Reading face Wigan Athletic at the Madejski Stadium on Wednesday in a crucial clash at the bottom of the Championship.
Wigan are two points adrift of safety after an impressive win against Millwall on Saturday, while Reading are just eight points clear of the Latics.
Match preview
© Reuters
Reading come into this match on a poor run of form that has seen them win just once in the league since New Year's Day.
Such a run has seen them plummet down the table and now with 12 matches still to play they are only eight points clear of their opponents Wigan.
Mark Bowen's side have the second worst home record in the division and have managed just 21 goals at the Madejski all season.
The potential return of Ovie Ejaria is a bonus, but with a long list of injuries, the Berkshire side need to start winning games soon.
© Reuters
In contrast to Reading, Wigan have been in good form of late, winning three and losing just one of their last six Championship fixtures.
A Shaun Hutchinson own goal saw them past Millwall at the weekend, while a Kieffer Moore brace in the 2-2 draw with Cardiff in the previous fixture will have been seen as a real positive by manager Paul Cook.
The Latics have struggled for goals all season and have scored fewer than any other side in the league, with just 34 from 34 matches.
Wigan have also failed to win 35 of their last 38 Championship away matches and face a Reading side unbeaten in their last five matches against them.
Reading Championship form: LDDLWL
Reading form (all competitions): DWDLWL
Wigan Championship form: WWLDDW
Team News
© Reuters
Midfielder Ejaria could return from injury for Reading after he missed out against Leeds United but remains a doubt to start.
Ayub Masika is also a doubt, having made his first appearance for the club earlier this month.
Meanwhile, Chris Gunter, Lucas Joao, Lucas Boye, Matt Miazga and Tom McIntyre have all been ruled out.
Wigan are without full-backs Danny Fox, Antonee Robinson and Dujon Sterling.
Everton loanee Kieran Dowell is also set to miss out.
Reading possible starting lineup:
Cabral; Yiadom, Morrison, Moore, Richards; Pele, Rinomhota; Meite, Swift, Olise; Puscas
Wigan possible starting lineup:
Marshall; Byrne, Balogun, Kipre, Naismith; Morsy, Evans; Pilkington, Williams, Jacobs; Moore
We say: Reading 1-1 Wigan
Reading have been in poor form recently but should be able to secure at least a draw against an inconsistent Wigan side. While Cook's men have improved of late, they remain in the bottom three and could lack the firepower to take all three points.
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 win with a probability of 45.47%. A win for had a probability of 29.41% and a draw had a probability of 25.1%.
The most likely scoreline for a win was 1-0 with a probability of 9.96%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 2-1 (9.22%) and 2-0 (7.71%). The likeliest win was 0-1 (7.69%), while for a drawn scoreline it was 1-1 (11.9%).
