Town have made seven changes for this evening’s final game of 2023 at home against QPR with Leif Davis and Wes Burns joining George Hirst and suspended skipper Sam Morsy out of the squad.
Vaclav Hladky continues in goal with Brandon Williams returning at right-back, Cameron Humphreys making his first Championship start at left-back and Luke Woolfenden and Cameron Burgess the centre-halves.
In Morsy’s absence, former QPR man Massimo Luongo captains from central midfield alongside another ex-R Dom Ball.
Ahead of them, Omari Hutchinson is on the right and Conor Chaplin in the middle with Nathan Broadhead back on the left. Freddie Ladapo is the central striker.
Davis has picked up a knock, while Burns is ill with Hirst out with his hamstring injury and Morsy due to his one-match ban for speaking out of turn to the referee after the 2-0 win at Middlesbrough.
Of those who started the 1-1 draw with Leicester on Boxing Day, Harry Clarke, Jack Taylor and Marcus Harness are on the bench.
Also among the subs are Sone Aluko and George Edmundson, while U21s striker Gerrard Buabo, 18, is on the first-team bench in the league for the first time.
QPR make five changes from the team which lost 2-0 at Millwall on Boxing Day with Reggie Cannon, Steve Cook, Chris Willock, Elijah Dixon-Bonner and Sinclair Armstrong coming into the XI.
Former Blues loan keeper Asmir Begovic skippers, while ex-Town midfielder Andre Dozzell also starts.
Town: Hladky, Williams, Woolfenden, Burgess, Humphreys, Luongo (c), Ball, Hutchinson, Chaplin, Broadhead, Ladapo. Subs: Walton, Clarke, Edmundson, Harness, Taylor, Jackson, Aluko, Tuanzebe, Buabo.
QPR: Begovic (c), Cook, Clarke-Salter, Willock, Field, Chair, Dozzell, Dixon-Bonner, Cannon, Paal, Armstrong. Subs: Archer, Kakay, Dunne, Dykes, Smyth, Larkeche, Drewe, Adomah, Kolli. Referee: David Webb (Lancashire).