Alan Irvine is looking forward to getting hold of his squad this week following the international break and turn his players attentions to a tricky away trip to QPR on Saturday.

Irvine has been without three members of his squad this week with Ross Wallace, Eddie Nolan and Velice Shumulikoski all being called up for international duty. With Shumulikoski returning on Thursday, it means that the gaffer has only two days with Saturday's squad of players before the game at Loftus Road.

"I don't think it could help any manager, you've got to have your players with you on the training ground each day, so there are no benefits from a preparation point of view for us. But I fully understand its part of the football calendar so we just have to accept it and get on with it.

"I think most teams in the Championship will have players away on international duty and it is a mark of the progress your squad has made. I'm prepared to accept the up side of players being called up into international squads but I also have to accept the down side of that. I'd rather have them on the training ground with us everyday though."

With the Championship now boasting an array of international talent, the second tier of English football is proving to be recognised and respected worldwide. However, even with only three players missing, Irvine admits that it still affects the way her trains his squad.

"Training differs because you are unable to do as much with the team as you possibly could. We're missing two players at the moment because Ross Wallace has come back. He is fit and has been training well since he arrived back but I have been doing some work on the defence and obviously we could do with Eddie Nolan here for that type of work.

"When you then train your midfield players then you want all of your midfielders to be there and it's a shame and Shumi hasn't and won't be here until Thursday. We're restricted a little bit in terms of what we can do.

"Another thing is that the first week an international break, the players know that there is no game at the end of it. This means that they may not be quite as focused as they would have been in a week that ends with a game. Sometimes the training will become a little bit more general then it would have been if you were building up to a specific game."

Nevertheless, Irvine believes that despite the break's hindrance in his preparations, this is a valuable experience for Nolan, Wallace and Shumulikoski who will be turning their attentions to North End on Saturday.

"It's great for them to be called up, there are plenty of plus points there is no doubt about that. If anything else, it makes them feel like they're making progress and it makes them feel valued and obviously it is a great honour to be called up for your country. The flip side on that though is just how much do you do within this period."