Reading manager Ruben Selles has hinted that he will take Tuesday’s EFL Trophy fixture very seriously, as The Royals look to progress into the knockout stages of the competition.
They host League Two strugglers Newport County at 19:00, with both sides heading into the final match of the group stage on three points after each winning and losing their first two matches. Cheltenham Town have already secured qualification with three wins from three, and West Ham United’s U21 side are out, after losing all three games.
Selles’s side come into this one after securing a late point at Stevenage but may have thought they could have grabbed all three, after a positive performance on the road. Just the one win in four however, so a win here would get them back on track and secure a safe passage into the knockouts.
But speaking to The Reading Chronicle, Selles has insisted that this is a big chance for Reading to progress into the next round of the competition, after also securing qualification in the FA Cup:
“I am going to go fully on it. Last week we came from a period of four games in 10 days and the players were not ready to get another 90 minutes away from home- we were focussed on the game today. From the next game on Tuesday, we have enough time to recover and play so we will have a strong team on the pitch.
I want to win every single football match. I prioritise some games, like League One, because this club will be stable in League One and that is the priority. It doesn’t mean I don’t want to win football matches, so I will do everything to win the football match on Tuesday and qualify.
It is money for the club, some experience for some of the young boys and another game in the calendar for the future. We will take that when it comes- hopefully- but we are trying to qualify.”
This fixture falls before an 11 day break for Reading as well, as their League One fixture against Shrewsbury on Saturday has been postponed fue to international callups, their next game will be a very tough trip to Peterborough on the 23rd of November.
Writers View
Reading could have a serious go at winning The EFL Trophy this year with the quality of their squad, which is easily good enough to book a trip to Wembley for the final. So it will be a good sign for supporters that their manager will be taking this competition seriously ahead of the crunch tie against Newport, with the winner of the tie automatically progressing to the last 32.
