Exclusive: Don Goodman drops honest QPR promotion prediction | OneFootball

Sky Sports pundit Don Goodman has ahred his thoughts on Queens Park Rangers' early-season form.

Sky Sports pundit Don Goodman has played down talk of Queens Park Rangers mounting an automatic promotion challenge this season, after the R's have started well under Julien Stephan.

Currently well within the play-off race after a run of positive results, QPR look to be putting multiple years of mid-table obscurity behind them.

Goodman believes that while Stephan's side carries plenty of attacking quality, they could struggle to push any further than the top six.

Speaking exclusively to Football League World, Goodman praised the progress at Loftus Road, but outlined that he doesn't yet see the R's as contenders for automatic promotion.

QPR praised for attacking threat - but defensive issues remain

"I look at Queens Park Rangers sitting in sixth - I think it has been an excellent start. But, when it comes to automatic promotion, I just can't see it," said Goodman when asked whether he sees QPR as genuine contenders for the top two this season.

"They have strong attributes, and I like them going forward," he added. "But I'm not sure if they'll be able to keep the ball out of their net enough against the better sides."

"No, is the answer," said the former striker, highlighting that: "There are bigger tests coming their way. They do face Ipswich and Southampton soon, so we will know more about it then."

"I wouldn't put them down as automatic contenders this season, but they will certainly have their eye on a play-off spot," Goodman concluded.

QPR making huge progress under Julien Stephan

The appointment of Stephan over the summer was a highly ambitious move from QPR, with the Frenchman having taken French side Rennes to the Champions League via a fantastic Coupe de France win. He then went on to guide Strasbourg to their first top-six finish in Ligue 1 since 1980.

Known for his fantastic talent development, Stephan has coached the likes of Eduardo Camavinga, Raphinha, Serhou Guirassy and Jeremy Doku - all of whom have gone on to have fantastic careers at the highest level.

QPR's recruitment over the summer is already proving fantastic, with star signing Richard Kone hitting the ground running early on under Stephan after scoring 18 goals in League One for Wycombe last term.

After a rough start to the season, including a 7-1 defeat against Coventry, the R's have recovered brilliantly to throw themselves into the play-off race. They have gone on to concede just four in six matches since the heavy defeat against the league leaders, while they are playing expansive football with a perfect blend between defence and attack.

The deal to bring Stephan to the club is proving to be one of the best pieces of business across the Championship. And while a push for automatic promotion may be too much to ask for this season, the R's have come on leaps and bounds under the Frenchman, and at the current pace, they will absolutely find themselves in the play-off race come the season's crunch point.