Reading v Birmingham: A Point Apiece at the Madejski?
Just one point and one position separates these two sides in the Premier League as both sides struggle against the drop. Even the earlier meeting between these clubs in December ended in a 1-1 draw at St Andrew’s so Premier 10 players should expect a tight encounter this weekend. Fans of a free flowing game should perhaps give this one a miss.
Royals Resurgence
The Royals 2-match winning run came to a halt at Anfield last weekend as a Fernando Torres inspired Liverpool clinched a 2-1 victory. After recent successive wins over both Middlesbrough and Man City they’ll fancy their chances of beating the Blues at the Madejski and lifting themselves further from the drop-zone. They’ve now scored in the last 4 matches ending a run of 4 games without a goal and confidence should be high. Reading also kept clean-sheets in those recent 2 wins, which remain the Royals only shut-outs in the last 21 League matches.
James Leads the Blues Mc-Attack
Birmingham have lost just once in the last 6 matches but have also won only once in this run. They’ve now drawn 6 of the last 11 matches and that result looks probable for their clash with Reading. They very rarely keep clean-sheets themselves after recording just one in the last 23 League games. Unlike most of the relegation battlers, Alex McLeish’s side have had no problems scoring goals as 11 goals in the last 6 games testifies. This scoring run has coincided with the signing of Scottish striker James McFadden, his 4.75million transfer fee raised a few eyebrows but he has now scored 4 in goals in his last 5 League appearances so he looks money well spent. He is not alone in the Birmingham squad in terms of hot goal scoring streaks as Sebastian Larsson has now scored 3 goals in his last 6 matches. However, he was injured against Newcastle and is having a scan on his knee this week. The former Arsenal youngster has scored an impressive 5 goals from midfield this season and is an integral member of the Blues side so will be a big loss.
This is not an easy match to predict, however, with both sides in decent recent form and with both teams anxious to avoid a morale-crushing defeat, a draw is the best Premier 10 option for the weekend. This should be a war of attrition but I do expect both sides to get on the scoresheet so this has all the makings of a low score draw.
Pundit’s Pick: All square in this Royal relegation 6-pointer (draw) Do you agree with this result for your Premier 10 prediction? Play Now>>
Tags: Birmingham, Blues, Premier 10, Premier League preview, Reading, ROyals
