Let's hope Reading have one eye on the FA Cup semi-final

I suppose some AFCB fans will say that the Royals have not been able to hold this Cherries side of late and with the FA Cup semi-final against Arsenal on the horizon it is likely that most of the Royal's first team will be sheltered from a run out in this fixture. Does that make it a simple task for the Cherries? I doubt it as AFCB have a habit of causing us all heartache and nail biting. Had AFCB been a few points clear at this point it may have seemed more of a formality, but an away game is far from that and Bournemouth have to turn up and put in a top performance if they want to keep ahead of the chasing teams.

4000 AFCB fans will be heading to the Madjeski stadium

It is hard to know exactly what team Steve Clarke will put out. In the last league game against Bolton before their quarter final away game against Bradford City he made four changes and for the replay he changed the whole team from the one which played Watford in the Championship two days earlier. Something similar might be expected against AFCB, but reading have three full days to recover before facing Arsenal so he could start with a strong side and see how it goes in the first half before making some changes. The FA Cup is Readings season now and it is likely that Clarke will put everything he has into the match against Arsenal at Wembley for that reason.

Just who will be in that Reading side?

The form of Reading has been inconsistent in the league of late. They have drawn their last three games and barring the FA Cup they have not won at home since 10 March, while during February they did not win at home all month when they played Leeds, Wigan and Nottingham Forest. Still they beat Derby and Ipswich away that month which means that they can perform on their day.

Simon Cox leads their goal stats on eight for the season and just behind him is Pavel Pogrebnyak and then Jamie Mackie on six.

Reading Home Form
LLWDD

AFCB Away Form
LWDDW

You can read Cherry Chimes' pre-match interview with The Tilehurst End Blog by visiting their site and you can catch up on the reverse interview here on Cherry Chimes' Rival Lines.

It looks like Matt Ritchie may be struggling to make this game with the stitches he had after the Brighton match, but I suspect that Adam Smith could well get a start in this game. Enjoy the game and remember to sing loudly at the Madjeski - I'll see you there - UTCIAD!

The Tilehurst Blog on Steve Clarke and Reading's season

Rival Lines

Reading v AFCB

14 April 2015
Blogger Interview: The Tilehurst End podcast and Blog

The excitement for Reading fans is perhaps not so much for the match against Bournemouth but their semi-final tie against Arsenal in next week's FA Cup. Still, I managed to have a chat with Dan from the The Tilehurst End podcast and Blog before he got his busy week underway and I had a few questions to ask him about how he thought Steve Clarke might go about this game with the league leaders before their special weekend.

CC: Congratulations on doing so well in the FA Cup but if you don't get any further than the semi-final, will this season as a whole have been disappointing?

TTEB: It's tough to say really but personally I'll consider it disappointing but not disastrous. The FA Cup run has captured the imagination, even though the fact we're facing Arsenal has taken some of the shine off things. However to be still slightly concerned with relegation with just five games to go is disappointing by any standards. This will be our lowest finish since returning to the top two tiers in 2002 and few players will come out of the campaign with much to shout about.

CC: Why do you think Reading have not done better in the Championship this season?

TTEB:To me the team has just gone stale, that coupled with some poor man management, an appalling injury list and general poor play has led to this lowly position we find ourselves in. Our previous ownership crippled the club's manoeuvrability in the FFP era and there's only so far you can go when you've not paid money for a central defender in nearly three years.... Losing Glenn Murray back to Palace in January also deprived us of our only natural goal scorer and the midfield just hasn't chipped in with the number of goals we've needed.

CC: The 6-1 away defeat to Birmingham in December was probably the hardest day for a Royals fan, but I guess at least you brought in Steve Clarke then and he has done okay hasn't he?

TTEB: I think OK is about the best way to describe it because in truth he's got a worse PPG ratio than Mr Adkins. The FA Cup run has obviously kept him in the good books of many Reading fans but there's already been a few questions about his team selections and short-term signings. It's unfair to judge him until he's had a full pre-season under his belt but there's not been an instant transformation or wow factor.

CC: At the time of writing, I see that Pavel Pogrebnyak and Jamie Mackie have only scored six goals each for Reading all season (at the time of writing), so are you hoping that there are changes in the striker department over the summer and do you think the club will have money to spend?

TTEB: 100% hoping for change! As Mentioned, losing Glenn Murray has left a massive hole in our striking options and while Mackie and Pog have done their best, neither are the type of dynamic 20 goal a season striker that really helps you compete at the top of the table. With many expensive contracts coming off the books this summer there should be a bit of money to spend but with our parachute payments decreasing and a new training ground to be built, I wouldn't expect a massive spending spree. Jamie Mackie himself is one of those that will go back to Forest this summer, so hopefully he is one that comes back.

CC: How has Zak Knight been performing who was brought in on loan until the end of May?

TTEB: The only thing Zat Knight has been performing well in is the race to see who's been the bigger bust, himself or Anton Ferdinand.... How that man ever played for England is beyond me! Kwesi Appiah has shown flashes of promise since joining on loan from Palace while Nathan Ake has demonstrated why Chelsea think so much of him at just 20 years old.

CC: Do you think your fixture congestion this month could cause you problems with your league position still not safe yet?

TTEB: At the time of writing it looks as if our draw with Blackburn has probably kept us safe but with yourselves, Brentford and Derby all to play before the end of the campaign, a couple of Millwall wins might just cause a tinge of concern. Still I think we've got enough points to survive.

CC: Would beating Brentford mean more to Reading fans than beating Bournemouth?

TTEB: In all honesty I don't think either would register particularly highly among the fanbase, sorry! There's perhaps a little more niggle due to Bournemouth's seeming dislike for us but I don't think there's any particular animosity between us and Brentford.

CC: You play Derby on the last game of the season. That could be intense if Derby need points to remain in the top six but do Reading usually play well against Derby away?

TTEB: We've actually had a good time of things at Pride Park/iPro Stadium in recent years, including this season's FA Cup win at the same stadium in the Fifth Round. That being said, Reading will very much be 'on the beach' for this fixture and if Derby have anything to play for I can't see us standing in their way.

CC: It's an evening game against Bournemouth but do you expect Reading fans to be there in numbers with an FA Cup semi-final just around the corner?

TTEB: 4,000 Cherries fans will swell the attendance but judging by recent weeks I don't think you'll see a particularly bumper crowd from the Reading side of things. With Wembley at the weekend and our league form pretty awful there's little incentive for fans to come down and the fact we'll likely take a thumping won't help things either!

CC: Do you expect Clarke to rest players for the Bournemouth game and if so who in particular?

TTEB: Our last pre-FA Cup game saw Clarke rest virtually the entire side and it wouldn't surprise me to see him do the same again. Adam Federici has had a quiet couple of games so he might get a run out, as will cup-tied loanee Nathan Ake but beyond those two I really wouldn't be shocked to see nine changes from the game against Blackburn.

CC: What is your score prediction for Reading v AFCB?

TTEB: Reading 0-3 Bournemouth.

It looks a bit like AFCB's match against Reading is a bit of a sideshow to the main event for Royals fans but the match is everything to the Cherries who could secure a play-off place tonight and whatever team the opposition puts out AFCB really need a win. Many thanks to Dan at the The Tilehurst End podcast and Blog for giving us his thoughts on what have been the problems for Reading FC and how life in the Championship has been for fans of Reading. If you go over to The Tilehurst End site later today you should find some of my answers to questions put to me about the Cherries' season.

What's going on at managerless Wednesday?

Managerial mayhem has already made its mark in the Championship with six bosses already losing their jobs or resigning from their post. Sheffield Wednesday is one of those clubs where there has been a change but no one has yet filled the vacant spot on a permanent basis. Dave Jones did a good job in getting Wednesday promoted from League One, but he found it hard to establish the Owls as a real contender in the Championship. That is a challenge that our own club faces and you need some luck on such a journey.

Dave Jones got the Owls up to 18th place last season in the Championship, but struggled to improve on this until his time ran out at the start of December. But Sheffield Wednesday are a big enough club to still make a good fist of this season having already beaten Leicester and Reading.

As well as Dave Jones, many others have fallen by the wayside at Forest, Middlesbrough, Wigan, Barnsley and most recently at Watford, and I expect there will be more manager who will also be walking the plank. Chairmen are already getting nervous as the half way point approaches and there is the chance of the January transfer window to salvage the season.

But who does a team like Sheffield Wednesday get in to revive their season? It is a big club with huge fan support but I imagine the funds for big players is simply not there because the club has been in League One in recent seasons and has not enjoyed much success. They could do with a manager like Ian Holloway or Cardiff's Malky Mackay who knows the division well and has had success in recent years, but getting hold of the right man is not so easy. That is probably why the Owls have been slow to appoint anyone on a permanent basis yet.

There was talk of them making an approach for Roy Keane who is working for as assistant manager for the Republic of Ireland, but that would seem like jumping into the frying pan to me. A much better bet would be the moderate, but tactical thinking Steve Clarke who was unfortunate to lose his position at West Brom. Sometimes though I don't think chairmen really know who would be best to bring to their club and so we have poor appointments and the managerial merry go round continues.

When AFCB line up to face Sheffield Wednesday it looks like Stuart Gray will be in charge of the Owls and could probably do a good job medium term but everyone wants a big name to head up their club. Milan Mandaric was after Neil Warnock much to the disgust of Owls fans and now Mandaric is probably in a difficult position to bring the right person in for the job having lost out on one man.

Does this mean it is a good time to play Sheffield Wednesday at home? Well it could certainly be that way if the Cherries can get that early goal and get the home crowd upset. It is surprising the things that go on behind the closed doors at club that have an effect on how the players perform and if Sheffield do not yet have a new manager I would rather play them now than in a few weeks time.

Meanwhile, last night's FA Cup win for Burton Albion means that AFCB will face them at home on Saturday 4 January.