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Jamie Carragher: Bottom side QPR must keep starting 'focal point' Bobby Zamora

Rangers should leave Adel Taarabt out of the picture - for now

Image: More of Zamora: Harry Redknapp should keep veteran striker in his starting line-up, says Carra

Sky Sports pundit Jamie Carragher will be right here each week to cast his expert eye over the forthcoming Premier League games.

The Liverpool legend will have his say on the players, managers and stories surrounding Sky's live fixtures – and in this column, he discusses this weekend's clashes involving teams towards the bottom.

So read on for his thoughts on how not-so-potent Burnley should approach their games, why QPR must persevere with Bobby Zamora - and, for the time being at least, leave Adel Taarabt kicking his heels - and what will be key for Aston Villa to survive.

Were Burnley always going to struggle without Danny Ings and Sam Vokes?

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CARRA SAYS: Of course. We’ve seen how Liverpool have found it hard without the goals of Luis Suarez and Daniel Sturridge and they’re a top team, so it’s even more difficult for Burnley, who don’t really have the resources or squad depth to cope. Still, Ings is back now and Sean Dyche is a manager who will always be upbeat before and after games. They have got to continue with that positive mindset but could probably have done with a better game than Everton at the weekend, because Roberto Martinez’s team look like they are coming into a bit of form.

Burnley have only scored four goals in their eight games. Do they need to be a bit more adventurous in order to climb the table?

CARRA SAYS: Burnley had a great defensive record in the Championship last season, conceding just 37 goals in their 46 games, so being hard to beat and organised is their way of playing under Dyche, a former defender. They can’t just tear that blueprint apart and be gung-ho because they don’t want to be losing fours and fives and completely ruin their goal difference. You can only really go for it if you’ve got the players to be effective and perhaps they haven’t as they didn’t invest too much over the summer. They lack a lot of quality at both ends but I think trying to keep things tight and then hitting teams with sucker punches could be the way to go.

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You watched QPR run Liverpool really close and said how impressed you were with their intensity. Is that something Rangers need to take into every game?

But Vargas equalised once again in stoppage time to make it 2-2
Image: QPR got joy against Liverpool by being physical, something Jamie says they must maintain,

CARRA SAYS: They don’t have good enough players not to. They must get at every team quickly, hunt down every ball and let people know they are around, just like they did against Liverpool. They very nearly got something against one of the bigger teams playing like that, so it should show them that is the way to go against their more direct rivals, like Aston Villa on Monday night. That match is absolutely vital for QPR because they face the risk of being cut adrift if they don’t start picking up points soon.

Bobby Zamora played against Liverpool and was highly effective. Should QPR start him or use him as an impact substitute?

CARRA SAYS: Start, all day long. I know Eduardo Vargas came on last week, looked very lively, and scored two goals, so he will be pushing for a place, but Zamora gave Liverpool’s defence a torrid time and was very important to how QPR played and need to keep on playing. He was a focal point and made the ball stick and that will allow other players, like Leroy Fer and, when he plays, Niko Kranjcar to get forward from midfield. There’s no point in bringing on Zamora after 60-70 minutes if the game is already gone, plus they have Vargas, Matt Phillips and Junior Hoilett who can inject some pace if needs be late on.

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Harry Redknapp has accused Adel Taarabt of being overweight and showing a lack of effort as the midfielder remains an absentee this season.

What about Adel Taarabt? Do QPR need to find a place for him somewhere?

CARRA SAYS: As I said, the way they played against Liverpool is a template they need to follow - it was the best they have played this season and they caused their opponents all sorts of problems. I’m not sure Taarabt fits into that as he wants time on the ball and to create things with intricate passes, so, right now, I don’t think QPR have a desperate need for him in the team. However, if injuries come along, especially to someone like Zamora, they might need to tinker things and Taarabt could be a very useful plan B because he always has one or two tricks up his sleeve.

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Aston Villa have lost four in a row without scoring but those games were against Arsenal, Chelsea, Man City and Everton. They’ll be judged more against QPR, won’t they?

CARRA SAYS: Yes. This is a game Villa will not just be thinking they can win but expect to win or get something from. There will be nerves after their recent poor run but I expect them to put in a good showing with Christian Benteke getting back to full fitness. We always speak about Villa’s pace on the break and, before they met the big boys, we were talking about their defence looking more solid, but if Benteke is fit and firing I think that eliminates any chance of them going down. Benteke was Villa’s talisman in his first season, scoring 19 Premier League goals and virtually keeping them up on his own, and he still got into double figures last year despite injury problems and not playing after March.

Watch Burnley v Everton (12.30pm, Sunday) and QPR v Aston Villa (7pm, Monday), live on Sky Sports 1.

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