Both aiming to get back to winning ways after midweek draws, Reading and Rotherham United will do battle at the Select Car Leasing Stadium on Saturday.
The hosts currently sit ninth in the League One table and three points outside of the playoff spots, while their visitors have dropped back down to 14th spot in the midst of a three-match winless run.
Match preview
© Imago
Reading will aim to ramp up their pursuit of a League One playoff place on Saturday, having extended an unbeaten streak to three games in a somewhat disappointing midweek draw.
The Royals enjoyed a pleasing start to life under Noel Hunt following Ruben Selles's departure, maintaining a top-six place in December and early January, only to see their hopes take a major hit as they suffered consecutive defeats at the hands of Stockport County, Leyton Orient and Burton Albion last month.
Hunt's men bounced back to winning ways by beating Bolton Wanderers 1-0 at the beginning of February, thanks to Harvey Knibbs's late penalty, before visiting then-fifth-placed Huddersfield Town last weekend and leaving with a share of the spoils from a goalless stalemate.
Then aiming to move back within touching distance of the top six with a 12th league win of the season, the Royals most recently hosted strugglers Shrewsbury Town on Tuesday and led in the first half through Jayden Wareham, but they were unable to go back ahead after Taylor Perry levelled the scores in the 56th minute.
Having lost ground following that midweek draw, Reading now find themselves ninth in League One, but still only trailing sixth-placed Huddersfield by three points and Leyton Orient and Bolton by one, they have the chance to quickly strengthen their playoff bid if they can get back to winning ways and make it four games unbeaten on Saturday.
![Rotherham United manager Steve Evans during the EFL Sky Bet League 1 match between Wycombe Wanderers and Rotherham United at Adams Park, High Wycombe, England, on 24 August 2024. [on August 25, 2024]](https://sm.imgix.net/24/34/steve-evans.jpg?w=640&h=480&auto=compress,format&fit=clip "Rotherham United manager Steve Evans during the EFL Sky Bet League 1 match between Wycombe Wanderers and Rotherham United at Adams Park, High Wycombe, England, on 24 August 2024. [on August 25, 2024]")
© Imago
Their visitors, meanwhile, head to Berkshire aiming to end a dip in form and climb back into League One's top half in what has been a tricky campaign on their return to England's third tier.
Aiming to bounce straight back up to the Championship under the management of Steve Evans, Rotherham United currently find themselves 14th having only earned 38 points from their 30 outings thus far, winning 10 of those games and losing 12.
They have particularly struggled away from home, picking up just two league victories on the road and suffering eight defeats, and Evans's men now head into the weekend in the midst of a three-match winless run, after an improved streak saw them collect 14 points from a seven-match span between late December and late January.
That run was halted in a 2-1 away defeat to leaders Birmingham City, before the Millers dropped out of the EFL Trophy at the hands of fourth-tier Bradford City and fell to another 2-1 loss at home to strugglers Shrewsbury Town last weekend, as John Marquis put the visitors back ahead straight after Hakeem Odoffin's 76th-minute leveller.
Now on the back of a goalless stalemate away at Blackpool in midweek, Rotherham United find themselves two points behind 11th-placed Blackpool and 12th-placed Lincoln City and five points outside of League One's top 10, and they will hope to reignite a climb towards the right end of the division starting with a rare away win on Saturday.
Team News
© Imago
Reading will remain without Andy Yiadom and Jeriel Dorsett due to injury issues on Saturday, while centre-back Harlee Dean could also miss out after not making the midweek meeting with Shrewsbury Town.
In his absence, Amadou Mbengue came into the back four to join Tyler Bindon, who is spending the remainder of the season on loan with the Royals after completing a move away to Nottingham Forest in January.
Elsewhere, Lewis Wing and Charlie Savage will continue in the engine room, allowing top scorer Harvey Knibbs to support the front three, with Chem Campbell and Kelvin Ehibhatiomhan hoping to start again either side of Jayden Wareham, who netted his second league goal of the season in the midweek draw.
Rotherham United travelled to Blackpool with a badly hit squad in midweek, and Sean Raggett, Cohen Bramall, Christ Tiehi, Shaun McWilliams, Alex MacDonald, Jonson Clarke-Harris and Mallik Wilks could all remain sidelined.
Given those likely absences, Sam Nombe, who is level on seven goals for the season with Wilks and Clarke-Harris, will be relied upon to lead the line, likely alongside Jordan Hugill, while Louie Sibley and Andre Green will compete to come in and offer support.
Cameron Humphreys, Joe Powell and January arrival Pelly Ruddock Mpanzu will hope to keep their midfield spots, while Hakeem Odoffin should again deputise alongside Zak Jules at the heart of a back four.
Reading possible starting lineup:
Pereira; Craig, Mbengue, Bindon, Garcia; Knibbs, Wing, Savage; Campbell, Wareham, Ehibhatiomhan
Rotherham United possible starting lineup:
Phillips; Rafferty, Odoffin, Jules, James; Powell, Humphreys, Ruddock Mpanzu; Green; Hugill, Nombe
We say: Reading 2-1 Rotherham United
With the visitors off the pace again in their League One campaign, despite the quality in their squad, we back Reading to reignite their playoff push with a narrow home victory on Saturday.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Sam Varley
