QPR vs. Aston Villa: Score, Grades and Reaction from Premier League Game

Charlie Austin netted a brace as Queens Park Rangers rose from the bottom of the Premier League table with a 2-0 victory at home to Aston Villa on Monday night at Loftus Road.

Austin opened the scoring in the 17th minute and doubled his side's lead midway through the second half as Rangers won for just the second time this season in nine attempts.

With the victory, QPR moved up one spot into 19th place on seven points, three clear of new bottom club Burnley. Harry Redknapp's side remain in the relegation places but are now only two points adrift of safety.

And the points could turn into quite the blessing for QPR, who face a difficult schedule ahead. Up next is a trip to face leaders Chelsea on Nov. 1, followed by a home game against Manchester City a week later.

Aston Villa, meanwhile, lost their fifth consecutive game following a fine start to the season. Paul Lambert's men have not scored in any of those five defeats and now find themselves a mere two points above the relegation spots despite winning three of their first four matches this term.

Up next for Villa is a home game against Tottenham Hotspur on Nov. 2.

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The visitors controlled possession throughout the 90 minutes but struggled to create danger in the final third. Villa had their first sight of goal in the fourth minute when QPR goalkeeper Robert Green made a routine save to keep out an Ashley Westwood volley. Green then saved again in the 15th minute, stopping Carlos Sanchez's swerving volley from distance.

Villa had been the better side to that point, but QPR managed to open the scoring in the 17th minute with an effective display of Route 1 football.

Richard Dunne played a long pass out of his own half, picking out Bobby Zamora along the edge of the opposite penalty box. Zamora chested down into the path of Austin, who cut across the ball with his shot, placing it into the bottom corner for a 1-0 home lead.

Villa promptly set out in search of the equaliser but struggled to create clear chances. The visitors repeatedly tried to cross into the middle for striker Christian Benteke, but their deliveries were consistently poor.

Still trailing by a goal at half-time, Villa came close in the 55th minute via a set-piece situation. Westwood lofted a free-kick into the box on the right, where Benteke knocked the ball down into the path of Ciaran Clark. Clark tried an acrobatic shot from close range, but his scuffed strike bounced wide of the near post.

At the other end, substitute Junior Hoilett nearly doubled QPR's lead in the 67th minute, curling a shot off the outside of the post from 25 yards. 

It was a let-off for Villa, but two minutes later the visitors weren't as fortunate.

Following a giveaway by Sanchez, QPR's Eduardo Vargas powered down the right flank before crossing into the middle for Austin. From there, Austin slotted a cool finish into the corner for a 2-0 lead.

It was nearly 3-0 in the 76th minute as Vargas broke the offside trap to find himself clear on goal. But after taking a touch to set himself, the Chilean shot too close to Brad Guzan, who made a fine save.

Green made a pair of saves in the 80th minute to preserve QPR's clean sheet. First, he stopped Tom Cleverley's rasping volley from the edge of the box. Then, on the rebound, he scrambled to deny Clark from close range.

Grades

Starting XI	Rating
Substitutes	Rating
Robert Green	8.0
Mauricio Isla	8.4
Richard Dunne	7.8
Steven Caulker	7.1
Yun Suk-Young	7.3
Eduardo Vargas	7.5
Karl Henry	6.8
Sandro	7.4
Leroy Fer	7.4
Bobby Zamora	6.8
Charlie Austin	8.5
Junior Hoilett (for Zamora, 63')	6.9
Armand Traore (for Vargas, 87')	6.0
Niko Kranjcar (for Fer, 90')	6.0

Starting XI	Rating
Substitutes	Rating
Brad Guzan	6.4
Matthew Lowton	6.8
Ron Vlaar	6.7
Ciaran Clark	6.6
Aly Cissokho	6.8
Tom Cleverley	6.4
Ashley Westwood	6.6
Carlos Sanchez	6.6
Gabriel Agbonlahor	6.2
Christian Benteke	6.4
Andreas Weimann	6.5
Darren Bent (for Weimann, 70')	6.1
Joe Cole (for Westwood, 70')	6.1

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