Rs head for Brewers in the Championship on Saturday

Queens Park Rangers head for Burton Albion in the Championship on Saturday and could welcome back defender James Perch.

After dislocating his kneecap in August, the 32-year-old has spent the past four-and-a-half months on the sidelines.

However, the former Newcastle United man returned to action for QPR’s under-23s in their 5-1 win over Charlton Athletic on Monday, playing the full 90 minutes.

It was a significant step up in Perch’s recovery from the knee injury, and he will want to make more progress in the coming weeks after a frustrating spell.

“It was nice to be back out there. I’ve been back training for a few weeks, but because of the nature of the injury I’ve had to be patient and pick the right time to get back out there playing,” he told the club website.

“It’s not an injury you can rush back from and it might be that the physios think I need another 90 minutes with the 23s, but I’m glad to be back.”