Jim Magilton praised the efforts of his players following the 2-2 draw against NK Celje in Slovenia on Wednesday night.

A brilliant brace from Angelo Balanta was arguably the biggest talking point on a sweltering evening at the Arena Petrol Stadium, but Magilton chose to praise his entire squad at full-time.

"I thought the lads were excellent tonight," he told www.qpr.co.uk.

"Each and every one of them worked their socks off in boiling hot temperatures, and I can't praise them highly enough."

Magilton continued: "We scored two excellent goals and conceded two sloppy goals, but overall I'm really pleased with the work-out.

"I thought the first half display was fantastic in spells. We passed the ball well and moved it in the right areas.

"Some of our attacking player was right up there and the players are really beginning to profit from the work we're doing on the training ground."

Whilst Rangers are just two weeks into their pre-season campaign, the hosts begin their new season on Saturday - a factor Magilton was keen to point towards at the full-time whistle.

"We're just a couple of weeks in to our training schedule and they've been back five or six weeks, so it shows how well we've competed tonight," he said.

"The lads are looking sharp already and I'm really pleased with their efforts."