Josh Murphy and Matt Ritchie inspire a third successive Championship victory for Portsmouth.
Up to 17th in the Championship standings for Pompey thanks to a stunning second half strike from Josh Murphy and a Matt Ritchie tap-in at the back post.
Elsewhere, Oxford United were defeated 2-0 by West Bromwich Albion, which means Pompey jump another space a-drift off the championship relegation zone.
It was another injury concern for the Blues in the opening half, when Bristol City loanee; Rob Atkinson went down holding his calf.
The Pompey defender was forced off for the returning Regan Poole who makes his first appearance in over two months after battling his own injury woes which have sidelined the Welshman since his horrible ACL rupture last season.
Half time: Portsmouth 0-0 QPR
The Blue Army got things going almost immediately in the second 45, with Murphy’s swivelled effort firing round Paul Nardi in the R’s net to give Pompey the lead.
The goal left the attending fans in Fratton Park stunned at how he scored from that angle, after Murphy skinned Jimmy Dunne to the floor before striking the ball.
The momentum kept on ticking for Pompey, when Murphy added another goal contribution to his stats when he found Ritchie who came pouncing in at the back post to smash the ball into the roof of the net to double Pompey’s lead to 2 for the afternoon.
It could have been a third for Portsmouth, after Murphy fired the ball in again, with Southampton loanee; Ronnie Edwards taking a heavy deflection off the ball, with Ritchie making sure the ball was stabbed home.
However, Thomas Bramall chalked the goal off after an apparent foul by Colby Bishop on Nardi to rule the goal out.
It was then another chance for a third, but Andre Dozzell could not quite get his second goal in two games after he caught the ball with the wrong side of his foot to fire his effort in front of goal over the bar.
Zack Swanson and Isaac Hayden came off for Terry Devlin and Marlon Pack who took the armband off Ritchie inside an hour.
Tottenham loanee; Yang Min-Hyeok had a golden chance to score for Rangers when he sliced the ball past Nicholas Schmid, but ultimately his shot was too wide for the goal to keep the score 2,0 to Pompey.
QPR brought some lift back into this tie when Dunne lopped the ball over Schmid to score a consolation for the Hoops, with Connor Ogilvie left in shock that he was not awarded a free kick after a foul in the buildup to the goal.
Christian Saydee was on for Ritchie, pushing Murphy to the right and Cohen Bramall came on for Adil Aouchiche, who put in a strong performance on his first Blues start as he looks to fill the boots of Callum Lang in attacking midfield who will miss the rest of the season with a hamstring injury.
Hayden Matthews was in agony with Cramp, but the Blues had used all five substitutes so the Australian international was placed up top with Bishop during the final 7 minutes of added time, with Pack filling in at centre back to finish off the game.
Full-time: Portsmouth 2-1 QPR
Next up: A trip to Kenilworth Road for John Mousinho’s side as the Blues hope to take their recent away form into Saturday’s fixture against bottom of the Championship; Luton Town.
It’s not the first time Pompey have faced a side managed by Matt Bloomfield this season, as the Blues faced the Luton Boss earlier in 2025 in a 2-0 defeat to Wycombe Wanderers in the FA Cup 3rd round who Bloomfield was manager of at the time.
Can the Blues make it two wins in two away from home for the first time this season, or will Luton show up in what is a much win for the Hatters if they want to avoid back-to-back relegations from the Premier League.
Portsmouth: 13. Schmid (GK), 22. Swanson (24. Devlin), 44. Matthews, 35. Atkinson (5. Poole), 3. Ogilvie, 45. Hayden (7. Pack) (C), 21. Dozzell, 30. Ritchie (C) (15. Saydee), 17. Aouchiche (18. Bramall), 23. Murphy, 9. Bishop
Unused subs: 31. Archer (GK), 10. Yengi, 14. Gordon, 29. Blair
Goals: Murphy 48’, Ritchie 51’
Bookings: Ogilvie 17’, Poole 86’, Saydee 90+5’
Head Coach: John Mousinho
Queens Park Rangers: 1. Nardi (GK), 3. Dunne, 5. Cook (C), 17. Edwards, 22. Paal (7. Dembele), 40. Varane, 8. Field (4. Colback), 11. Smyth (28. Lloyd), 10. Chair, 14. Saito (20. Ashby), 12. Frey (47. Yang)
Unused subs: Walsh (GK), 15. Fox, 16. Morrison, 21. Morgan, 24. Madsen
Goals: Dunne 74’
Bookings: Frey 45+4’, Chair 90+7’
Manager: Martí Cifuentes
Venue: Fratton Park
Referee: Thomas Bramall
Attendance: 20,426 (Including 2,171 QPR supporters)
Today's Pompey Live: Extra-Time podcast is also available to replay! Jake Smith was joined at Fratton Park by Kirsty Roxanne and James Wilson to deliver full analysis and reaction to the Blues' 2-1 victory over Queens Park Rangers.
Join Jake and 2 more Pompey fans when The Football Hour returns this Monday (February 24th) evening from 6pm with even more reflection on today's game!
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