty in the 27th minute, this both the perfect opportunity to finally score for his new club and equalise after a thunderous Tom Cannon opener just moments earlier. Fifteen previous league appearances had brought zilch, but his own fans waited behind the goal, ready to partake in this moment of exultation. Instead Celar shot wide, the visiting support cackling from the other end at his misfortune. QPR did not let it get in the way, a Ben Gibson own goal reviving them, before defeat was avoided when a late strike from Bae Jun-Ho was disallowed, the referee Gavin Ward seeing a handball in the buildup. A draw would have to suffice for a club that has grown accustomed to constant frustration, built up over a decade since their last stay in the Premier League. Managers and players come and go but the season’s end remains roughly the same: 50-something points in the Championship and no significant cup runs. Brief moments of hope have poked through. In the summer there was optimism from what Martí Cifuentes had conjured since joining as head coach last October with QPR second-bottom. He cut out the long balls, made use of the carpet and solidified things at the back. Style brought safety and whispers of hope, at the very least the sense that this season would not bring trouble. But volatility is part of the equation here, it has to be when QPR’s modern history has included Bernie Ecclestone and Flavio Briatore as owners and shopaholic spending under Tony Fernandes in the Premier League. Cue the return to reality: they walked into this fixture having won one league game this season. A reliable goalscorer has been lacking since Charlie Austin’s first spell at QPR, so it made sense to watch Celar in the opening exchanges. The Slovenian had an early shot blocked in a game that began with little fluency and quality. Instead it was his counterpart, an in-form Cannon, who opened the scoring midway through the first half, his confidence obvious as he cut in from the left and curled into the corner from just inside the area, his entire team congregating by the dugout to celebrate the effort. QPR did not pity themselves. Paul Smyth rampaged into the box from the right and was tripped up by Eric Bocat. A leveller awaited just a couple of minutes on from Cannon’s opener but Celar could not provide it. Sign up to Football Daily Kick off your evenings with the Guardian's take on the world of football after newsletter promotion The hosts created more chances, claimed more of the ball but there remained little threat of completely carving Stoke open. The boos rung out at the break. Cannon was denied early in the second half from close range, Paul Nardi staying upright after a brief bit of pinball inside the area. QPR’s tragicomic energy carried through as the left-back Harrison Ashby caught a ball by the touchline while still in play. But spirit remained with Viktor Johansson forced into a couple of decent saves as QPR’s wide men, Smyth and Koki Saito, caused trouble with their direct running on and off the ball. Ashby struck the post with a deflected effort and then came the deserved fortune just after the hour mark. Saito dinked in a corner, not with any real venom, but Gibson managed to divert it into his own net. In the race for a winner Cannon threatened again, a stinging shot from the right prompting an excellent low save from the impressive Nardi. Saito remained QPR’s biggest threat, quick feet to go with sharp twists inside the area as he looked to do something magical on his own; the ground was roaring when he had a deflected shot sent wide in the 79th minute. That was as loud as it got.