Reading host Coventry City in the Championship on Tuesday night with both sides looking to bounce back from FA Cup third round exits last time out.
The two teams are in contrasting positions in the table, with the Royals currently occupying the final playoff place while Mark Robins's men sit in 17th position, just seven points above the relegation zone.
Match preview
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A 1-0 loss to Luton Town while on cup duty ended a three-game unbeaten run for Veljko Paunovic's side.
Star striker Lucas Joao marked his return from a five-match absence through injury with a brace against Huddersfield Town at the start of the month.
The Portuguese forward was rested against Luton and should be raring to go ahead of this midweek clash.
It has been eight years since the Madejski Stadium last played host to Premier League football, but with Reading looking like a real force again under their North Macedonian manager, this could be the year they finally return to the top flight.
A win over a lowly Coventry side is needed if they are to keep pace with the leading pack, and anything less than the three points will be deemed a disappointment.
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The Sky Blues have made a decent start to life back in the Championship after a prolonged spell in England's third tier.
Their 26-point haul after 23 games is a decent return for a newly-promoted side, but Robins will be keen to address their defensive woes as soon as possible.
Coventry have conceded more goals than every team below them in the division bar Wycombe Wanderers, who are rooted to the foot of the table.
A shock victory on Tuesday could open up a significant gap between themselves and the bottom three and give the 1987 FA Cup winners some breathing space.
Reading Championship form: WLLWDW
Reading form (all competitions): LLWDWL
Coventry City Championship form: WDLDLW
Coventry City form (all competitions): DLDLWL
Team News
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Paunovic almost has the luxury of a fully-fit squad to choose from for this midweek encounter.
Forward George Puscas is the only absentee, with the 24-year-old expected to be unavailable for another month at least following surgery.
Coventry will once again be unable to call upon the services of Tyler Walker and Jodi Jones as the pair continue to recover from long-term injuries.
Robins faces a dilemma when it comes to his forward line as Maxime Biamou and Matty Godden have been sharing the striking role of late.
Reading possible starting lineup:
Cabral; Richards, McIntyre, Morrison, Holmes; Laurent, Rinomhota; Ejaria, Swift, Aluko; Joao
Coventry City possible starting lineup:
Wilson; Hyam, McFadzean, Ostigard; McCallum, Sheaf, Hamer, Dabo; Shipley, O'Hare; Godden
We say: Reading 2-0 Coventry City
With Joao back in the starting XI and in good form, Reading are a different proposition. The 27-year-old adds a significant threat to the side's attack, and he could prove to be the difference on Tuesday.
Top betting tip
Data Analysis
Our analysis of all available data, including recent performances and player stats up until an hour before kickoff, suggested the most likely outcome of this match was a Reading win with a probability of 40.74%. A win for Coventry City had a probability of 30.55% and a draw had a probability of 28.7%.
The most likely scoreline for a Reading win was 1-0 with a probability of 13.09%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 2-1 (8.06%) and 2-0 (7.97%). The likeliest Coventry City win was 0-1 (10.9%), while for a drawn scoreline it was 1-1 (13.25%). The actual scoreline of 3-0 was predicted with a 3.2% likelihood. Our data analysis correctly predicted that Reading would win this match.
