Queens Park Rangers manager Mark Warburton has said that his affection for Brentford ‘will never go away’, as he faces his former side in the Championship tonight.

It’ll be Mark Warburton’s first West London derby as QPR manager tonight, as his side look to cement their place in the play-off places at home to Brentford.

Thomas Frank’s side will make the five-mile journey across West London to The Kiyan Prince Foundation Stadium tonight, and will go into the derby on the back of two wins.

A late comeback victory over Millwall the weekend before last, and a thumping 3-0 win at Swansea City last week saw the Bees climb up to mid-table before the weekend’s fixtures.

QPR though are 8th going into the game, but a win in W12 tonight could see them climb as high as 2nd.

Speaking about the visit of Brentford tonight, Warburton said:

“I understand the local rivalry, and my commitment is 100% with QPR. I’m the manager, and I want nothing more than a win on Monday night.

“But it doesn’t take away from the fact that I had five great years at Brentford.

“For me it’s a special game because both clubs mean so much. But the affection that I have for Brentford in terms of what it did for me will never go away.”

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Warburton was initially installed as the Sporting Director at Brentford in 2011, before being named as manager in 2013.

He guided the club to League One promotion in 2014, before leaving to become manager of Rangers in 2015.

The verdict

It’ll be an emotional fixture for Warburton tonight, but the 57-year-old will be fully focused on a QPR win, and on climbing back into the play-offs after the weekend’s fixtures.

He understandably has a lot of respect for Brentford, who gave him his break into football management.

But he’ll have to leave his emotions to one side tonight, and have his sights set on what will be a tough task in West London.