Nottingham Forest vs Reading Predictions, Betting Tips and Match Previews

Mark Warburton might just be wondering what he has got himself into at Nottingham Forest. He has talked of building for the future but back-to-back defeats leave them in a very precarious position with 3 games to go. The bookies still make them slight favourites here but on current form, the value certainly looks to be with the visitors.

Reading have won 5 of their last 6 games to move up to 3rd place. They are now virtually guaranteed a play-off place so they can afford to take a few risks and really target the win here. That would move them to within 3 points of 2nd place Newcastle and they’d still have an outside chance of automatic promotion.

They’ve been a strange side in many respects this season. There have been a few abject showings where you wonder just how they are in the hunt for promotion. Their 7-1 defeat at Norwich earlier this month was the best example of that but they responded brilliantly with 2 wins in 3 days over Easter. Either side of that Norwich defeat they’ve won away games at Hillsborough and Villa Park and have a pretty healthy 43% win ratio on the road this term.

Forest’s overall home record isn’t bad for a struggling side but they have lost 3 of their last 6 games at the City Ground. They’ve been a bit more solid at the back under Warburton but the goals have dried up and they come into this game following back-to-back 1-0 defeats against bottom half sides. Their most recent home loss to Blackburn, a side in the drop-zone but now just 1 point behind them, was particularly damaging.

With just 1 win in 6, Warburton has enjoyed no kind of honeymoon period and his side will really be feeling the pressure now and there will certainly be a few nerves around the City Ground this weekend. Their final two matches aren’t terribly difficult, so all won’t be lost if they lose this game which is a good job given that on current form, the visitors look the more likely victors.

It’s worth noting Reading have only drawn twice away all season and only two Championship sides have drawn fewer games than them overall. They are a side that takes a chance and goes for maximum points even if it risks losing the game. The current league situation makes them even more likely to do that here which suggests there’s no point heading into the ‘Draw No Bet’ or Asian Handicap markets. The way they’ve been playing, there looks to be value in backing Reading to Win at 19/10 with big potential returns.