Premier League: QPR 3 Swansea 0

Returning captain Joey Barton played a crucial role at Loftus Road as he struck the first goal in QPR’s 3-0 Premier League win over Swansea.

Barton netted on the stroke of half-time with a fine drive, before Jamie Mackie and Akos Buzsaky scored superb goals to earn QPR a priceless three points against Brendan Rodgers’ men.

The hosts came close to breaking the deadlock inside the first four minutes when Buzsaky fired a controlled volley just past the left-hand post from 20 yards out.

Swansea were controlling the ball with their usual precision passing, but were almost undone on the break just before the 10 minute mark as Jamie Mackie was denied at the near post following good work from Barton and Samba Diakite.

Nedum Onuoha was a good outlet down the right for QPR, and he almost provided the opener when Bobby Zamora sent his cross for Mackie to strike from 12 yards, but he scuffed it into the ground and Michel Vorm gathered safely.

Barton pounced when Swansea failed to clear Adel Taarabt’s free-kick, with the former Newcastle midfielder on hand to fire into the bottom corner of Vorm’s goal for a 1-0 half-time lead.

The visitors started brightly in the second period and Joe Allen tested Paddy Kenny with a stinging drive after some good interplay in midfield.

QPR found a way to double their lead shortly before the hour mark when Mackie turned superbly away from Williams, before dragging the ball away from Angel Rangel and finding the bottom corner with a deflected effort from the edge of the box.

It was a moment of refereeing controversy as Mackie looked to be offside when receiving the pass, but his finish was superb and set his side well on their way to a crucial victory.

Buzsaky sealed the points just over ten minutes later, the Hungarian latching onto Taarabt’s pass before hammering a right-foot shot from 25 yards which flew past the despairing dive of Vorm.

The visitors continued to plug away as they sought some consolation from the game, but QPR saw out the comfortable win to move two points clear of the relegation zone.