Reading v Blackpool Preview

Posted on | December 8, 2008 | No Comments

Both of these teams are in reasonable form yet still, many will be tipping Reading to win this one comfortably. The Royals are one of the favorites for promotion and currently sit in 3^rd position, while Blackpool are edging away from the relegation places and sit in 15^th.

Reading seem to have been pretty consistent all season yet still sit outside the automatic positions, with four points separating them from 2^nd place Birmingham. The Royals built on a 3-1 win over Coventry with a battling 1-0 victory over Barnsley, which was a game where they had just ten men for the most part. Although some will see this as an unconvincing score line considering Barnsley’s position, it’s these sort of results that will pull Reading through if they are to challenge for the automatic positions. Barnsley have proved at home that they are a force to be reckoned with and after playing with a man advantage for so long, they had to be favorites. However, as well as being a great footballing side, Steve Coppell’s men demonstrated that they know how to grind results out which is vital for success at this level.

As for Blackpool, things seem to be looking up for the Seasiders after a slight blip in form. The Bloomfield Road outfit looked to be in a bit of a mess down at the bottom after losing four games on the bounce, yet they’ve bounced back superbly and have recorded two consecutive victories over Plymouth and Charlton respectively. One of the main reasons for their recent success is the capture of Liam Dickinson, who arrived on loan from Derby a couple of weeks ago. The Rams bought him from Stockport during the summer after impressing in League Two and he looks to be taking that form into this division as well. He’s only played two games for Blackpool yet has scored all four of their goals so looks to be a real coup for Simon Grayson and long may it continue.

In terms of team news, Reading are still not sure on the availability of Jimmy Kebe who is going through the appeal process after receiving a red card against Barnsley. Other than that Steve Coppell doesn’t have any other concerns and won’t look to make many changes. As for the visitors, they may have some relief with Daniel Nardiello who looks to have finally overcome an injury and is available for selection. Like Reading, that’s the only team news for Simon Grayson and he is another manager who is unlikely to make alterations following two consecutive victories.

We can only predict a home win here. Blackpool have been doing well and while they’ve put together some decent form, Reading are far superior on paper – 2-0 Royals.

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1. Reading v Barnsley Preview
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5. Reading v Barnsley Preview

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