After the postponement of their trip to Coventry City last weekend, Rotherham United will welcome Reading to the New York Stadium for a Championship contest on Saturday.
Paul Warne's men began life back in the Championship with a draw before returning to action and progressing in the EFL Cup on Wednesday, while their visitors come into the game with three points from their opening two outings.
Match preview
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After winning a third promotion to the Championship within five years under Paul Warne, Rotherham United headed into the new season hoping to survive the drop in the second tier for the first time since 2016.
Coming in as League One runners-up and EFL Cup champions, after a triumph at Wembley, the Millers' league campaign began at home to Swansea City, and Chiedozie Ogbene gave them a perfect start, opening the scoring in the 16th minute.
They would eventually come out of that game with a point, after Harry Darling levelled the scores with an eye-catching finish from distance, and they saw their trip to Coventry in the second round of fixtures postponed due to an unsafe pitch.
Returning to action on Wednesday after that blank weekend, the South Yorkshire outfit began their defence of the EFL Cup with a first-round tie away at Port Vale, and they successfully progressed with a 2-1 victory as Oliver Rathbone and Ogbene got on the scoresheet in the first half before Malvind Benning pulled a goal back in vain for the third-tier outfit with 10 minutes to go.
Now turning their attention back to the league, with the ultimate aim of avoiding the drop this time around, the Millers will aim to gain another positive result on home turf at the weekend and put their first three-point haul on the board.
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Their visitors make the trip to Yorkshire hoping for a second straight league victory after losing on the opening day.
After the Royals avoided relegation in a tough season last time around, they headed into the new term with Paul Ince still at the helm and began with a trip to Blackpool on the opening day.
They would leave empty-handed as Callum Connolly hit the only goal of the game early on but were quickly able to bounce back last weekend, coming from behind to beat Cardiff City 2-1 thanks to goals from Shane Long and Tom Ince.
The Royals then took on Stevenage in their own EFL Cup first-round tie last time out, but their journey would not last long, as Danny Rose's 89th-minute goal condemned Ince's side to a 2-1 defeat after Kelvin Ehibhatiomhan had drawn them level.
With their priorities clearly on putting up an improved league campaign this time around, Reading will hope to build on the Cardiff performance with another three points on Saturday.
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Team News
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Paul Warne sent a relatively strong Rotherham side to Port Vale in the week, albeit with a few rotations, and the likes of Richard Wood, Ben Wiles and Chiedozie Ogbene are set to come back into the starting XI on Saturday, with first-choice goalkeeper Viktor Johansson also bound to return between the sticks.
Wood will captain the side and operate at the heart of the back three, with Grant Hall also set to play in defence, while new signings Jamie McCart, Cameron Humphreys and Lee Peltier will all likely battle for the final spot.
In the continued absence of new striker Tom Eaves through injury, Ogbene will again be the key man in attack, while Conor Washington should also operate in the forward areas with support from Wiles.
Reading have an unenviable injury list to deal with, as Ovie Ejaria, Yakou Meite, Liam Moore, Scott Dann and Lucas Joao are all ruled out, while Sam Hutchinson is a major doubt.
In the absence of Dann and Moore, Andy Yiadom has moved into a more defensive role to join Tom Holmes and Tom McIntyre in a back three, with Jeff Hendrick and Mamadou Loum expected to operate in the engine room.
Shane Long, who returned to the club in the summer following an 11-year spell away with West Bromwich Albion, Hull City and Southampton, will continue to lead the line with support from winger Tom Ince, having both got off the mark for the season in the win over Cardiff.
Rotherham United possible starting lineup:
Johansson; Humphreys, Wood, Hall; Harding, Barlaser, Lindsay, Bramall; Wiles; Washington, Ogbene
Reading possible starting lineup:
Lumley; Yiadom, Holmes, McIntyre; Hoilett, Hendrick, Loum, Guinness-Walker; Ince, Long, Ehibhatiomhan
We say: Rotherham United 2-1 Reading
Rotherham United will know that if they are to stand a chance of avoiding relegation this time around, they must be particularly resolute at home, and we see them grinding out an important first win at the weekend.
Reading arrive with a depleted squad, and Warne's men will see the contest as a good chance to take all three points and get off to a strong start.
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Top tip
Sam Varley
