MX23RW : Tuesday, May 14 03:45:07| >> :600:1514511:1514511:
[monks data]
Reading logo
Championship
Mar 10, 2015 at 8pm UK
 
Brighton logo

2-1

Mackie (24', 56')
FT(HT: 1-0)
O'Grady (53' pen.)

Preview: Reading vs. Brighton & Hove Albion

Sports Mole previews Tuesday night's match in the Championship as bottom-half sides Reading and Brighton & Hove Albion meet at the Madejski Stadium.

Focus is back on the league for Reading as they prepare to host Brighton & Hove Albion in the Championship on Tuesday night.

The Royals were in FA Cup action over the weekend and haven't yet secured their place in a Wembley semi-final as they were held to a goalless draw by League One side Bradford City.

Steve Clarke's side will fancy themselves to advance from a replay at the Madejski Stadium, but now their attention turns back to the league.

With 11 games of their season remaining, Reading are 18th in the table and a win here would take them 13 points clear of safety and ease any worries about being dragged into a relegation scrap.

They have fallen into the bottom third of the table because of just one win in their last six league games, with no wins and just one goal in their last three matches.

Clarke could recall Chris Gunter and Garath McCleary as they dropped out against Bradford, while Alex Pearce will be assessed after suffering a broken nose at Valley Parade.

While Reading are struggling for form, Brighton are enjoying one of their best patches of the season.

The Seagulls have won three of their last four games, which is as many victories as they had in their previous 15 games.

It means that they are just a point and a place below their opponents tomorrow night and like Reading, they are trying to pull further clear of the bottom three.

They might have improved of late, but all three of those recent wins were at home, including a 2-0 triumph over high-flying Derby County in their last game.

Away from home, Chris Hughton's side haven't scored in their last four matches, picking up just two points out of a possible 12. If they fail to score at the Madejski Stadium, it will be the first time since August 2001 that they've gone more than four away games without finding the net.

Hughton has only one fresh selection issue, with Sam Baldock possibly out for the rest of the season with a knee injury, so Kazenga LuaLua could start on the left.

The recent head-to-head record is in Reading's favour, with the Royals unbeaten in nine league games against the Seagulls, winning the first six in this run before drawing the most recent three.

Reading:

Form in Championship: LLWLLD
Form in all competitions: LWLLDD

Possible starting lineup: Federici; Gunter, Hector, Pearce, Obita; Chalobah, Williams, Norwood; McCleary, Robson-Kanu; Pogrebnyak

Brighton:

Recent form: DDWWLW

Possible starting lineup: Stockdale; Bruno, Greer, Dunk, Bennett; Holla, Kayal, Teixeira; Calderon, O'Grady, LuaLua

Sports Mole says: 2-1


ID:210262: cacheID:210262:1false2false3false:QQ:: from db desktop :LenBod:restore:5060:No Data Analysis info

Previews by email

Click here to get Sports Mole's daily email of previews and predictions for every major game!


Restore Data
Share this article now:
Dale Stephens of Brighton skips the tackle from Leeds' Alex Mowatt during the Sky Bet Championship match between Brighton & Hove Albion and Leeds United at The Amex Stadium on Febuary 11, 2014
Read Next:
Brighton stun Derby
>
rhs 2.0
Today's games header
Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
CPortsmouth462813578413797
3Bolton WanderersBolton462512986513587
4Peterborough UnitedPeterborough462591289612884
5Oxford UnitedOxford Utd4622111379562377
6Barnsley4621131282641876
7Lincoln CityLincoln4620141265402574
8Blackpool4621101565481773
9Stevenage4619141357461171
10Wycombe WanderersWycombe461714156055565
11Leyton Orient461811175355-265
12Wigan AthleticWigan462010166356762
13Exeter CityExeter461710194661-1561
14Northampton TownNorthampton46179205766-960
15Bristol Rovers46169215268-1657
16Charlton AthleticCharlton461120156465-153
17Reading461611196870-253
18Cambridge UnitedCambridge461212223961-2248
19Shrewsbury TownShrewsbury46139243567-3248
20Burton Albion461210243967-2846
RCheltenham TownCheltenham46128264165-2444
RFleetwood TownFleetwood461013234972-2343
RPort Vale461011254174-3341
RCarlisle UnitedCarlisle4679304181-4030


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
Argentina's Lionel Messi kisses the World Cup trophy after collecting the Golden Ball award on December 18, 2022Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!