MARK Hughes reckons QPR have a mountain to climb to avoid relegation from the Premier League with 10 games to go.

Sparky insists everyone in the Rangers camp must now fix crampons and dig in starting with the visit of Liverpool on Wednesday night – even if the slope got steeper following the gut-wrenching 2-1 defeat to fellow strugglers Bolton on Saturday.

Rs not only face the Kenny Dalglish’s reds hoping for their own top-six finish, they face the daunting prospect of Arsenal, Manchester United, Tottenham, Chelsea and Manchester City on the final day that might decide champions and survivors at the Etihad Stadium come May 13.

Hughes said: “I hope it doesn’t come down to the final game, and as far as tough games go, a lot of sides in our predicament have a similar situation.

“But there’s no doubt about it. Playing who we do will focus the mind. There are no short cuts, and we’ll be stretched to the limit of our abilities.”

The record for fewest points required to avoid the drop is West Brom’s 34 in 2005, although the manager thinks safety this time will be somewhere in between that and the talismanic 40 that only three sides have made and still gone down.

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