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Bristol City 1-2 Queens Park Rangers: Richard Kone and Paul Smyth net in comeback win

  /  autty

Substitute Paul Smyth netted a late winner as QPR came from behind to snatch a 2-1 Championship victory over Bristol City at Ashton Gate.

The home side took a 32nd-minute lead when Neto Borges did well to volley a deep Mark Sykes cross from the right back across goal and Emil Riis found himself in space to bury a well-placed header past Paul Nardi.

But Rangers hit back after 66 minutes when City's defence failed to deal with a ball into their box from the right and Richard Kone pounced to smash a fierce volley into the roof of the net from 10 yards.

The winner came after 84 minutes, Smyth outjumping his marker at the far post to score with a pinpoint header from a right-wing cross by Jimmy Dunne.

It was the second time in the space of four days City had surrendered a lead in a home game while Rangers stretched their unbeaten run to six games.

City's team showed one change from the midweek 1-1 draw with Ipswich, bringing in Mark Sykes for Ross McCrorie, while Rangers head coach Julien Stephan made six changes from the goalless home draw with Oxford.

It was the visitors who looked the more threatening side in the opening exchanges, Rumarn Burrell showing up well in some incisive moves without troubling City goalkeeper Radek Vitek.

But the hosts should have gone in front after 15 minutes when Riis got behind the Rangers defence to cut the ball back from the left and Scott Twine somehow contrived to fire over from eight yards with the goal at his mercy.

Riis' goal was the only effort on target from either side in the first half. It led to City taking control and they saw the half out with few alarms, Karamoko Dembele firing well wide from Rangers' only strike of note.

Burrell started the second half as he had begun the first and had an early shot blocked before Kone's equalising goal came just moments after Stephan had made a double substitution, sending on Smyth and Harvey Vale.

City almost retook the lead after 73 minutes when Anis Mehmeti made room inside the box only to put his low shot inches wide and then Rob Atkinson headed wide from Borges' near-post corner.

Substitute McCrorie wasted another good chance, dragging his left-footed shot from inside the box wide of the near post after 81 minutes.

After Smyth's winning strike, City had a loud penalty shout rejected when Borges went down and substitute Yu Hirakawa headed over when he should have found the target.

The managers

Bristol City's Liam Manning:

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QPR's Julien Stephan:

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