Nottingham Forest (H) Match Preview

Reading return home to Berkshire on the back of two superb away wins at Brighton and Southampton, as they face relegation-threatened Nottingham Forest. The Royals could seize promotion back to the Premier League for the first time in four years if they better West Ham’s result at Bristol City.

Vital Quotes:

Reading manager Brian McDermott – ‘I’m sure a lot of people will, but I’ll have two eyes on Reading. All we can do is try to get three points, nothing changes, the focus is the same. There’s nothing else on the agenda but Nottingham Forest. I went to Forest’s home match on Saturday, just our normal preparation for this game. It’s just the next game.’

Nottm Forest manager Steve Cotterill – ‘It would mean everything to get safe because that’s what we’ve been striving hard for since I came through the door. At one stage it was looking bleak for us – it looked bleak when I arrived and it looked bleak when we had no defenders. We’ve managed to come out the other end and hopefully we can finish the job off properly.’

Reading Team News:

Reading could have Mikele Leigertwood back for this game after returning to training but winger Hal Robson-Kanu is still a major doubt. Midfielder Jem Karacan is out for the season, while Matt Connolly has returned to training but is nowhere near fit enough to have involvement.

Player to watch: Adam Le Fondre

The prolific goalscorer could start with Jason Roberts reportedly carrying a knock and will want to take his opportunity for the start, after making good cameo appearances from the bench.

Nottingham Forest Team News:

Key winger Gareth McCleary is out as he is serving the final game of his suspension, while midfielder Guy Moussi is a doubt with a calf problem.

Player to watch: Luke Chambers

The Forest captain was a target of McDermott’s this summer and is an influential figure in the Forest defence.

Reverse Fixture:

Nottingham Forest 1 – 0 Reading

Tudgay (75)

Match Prediction:

Forest are never an easy outfit to beat and have shown some improvement in recent weeks but should still see a home win. 1-0 victory.

Next Fixtures:

Reading – Crystal Palace (H) – Saturday 21st April – nPower Championship

Nottingham Forest – Hull (A) – Saturday 21st April – nPower Championship