Reading and Watford take a break from Championship action to square off in the FA Cup third round on Saturday afternoon.
Although nine places separate the two teams in the second tier, the visitors hold just a four-point advantage over the Royals.
Match preview
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After three league games in little over a week, Paul Ince and Slaven Bilic will be grateful for the brief break from the pressures which come with trying to earn promotion to the Premier League.
From Reading's perspective, they remain as outsiders to earn a return to the top flight, particularly having collected just four points from as many games to slip down to 13th spot.
However, their only defeat over the Christmas and New Year period came at a resurgent West Bromwich Albion by a 1-0 scoreline, hardly a result which should lead to confidence being lost by the Berkshire outfit.
Nevertheless, they have only posted four wins from their last 15 fixtures in the Championship, three coming over a four-game period before failing to beat either Norwich City or the Baggies on away territory.
One of their defeats during that 15-game period came against their upcoming opponents, Watford registering a 2-0 triumph at Vicarage Road on November 8.
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As far as Bilic is concerned, he is aware that his team have been playing with the kind of inconsistency that has cost previous incumbents in his role their job.
That said, 26 points have still been collected from 16 Championship games, enough to keep Watford in fourth position in the Championship at the present time.
The late win at Norwich was just their second in six outings, yet it will be deemed to be a crucial result given the defeats to Millwall and Swansea City which preceded the trip to East Anglia.
Although Reading possess one of the best home records in the second tier, Watford have lost just four of their 14 away league fixtures during 2022-23.
Team News
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Ince is expected to ring the changes with his Reading XI, recalling the likes of Lucas Joao and Shane Long to the side.
Amadou Salif Mbengue and Naby Sarr should feature in defence, while Ince will consider whether to hand veteran Scott Dann another start after he completed 90 minutes on his senior comeback earlier this week.
Baba Rahman is in line to feature at left wing-back, with second-choice goalkeeper Dean Bouzanis also coming into the team.
Christian Kabasele, Samuel Kalu and Keinan Davis all picked up injuries versus Norwich and are expected to miss out for Watford.
William Troost-Ekong, Yaser Asprilla and Vakoun Issouf Bayo are in line to take their places as Bilic deals with a long list of fitness issues.
Goalkeeper Ben Hamer and defender Matthew Pollock may also earn rare opportunities.
Reading possible starting lineup:
Bouzanis; Mbengue, Dann, N. Sarr; Yiadom, Ince, Loum, Hendrick, Rahman; Joao, Long
Watford possible starting lineup:
Hamer; Troost-Ekong, Sierralta, Pollock; Ngakia, Gaspar, Bacuna, Morris; Asprilla, I. Sarr; Bayo
We say: Reading 1-2 Watford
With both managers likely to tinker with their squads, this is an even more unpredictable fixture than it may have been with full-strength sides. While Reading will still be confident of registering yet another home win this campaign, we feel that a greater freedom for Watford to express themselves may lead to a narrow away victory.
For data analysis of the most likely results, scorelines and more for this match please click here.
Top tip
Darren Plant
