QPR U21 beat Bolton Reserves 4-1 in the Premier League Cup group stage on Thursday night. The hosts showed more bite than the visitors from the opening whistle. To be fair, the result did not come as a total surprise given the form coming into this fixture.
The opening moment arrived just after the quarter-hour mark. J. Obikwu struck at the 29th minute to give the home side the lead. It was a sharp finish. And here's the thing, such an early goal changes the shape of the game immediately.
Bolton tried to respond after the break. F. Neill pulled one back for the visitors in the 57th minute. But QPR did not let the tie slip for long. E. Sutton fired home his first goal just nine minutes later to restore the two-goal cushion.
The visitors looked tired by the time the clock hit 80 minutes. D. Clement managed a late reply for Bolton in the 82nd minute. However, Sutton finished the job with a second in stoppage time. By then, the contest had effectively ended.
This victory lifts the hosts into a better position within their group. QPR have been uneven recently, with losses to Wigan and Worthing and a win over Bournemouth. To be fair, consistency is what they need now. They found an answer against a side they had beaten before.
The four-goal margin shows dominance in the final third. Sutton was the man of the match, scoring twice to seal the result. The hosts now look ahead to their next group encounter.