Birmingham City 2-0 Queens Park Rangers: Blues shock Michael Beale's high-flying Hoops

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QPR keeper Seny Dieng was left helpless by Blues defender Auston Trusty's opportunist fourth-minute flicked opener

A resurgent Birmingham City claimed their biggest scalp of the season as John Eustace's side battled their way to victory over high-flying Queens Park Rangers.

QPR, second in the Championship and needing to win to go back on top, were done no favours by two of their London neighbours as Blues won with first-half goals from two loan men - Arsenal's American defender Auston Trusty and West Ham midfielder Emmanuel Longelo.

Any hopes that Michael Beale's side might turn it round after the break were then ended with Blues keeper John Ruddy's fine 79th-minute penalty save to deny Lyndon Dykes.

After winning four times in five away games, this was a second straight defeat on the road for QPR, while Blues' third win in five lifts them into the top half.

It looked on the cards right from the moment when, in an already bouncing atmosphere in front of the 19,007 reduced-capacity crowd, Blues stole ahead in only the fourth minute with a freakish but inspired opening goal.

Krystian Bielik redirected the ball back into the box after a left-wing corner broke to him on the edge of the penalty area but, with his back to goal, Trusty showed great awareness to acrobatically deliver the ball back into the six-yard box with a flick of his outstretched right foot, and it looped just out of Rangers keeper Seny Dieng's reach and under the bar.

They were then 2-0 up just before the half-hour mark when, from a sweeping move of first-time passes from Scott Hogan, Hannibal Mejbri and Bielik the ball was delivered out to Longelo wide on the left and the West Ham loan man cut inside, transferred the ball to his right foot and drilled a low shot beyond Dieng to find the bottom right corner.

QPR had their chances, as Ruddy touched Ilias Chair's curling free-kick over and saved from Dykes after former West Brom striker Tyler Roberts' sidefooted effort from the edge of the box had deflected up off Harlee Dean and on to the roof of the net.

But Ruddy saved his best for Dykes 11 minutes from time when Longelo was adjudged to have raised his foot too high on Ethan Laird as he dived low to head the ball - and Tim Robinson awarded a dubious penalty.

Ruddy delivered for Birmingham on the rare occasions in which he was called into action

The penalty came at a nice height, Ruddy dived to his right to get both hands on it - and that completed a miserable return to the West Midlands for QPR head coach Beale, who also lost two players, Jake Clarke-Salter and Tyler Roberts, to injury in the space of six first-half minutes.

Line-ups

Birmingham

Formation 3-5-2

21Ruddy

28Sanderson12Dean5Trusty

2Colin18Chong31Bielik6Mejbri23Longelo

9Hogan8Deeney

21Ruddy28Sanderson12Dean5TrustyBooked at 35mins2Colin18ChongSubstituted forHallat 81'minutes31BielikBooked at 55mins6MejbriBooked at 7minsSubstituted forBacunaat 54'minutes23LongeloBooked at 78mins9HoganSubstituted forJamesat 88'minutes8DeeneySubstituted forJutkiewiczat 81'minutes

Substitutes

1Etheridge7Bacuna10Jutkiewicz11Graham19James27Bellingham35Hall

QPR

Formation 4-2-3-1

1Dieng

27Laird26Balogun5Clarke-Salter22Paal

6Johansen15Field

11Roberts10Chair47Iroegbunam

9Dykes

1Dieng27Laird26BalogunBooked at 60mins5Clarke-SalterSubstituted forDickieat 21'minutesBooked at 53mins22Paal6JohansenSubstituted forAmosat 45'minutes15FieldSubstituted forRichardsat 80'minutes11RobertsSubstituted forArmstrongat 27'minutes10Chair47IroegbunamBooked at 70mins9Dykes