Queens Park Rangers 0-1 Barnsley: Elliot Simoes gives relegation-threatened Tykes victory
- Published
Elliot Simoes was making just his third league start for Barnsley
Barnsley climbed off the bottom of the table by beating play-off hopefuls Queens Park Rangers on the day the Championship made its long-awaited return.
After England's second tier competition was paused for 104 days because of the global coronavirus pandemic, it took just seven minutes for Elliot Simoes to reinvigorate Barnsley's quest for survival.
With the game's first shot on target the 20-year-old forward put the Tykes ahead, guiding the ball beyond QPR goalkeeper Liam Kelly after getting on the end of a wonderfully weighted Ben Williams through ball.
Three minutes later Jacob Brown wasted a great chance to add a second, sending his left-foot shot wide.
While the game was played behind closed doors, there would have been little for home fans to celebrate at the Kiyan Prince Foundation Stadium.
The closest Rangers came to a goal was at the wrong end, with defender Conor Masterson directing Alex Mowatt's free-kick onto the bar before the break.
Jordan Hugill had a chance to seal a dramatic late equaliser, but Barnsley goalkeeper Jack Walton did well to race off his line to deny the striker.
QPR, a side that had won three matches in a six-game unbeaten run before the break, slip to 13th in the table and seven points off the play-off spots after sixth-placed Preston drew with Luton.
That result sent the Hatters to the foot of the table, with the Tykes moving up to 23rd and to within four points of safety with eight matches remaining.
QPR line-up affected by Covid-19
QPR, a club that came out to say they were "appalled" and "vehemently opposed to" the return to action with just 20 days' notice when plans were announced on 31 May, fielded a side heavily impacted by the enforced break.
Captain Grant Hall's departure was confirmed on Friday, after the out-of-contract defender failed to agree a new contract, while the economic pinch of the pandemic meant the west London club could not afford to offer midfielder Marc Pugh a new deal.
As for Barnsley, the build-up to the league's long-awaited return was dominated by their desire to play themselves out of relegation trouble.
Manager Gerhard Struber said they would be a side "ready to play with good intensity", and they did not disappoint in the first half, as Simoes put them ahead early on with his second goal for the Tykes in what was just his third league start for the club.
Soon after Brown wasted a huge chance to add a second after being found in the box by Kilian Ludewig, while it was the woodwork that saved QPR's Masterson from guiding home an own goal just before half-time.
QPR emerged after the break with more purpose, but struggled to create any meaningful chances with their best moments coming just after the hour mark.
Ilias Chair had an effort blocked on the line by Ludewig, while Eberechi Eze did well to create space on the edge of the area before whipping a shot just over the bar.
Their best chance of salvaging a point came in the 88th minute, but Walton was equal to Hugill's effort after the forward was slipped through clear on goal by Eze.
First win at QPR since 1950
Tykes boss Struber said the victory was "very important", but also confirmed it came at a cost with match-winner Simoes coming off at half-time with a muscle injury.
The coolness in which the former Benfica and Sporting Lisbon youth-team player took his early chance came as no shock to the Austrian.
"It is not a big surprise for me that Elliot can create a very good performance - he has shown me in training he has talent," Struber said.
"We hope the injury on his muscle isn't so bad. I've no answer from my medical department but I hope that he is ready (to face Millwall in a week's time).
Struber said earning their first win at QPR since 1950 "gives every single player a good feeling and self-confidence for the next difficult task".
"It's not a normal situation that Barnsley win in London against QPR," he continued.
"We know every point in our situation is important. Today we played very well and now we work step by step from game to game".
QPR boss Mark Warburton said his side were punished for a "really poor" first 45 minutes.
"As a team we let ourselves down today," he said.
"We knew what we faced. They are the youngest team in the league and have real energy. They brought in real pace and we knew they would press us and we had to manage the game better.
"In the second half it was much better, but still probably a six or six-and-a-half out of 10. Still there were no shots on goal.
"Then we created chances but then you have to take chances even when you are playing below your best."