Reading v Wolves A Low Scoring Stalemate

Reading host high-flying Wolves at the Madejski Stadium in Sunday’s Championship clash with both sides aiming to build on encouraging starts to the campaign.

Form
A 2-0 defeat at Pride Park in midweek saw Reading knocked out of the Capital One Cup by Derby and suffer a second defeat in a row in the process after the Royals were beaten 1-0 by Sheffield Wednesday in the Championship last weekend. Those losses brought an end to a run of four wins on the spin for Nigel Adkins’ men, who had made rapid progress up the table as a result but still remain just two points adrift of the playoff places going into this weekend’s games with 13 points from their eight league outings.

Ireland striker Simon Cox has top scored for the club so far this season with four league goals while Glenn Murray has hit two in three games since signing from Crystal Palace on loan on deadline day, although he did miss a penalty last weekend.

Wolves have settled seamlessly back into Championship football following their promotion from League One last season and suffered just a solitary league defeat to date.

Kenny Jackett’s charges lie second in the table just a point behind leaders Nottingham Forest unbeaten in six, and have built their early success on a stringent defence which has conceded just three goals in their eight games league matches. Wolves have already won and kept clean sheets against all three of the teams relegated from the top flight last season; Fulham, Cardiff and Norwich, and boast the only 100 percent home record in the division.

Team News
Adkins looks set to bring back many of the side which lost to the Owls last weekend having rotated heavily for the Capital One defeat in midweek with forwards Cox, Murray and Nick Blackman, the midfield pair of Jamie Mackie, Oliver Norwood and goalkeeper Adam Federici all expected to be recalled for the start as the boss has no new injury worries.

Wolves had no midweek action having been knocked out of the Capital One Cup in an earlier round and with no new injuries reported, Jackett is expected to name the same line-up which beat Bolton 1-0 last weekend.

Head-to-Head
This will be the first meeting between these teams in more than five years, with the Royals enjoying a good run of success in recent clashes, winning three and drawing one of the last four games, with the last two wins coming without conceding a goal. Wolves had won five games in a row against Reading prior to that run though, including both play-off semi-final games in 2003.

Recommended Bets
There’s not much between the teams in the match betting, with the visitors’ fine start to the season seeing them as marginal favourites at 6/4 with the draw 12/5 and the 15/8 on Reading perhaps looking better value then it may prove to be.

The slightly smaller odds than usual on a stalemate could just prove telling again here so I’d side with both sides getting a share of the spoils.

Having been involved in only one league game which featured more than two goals the smart money would look to be on a low scoring contest for Wolves again here, Under 2.5 goals holds plenty of appeal at 5/6 while both teams not to score looks a good punt at 11/10.