Sheffield Wednesday v Reading: Obdurate Owls can be opposed

Sheffield Wednesday v Reading
Wednesday December 2, 19:45
Sky Sports

Sheffield Wednesday play out drab draw

Sheffield Wednesday remain second from bottom in the Championship after a lacklustre scoreless draw at home to Stoke on Saturday. The Owls, still seeking their first victory under former Potters boss Tony Pulis, were unable to break down the visitors in a dour encounter featuring few clear-cut chances and a total Expected Goals (xG) output of just 0.60.

There were limited scoring opportunities during a drab first half, with Wednesday's five-man defence holding firm to blunt the Stoke forward line. Owls midfielder Kadeem Harris went closest to breaking the deadlock as he grazed the post with a left-foot drive and then drilled a half-volley through a crowd of players, with Jon Obi Mikel blocking it on the line.

Pulis sent on Jordan Rhodes to provide support for Callum Paterson in the second half, but Wednesday still failed to muster a serious attempt on target. In fact, goalkeeper Joe Wildsmith was the busier of the two between the sticks as the game dragged on, denying Tyrese Campbell before saving a low attempt from Sam Vokes with his legs late on.

Reading return to winning ways

Reading ended a five-match winless run with an impressive 3-1 victory against top-six rivals Bristol City on Saturday. Ovie Ejaria gave the Royals a deserved lead, cutting inside and unleashing a low shot from the edge of the box which took a heavy deflection. However, the visitors levelled with just their second attempt on goal with less than 20 minutes to play.

But the Robins' parity was short lived when Michael Olise's superbly weighted through ball sent Yakou Meite clear to put Reading back in front before Lucas Joao sealed the points from close range after another quick counter-attack. Veljko Paunovic's posse were full value for the points and concluded the weekend only two points off the Championship summit.

Post-match, Paunovic said: "That is one of our best performances of the year. But in saying that, we must remind ourselves about our consistency. We needed a balanced display on the defensive side and in attack. And that happened today. It was a very complete performance." Neither George Puscas nor John Swift will be available for the near future.

Hosts tend to toil at Hillsborough

Curiously, the home team hasn't won in each of the last four renewals of Sheffield Wednesday against Reading. The Owls were comprehensively beaten 3-0 at Hillsborough by the Royals last February and have tended to toil as hosts against the Berkshire outfit, returning a mediocre W4-D4-L4 in 12 head-to-heads here over the past two decades.

Sheffield Wednesday 2.6613/8 have managed a paltry two shots on-target over Tony Pulis' first two fixtures in charge with the Owls focusing on their defensive foundations.

Goals have been few and far between at Hillsborough in 2020, with the home side scoring nine goals across all competitions (W2-D7-L10). Wednesday have fired blanks in three of four at home.

Reading 2.9215/8 have relished their midweek road trips and head here unbeaten in nine such away days (W2-D7-L0). The Royals collected 10 points from their first four games as guests but have recently managed a solitary draw from their last three road trips. Nevertheless, the visitors have struck twice or more in five of their seven games outside of the Madjeski Stadium.

Royals can keep Wednesday at bay

Sheff Wed's opening 14 fixtures have produced a league-low average of 1.36 goals per-game with a huge 12 of 14 falling below the Over 2.5 Goals 2.407/5 line. Eight of those encounters have seen fewer than two goals, including five of the past six Championship matches, while at least one side has failed to score in seven of the Owls' last eight.

In contrast, Reading's outings are featuring 2.93 goals per-game - second only to Blackburn 3.07207/100 - and 8/14 (57%) of those contests broke the Over 2.5 Goals barrier. Veljko Paunovic's charges have scored in all bar three of their league clashes and delivered Both Teams To Score profit in five of seven showdowns since late October.

With Wednesday offering precious little in the final-third, it makes sense to side with Reading and we can support the Royals in the Double Chance market alongside Under 3.5 Goals at 1.80 on the Same Game Multi. We'll make money should the visitors win by a 1-0, 2-0, 3-0 or 3-1 scoreline, as well as the 0-0 and 1-1 draws.