Two teams battling at opposite ends of the table square off as Reading host Fulham in a midweek English Championship fixture. Both teams have different targets this season but have been on a similar run of form lately and could be set to cancel each other out.
Reading have endured a difficult campaign and the pressing concern for them at the moment will be to avoid slipping into the relegation zone. They are just two points above the bottom three and given their recent run of results, the outlook appears bleak.
The Royals’ Boxing Day fixture against Peterborough United was one of those called off due to COVID-19 so their last Championship outing was a 1-0 home defeat to West Brom.
Veljko Paunovic’s men head into Wednesday’s clash with two wins from their last 10 matches, both of which have come on the road.
Reading have surprisingly found things difficult at home lately and are without a win in their last five matches on their own turf. They have drawn two of the last three matches in that run, including a 1-1 result against Hull City in their previous outing in front of their fans.
Fulham’s last Championship outing was a 1-0 home defeat to Sheffield United. They dominated the possession but struggled to find the breakthrough with top scorer Aleksandar Mitrovic smashing their best chance against the woodwork.
The Cottagers have found things difficult lately with the defeat to Sheffield United extending their winless run to five matches, although four of those fixtures have ended in draws. Marco Silva’s men remain two points clear at the top of the standings but only because Bournemouth have also looked off colour lately.
Results have been better on the road for Fulham in recent weeks as they are unbeaten in their last five away matches. They have drawn their last two matches in that run and were held 1-1 by Luton Town in their previous away fixture.
How the bookies view it
Despite their recent struggles, Fulham are still considered overwhelming favourites among the bookies at 8/15 with Unibet. A victory for Reading is valued at 11/2 with bet365 while a draw is set at 7/2 by Quinnbet.
Head to head
Fulham have a 10-9 edge with five draws from 24 previous matches against Reading. However, the Royals have won the last two meetings and claimed a 2-1 victory in the reverse fixture back in September.
Players to watch
Reading have multiple goal threats but John Swift is their top scorer with eight Championship goals. The midfielder could be tipped to score against Fulham at 9/2 with bet365.
Fulham have the Championship’s top scorer in Aleksandar Mitrovic, who has scored 22 goals already this season. Vbet has the Serbian striker at odds of 8/11 to get on the score sheet on Wednesday.
Anything else catch the eye?
There have been goals for both teams in the last three matches between Reading and Fulham and a similar outcome is priced at 19/20 with Quinnbet. All three matches have also produced over 2.5 goals and a repeat is valued at 6/7 with SBK.
There have been more goals after the break in the last two matches between both teams so the second half can be tipped as the highest scoring half at 11/10 with Skybet.
This England Championship match between Reading and Fulham will be played on Dec 29, 2021 and kick off at 20:00. Check below for our tipsters best Reading vs Fulham prediction. You may also visit our dedicated betting previews section for the most up to date previews.
