Blackpool vs Reading: Match Preview
The Royals head to the seaside for a tough away game.
That was one of the most commanding victories I’ve seen in recent times: 3-1 against Peterborough United, who had beaten fourth-place Charlton Athletic 3-0 just the week prior. It was a massive victory that means Reading are in the playoffs for the first time in weeks and, like I said there would be, we have hope.
Blackpool have had a great run of form most recently, beating Bolton Wanderers 2-1 on Saturday. Goalscorer Ashley Fletcher is now up to 11 goals and is finding his form again.
The last time Reading faced Blackpool they were also in sixth place, having recently very poorly lost to Walsall in the EFL Trophy. But a now run of 11 unbeaten has given fans a glimmer of hope for the survival of this club.
In this preview I will discuss the almost flawless victory vs Peterborough and what Reading did to beat the Posh, mention players who have played for both teams, and make my predictions.
What? League One matchday 39
Season? 2024/25
Who? Blackpool
Where? Bloomfield Road
When? Tuesday April 1
Time? 19:45
Opposition manager? Steve Bruce
Reading vs Peterborough
Like I said before, an almost flawless victory occurred at the weekend with the score being 3-1.
The opener, albeit an own goal, came from a beautiful play that involved some very intricate play around the Peterborough box that I’ve not seen in a while at the club. Lewis Wing dictating play like he’s not been allowed to in recent games, Kelvin Ehibhationham’s quick feet and Chem Campbell being in the right place at the right time forcing the defender to get a touch into his own net.
It was a great passage of play that I hope to see more of in upcoming matches. A goal like that would be perfect to score against Blackpool.
The second and third goals were heavily reliant on one man: my man of the match, Charlie Savage. The second was a cross into the box by him. This cross was met by Mamadi Camara who was so close to having the goal himself, but a needed touch on the line from Harvey Knibbs meant the goal was his.
I feel bad for Camara: a goal like that would have been nice for him to boost his confidence a little bit. But scoring a goal by a good cross is something Reading try all the time. It’s nice that it has worked out, practising specific routines like that one could help Reading battle against Blackpool’s strong defence.
The third was a counter-attack. The ball was played out to Jayden Wareham, who took a great touch past the defender, he put in a low cross, and it was met by Savage who slotted it into the back of the net.
It was actually similar to an attack Peterborough had in the first half, but the attacker missed the chance. Every team tries a counter-attack in a game so defenders need to be on it, and Reading’s makeshift defence did the job.
I described this game as almost flawless. A slight lapse in judgement allowed Peterborough to counter and Kwame Poku scored. If we hadn’t scored that would’ve been it. Mistakes cost games, and although that was a win, mistakes can cause slip-ups.
Funnily enough, Reading did exactly what I suggested they should, so all I’m going to suggest is that they do exactly what they did against Peterborough. Carry the momentum even further and they will win.
Goals scored in this match can be scored in all games if they put the same amount of effort into those as they did this.
Players who played for both
17 players have played for both Blackpool and Reading. Here are four of them:
Charlie Adam was a great midfielder, now a manager, whose first English club was Blackpool. Playing 91 games, scoring 30 goals and getting 17 assists, he was a great servant to the club he was only at for two years. Nearly 10 years later he signed for Reading. He played 28 games, managing two goals and three assists.
Dom Ballard is destined to be a great striker. At Reading he made 11 appearances, scoring three goals. He would have been excellent if it weren’t for that horrible knee injury. After recovery he joined Blackpool on loan, playing 21 games and scoring once. He has a lot of talent and I hope he goes down in the history books.
Ian Harte is another legend of the club. Making eight appearances, he scored 15 goals and assisted 12 from left-back, not a bad return. Before joining Reading he was at Blackpool. He only made four appearances, but it turned him into the player he was going to be.
Tom Ince was at Blackpool for three years, making 100 appearances, scoring 31 goals and getting 25 assists. Blackpool made his career take off.
Later he joined Reading in 2021. He made 54 appearances, scoring 11 goals and getting six assists. Dampened by his dad being the manager, he was a great player and having someone like him in the team would really help us get through this.
My lineup
I think Noel Hunt will keep a very similar team to the one he used on Saturday.
Joel Pereira will be between the sticks. The only change will be that Tyler Bindon will come back into the lineup if he’s recovered from illness. Tivonge Rushesha, Bindon, Michael Stickland and Kelvin Abrefa would be the back four.
Savage, Wing and Knibbs are the masterminds behind the attack. Hopefully they can continue doing what they are doing.
The front three will also be the same. Although I still think Wareham should start, Campbell, Ehibhationham and Camara did well and you can’t deny they played well.
Score prediction: 2-0 Royals!
I’m feeling very positive about this one!
Good luck to those going to the game.
Come on you Royals!