Burnley v Reading Preview

These are two sides who were tipped to fare well in this campaign and as it stands both have had reasonable seasons. Their recent relegation from the Premiership almost automatically made Burnley one of the favourites for promotion, while Reading were at one point favourites for the title having freshened up their squad during the summer. As it stands Burnley are living up to expectations and sit in 4th spot, while Reading are probably underachieving a little and are down in 11th.

Burnley supporters may not have felt Brian Laws possessed all the qualities to be the right man to lead them this season, but one thing they knew he had was a vast experience of this division. Through the summer Laws recruited shrewdly and the rewards now appear to be paying off, with the club sat in 4th position after the opening twelve games of the season. Their last defeat came mid-September and while they have drawn a lot of games, their league position speaks for itself. Goals do not appear to be a problem and six goals in their last two games has made the Clarets one of the most dangerous sides in the division in front of goal. They will also be heading into this game with plenty of confidence having strolled past Barnsley in their last game with a comfortable 3-0 victory.

Reading on the other hand are a few places lower in 11th although their supporters will still be quite happy with the progress they’ve made last season. It was only last year that the Royals were rooted in the bottom three at this point in the campaign and since taking over, manager Brian McDermott has changed the club’s fortunes around. However, their season so far can be described as nothing but inconsistent and that’s probably the reason why they’re only sat in mid-table. They come into this fixture on the back of two defeats and while they have been narrow, McDermott will know that his side must start picking up points if they are to meet expectations and challenge in the top six.

Burnley will again be without the services of Clarke Carlisle for this one as the former Leeds defender completes a three match suspension. However, Brian Laws will be able to select Danny Fox, who didn’t feature in their last game due to a thigh injury. There’s just the one update for the visitors as Reading will be hoping for good news on Jay Tabb. The former Brentford man hasn’t featured since August but is nearing closer to return following a foot problem.

As for a prediction, we’ll have to tip Burnley in this one. The Clarets have hit some good form recently and with Reading losing their last two, we think they’re there for the taking. Our prediction

Bristol City v Reading Preview

These two teams that the bookies had down to succeed this term, although Bristol City are doing far from that. The Robins have endured an abysmal start to the season and prop up the table on just six points after the opening eleven games. It’s a better story for visitors Reading who have enjoyed a steady start to the campaign and sit in 10th spot on sixteen points.

They may have had a turbulent start to the season through the unexpected loss of a manager, but there’s no doubting Bristol City’s form so far has been nothing short of inexcusable. On paper, they possess some extremely talented players and having continued to invest over the past few months, there doesn’t appear to be any clear reason why they are performing so badly. The pressure is definitely mounting on Keith Millen and it looks increasingly likely that the decision to appoint someone with so little experience is going to prove a very poor move by the City board. Having collected just one point from their last six and conceded an appalling nine goals in their last three games, it’s clear to see that the problems are deep at Ashton Gate and time is ticking for the club to pick up points before they become enthralled in a real relegation scrap. The fact they threw away a 2-0 lead and lost 3-2 to Cardiff on Saturday won’t have done confidence any favours either.

Reading on the other hand have been relatively solid through the season and following last year’s poor campaign, their supporters will probably be happy that their club is starting to climb again. Their position of 10th highlights a steady start, but with only two points separating them from the playoffs it’s clear that anything is still possible this term. An unbeaten home record which stretched back to the opening day of the season was broken with a 1-0 defeat to Swansea on Saturday and with that they’ll be looking to put things right in this midweek outing. Their form on the road is one of the best in the division and with just one away loss so far, they’ll prove very tough opposition for Bristol City.

Bristol City head into this game still without the services of influential front men Sam Vokes and Nicky Maynard, with the duo still being kept out by hamstring and knee problems respectively. Other than that there’s nothing to report although Keith Millen will again want to ring the changes after his side threw away the game on Saturday. Reading on the other hand will have the option of including Brian Howard and Jay Tabb after the duo became available following suspension and injury at the weekend. However, Brynjar Gunnarsson will not feature as he continues to struggle with a hamstring injury.

The stats suggest that Reading should have a very good chance of taking all the points here, but for some reason we think Bristol City may just edge it. City’s season must turn around soon and after coming so close on Saturday, we think they’ll just close this one with a 1-0 victory.

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