Reading vs Derby Predictions

• Reading have failed to win their last five Championship home games (2 draws, 3 defeats).
• Derby County have avoided defeat in five of their last seven away Championship matches (1 win, 4 draws).
• Derby County have scored five goals in their last six away games while Reading have conceded eight in their last five at home.

Rams can register in battle of penalised clubs 

The two clubs penalised by the EFL do battle on Saturday with both Reading and Derby desperate for the points to stave off the threat of relegation.

The Rams would be five places higher and four points better off than the Royals if neither team had received their 21 and six-point deductions respectively.

But, although Wayne Rooney’s squad are eighth in the six-game form table and clearly looking upwards, the scale of their task remains highly improbable. The Rams have avoided defeat in a remarkable 17 of 24 league games this term, but have only won seven of those games.

Royals’ defensive record at home among four worst in table

However, the odds for Rooney’s men to stop Reading from winning look pretty good here as the hosts are far from perfect at Select Car Leasing Stadium.

The Royals would sit in the top half of the table for goals scored at home, managing 16 from their 11 games to date. But Veljko Paunovic’s men have shipped just as many, giving them a home defensive record among the four worst in the division.

Derby can add to their woes by scoring on Monday and we are particularly encouraged by the fact that they have scored four in their last three Championship games and two on their last away trip – to Stoke. A 1-1 correct score is forecast based on the Rams averaging exactly one goal conceded across their last six away trips and just under one goal scored (0.83).