Reading v Bournemouth: Tight MadStad tussle forecast for Friday

Reading v Bournemouth
Friday January 29, 20:00
Sky Sports

Reading rue late penalty miss at Deepdale

Lucas Joao missed a late penalty as Reading were held to a frustrating goalless draw at Preston in Sunday afternoon's Championship contest. The Royals' top scorer swept his spot-kick inches wide of the left-hand post after he had been brought down by Joe Rafferty, the golden opportunity in a match that featured few clear-cut chances at Deepdale.

Preston had the best opportunity in a hard-fought first half but Reading goalkeeper Rafael Cabral was down quickly to block. Ovie Ejaria forced the hosts' stopper to turn his close-range strike around the post as Veljko Paunovic's charges improved after the break without finding a way through as they extended their unbeaten streak to five matches, to stay fifth.

Speaking post-match, Paunovic said: "We're disappointed and frustrated but I always use these disappointments to channel it into the next game and next opponent in a positive way. The team played very well in the second half." Michael Olise could return to the starting XI here, while Yakou Meite and Andy Yiadom are back in the squad after injury.

Bournemouth progress in cup contest

Bournemouth progressed to the FA Cup fifth round in midweek as goals from Joshua King and Jack Wilshere secured a 2-1 success at home to League Two outfit Crawley. Wilshere, starting for the first time in his second spell with the Cherries, curled in the opener from 20 yards as Jason Tindall's team dominated proceedings from the off at Dean Court.

Crawley were briefly level but King's placed effort was enough to see the hosts through. Whilst the margin of victory may have been narrow, Bournemouth were far superior to their opponents from the first whistle, monopolising possession with the quality of Wilshere, Arnaut Danjuma and King leading to 29 efforts at goal, 10 of which were on-target.

Without a Championship contest last week, Tindall named a strong starting XI and was pleased with his team's performance, only rueing the side's lack of a killer instinct on the night, saying: "I felt we thoroughly deserved the result and created a number of really good opportunities. It was disappointing that we didn't take more of the chances."

Royals outsiders at the MadStad

Bournemouth pocketed maximum points when the two teams crossed swords in the reverse encounter. The Cherries were 4-2 victors in Dorset, extending the club's winning streak over Reading to five; the Cherries have returned W6-D2-L1 in the duos nine league meetings dating back to 2001 and have W2-D3-L1 in Berkshire battles since 1993.

Reading 3.309/4 have consolidated their position in the top-six following an improved run of results since Christmas. The Royals have proven particularly proficient against sides outside the top-eight but the hosts have tended to toil when taking on the division's elite, posting W1-D2-L4 against current top-eight outfits, scoring twice or more on just one occasion.

Bournemouth 2.3411/8 were unbeaten in Championship action until November and Jason Tindall's team have struggled to find consistency thereafter. The Cherries have managed W7-D4-L5 in their past 16 outings with away displays particularly erratic (W3-D3-L3). The visitors arrive with a solitary success in their most recent six league dates (W1-D2-L3).

Oppose goals between promotion-chasing pair

Reading have proven to be one of the more watchable sides in the second-tier. The Royals fired only a fifth blank in 25 matches under Veljko Paunovic's charge on Sunday, recording just five shutouts in their last 18 league dates. A chunky 8/12 (67%) of outings at their Berkshire base have seen Over 2.5 Goals backers collect and a repeat is trading at 2.1211/10.

However, only four of those 12 Madjeski Stadium matches have seen Both Teams To Score punters paid out and with just two of Bournemouth's past 10 Championship contests following the same path, it makes sense to support a repeat between the two top-six contenders on Friday night with Both Teams To Score 'No' available to support at 1.991/1.