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Match: Reading FC v Leeds United
Date: 12 March 2019
Time: 20.00 GMT, 4.00 PM EST, 6.00 PM ART
Venue: Madejski Stadium
Television: Sky Sports Action, Red Button in the UK/Ireland
Streaming: LUTV & iFollow overseas, Sky GO Extra in the UK/Ireland
Check livesoccertv for additional information.
All-time Record: Leeds v Reading: 10W 9D 8L
Reverse Fixture: 27 November 2018: Leeds 1-0 Reading
will be the same line-up and same bench against Reading, so no issue with Kalvin Phillips either. #lufc
— Phil Hay (@PhilHayYEP) March 11, 2019
The biggest story ahead of the Leeds match against Reading is that both Patrick Bamford and Kalvin Phillips are fit, meaning that once again, Leeds will have the same starting XI as the previous match.
A lot has been made of the lack of rotation, and I have to say I’ve come around to Marcelo Bielsa’s way of thinking. If the players are fit, then why rotate? If the team has performed well, then it doesn’t make a lot of sense to change the players. If a player is injured, then it’s the next man up. There is something to be said that players begin to know each other and start to play better the more they know their teammates, call it chemistry or what have you, and it certainly goes a long way towards explaining the success of the Leeds defence this season.
As for the match against Reading, the most memorable part of the reverse fixture at Elland Road was the penalty save by Bailey Peacock-Farrell in the 90th minute that kept the clean sheet and the 1-0 victory for Leeds. It was a good moment for Peacock-Farrell, and it was a good moment for the club as well, because the win took Leeds second in the table and it seemed to give everyone at the club faith that this year really might be the year after all.
Bielsa talking about Lewis Baker. Says he wanted him to stay but understood that he wanted more games. "I work a lot so that when a player goes into the starting XI, he doesn't come out of it. Usually the player who plays as a starter stays as a starter." #lufc
— Phil Hay (@PhilHayYEP) March 11, 2019
Reading has former Leeds loanee Lewis Baker playing for them, and while it didn’t work out at Leeds, it appears he’s been a vital part of Reading’s turnaround under Gomes. He’s played 90 minutes the last four matches in a row, and has started seven of the nine games he’s played for Reading since his loan from Chelsea was switched from Leeds to Reading.
We’ll get a chance to see if a run of games has resulted in him finding his form, or if he’s still the same player later today. Here’s hoping that this match isn’t a repeat of the bad loss at Queens Park Rangers before the big game against West Bromwich Albion, as with the big match against Sheffield United coming up, it’ll be up to Bielsa to keep the players focused on the task at hand and not look past Reading.