Reading v Bristol City Preview

Posted on | February 20, 2009 | No Comments

The aim of both of these sides should be promotion, although one is looking for doing it the automatic way while the other are looking more towards the backdoor play off route. Reading are currently sat in 3^rd position, just one point behind Birmingham yet they also have a game in hand. Bristol City on the other hand have been in remarkable form throughout the last few weeks and have found themselves just one point away from the top six and well and truly back in the play off hunt.

Having beaten league leaders Wolves at the end of January, there were high hopes for Reading and many pundits thought that they would replace the Molineux side at the top of the table shortly. However, they’ve not followed that victory up well and having drawn their last two games, they’re throwing points away even though Wolves are continuing to slip up. Goalless draws against play off hopefuls QPR and Preston have meant that the Royals have dropped into 3^rd and with Bristol City also being labeled as top six contenders, Steve Coppell will be hoping that his side can break their duck and push their way towards the automatic positions again.

As for Bristol City, their fans must be delighted with the way their season is shaping up. Just before Christmas the Robins went on a terrible run which saw them get a little too close to the bottom three, yet since then they’ve been on some terrific form which has seen them rise to 8^th. Something that has halted their top six assault was a defeat to Doncaster on Tuesday, although before then Gary Johnson’s men had won five on the bounce so they could afford to have one blip. Just one point separates them from 6^th place Sheffield United but with so many teams vying for those play off positions, they’ll need their fair share of luck to conquer them and match last season’s finish.

There’s not much to report in the way of team news although Steve Coppell will be delighted with what he has to hear. Reading keeper’ Marcus Hahnemann has finally recovered from an injury that’s kept him out since December and is now available for inclusion. However, with stand in man Adam Federici performing well in recent weeks, Hahnemann may have to make do with a place on the bench. As for Bristol City, Gary Johnson looks set to welcome back Dele Adebola who missed the last game through an ankle injury. With City performing poorly against Doncaster in their last outing, there’s a chance Adebola could be thrown straight into the starting eleven.

Considering all of their attacking talent, it’s been strange seeing Reading experiencing trouble finding the net in recent weeks. However, we think Steve Coppell will have fixed them for this week and with that, we see nothing but a home win – 2-0 Royals.

Related posts:

1. Reading v Bristol City Preview
2. Bristol City v Reading Preview
3. Bristol City v Reading Preview
4. Southampton v Bristol City Preview
5. Bristol City v QPR Preview

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