Reading face Crystal Palace in final pre-season friendly at the Select Car Leasing Stadium

The Royals will be looking to head into the new campaign on a high after what has been a tumultuous pre-season, but face a new-look Palace side under Patrick Vieira.

Who said pre-season doesn’t matter?

Some will argue that results only matter during the competitive season, and that is true to an extent. After all, nobody receives points for beating a side three divisions lower than them in a game behind closed doors. Others will say that bad results should be expected in pre-season, given managers are constantly tweaking tactics and line ups to uncover their best eleven.

But pre-season results do matter in many ways. You can still gain fitness from losing a match, but heading into a new campaign, weighted by expectation and intrigue, with a lack of momentum can be damning.

Neither Reading nor Crystal Palace have endured poor pre-seasons so far by any means, but the Royals will still be looking to end the break on a high. Over the last seven years or so, their pre-season campaigns have been quite telling of how they were to perform in the subsequent season proper.

The closest Reading have come to relegation from the Championship in recent years was a so-nearly disastrous 18/19 campaign. Coincidentally, Palace were the last opponent they faced at the then-Madejski Stadium before Derby County visited on the first day of the new season. The Eagles ran out comprehensive 4-0 winners, and the Royals were on a downer before the season had even started.

Reading and Crystal Palace have scarcely faced each other since 2012. The last league fixture between the two clubs was a 2-2 draw in Reading’s Championship winning campaign that year. In the FA Cup, the sides met again in Berkshire in March 2016, with the Eagles beating the Royals to a spot in a second consecutive Wembley Semi-Final. Yohan Cabaye and Fraizer Campbell were on the scoresheet that night, with Palace winning 2-0.

Since then, the only fixture between the Berkshire boys and the South Londoners came in the aforementioned 4-0 friendly tie, three years and three days to the day Veljko Paunovic’s and Patrick Vieira’s sides take to the pitch in Reading’s final and Palace’s penultimate pre-season fixture of this summer.

Reading’s and Crystal Palace’s summers have been markedly different on the transfer front.

The main concern for Reading heading into the new campaign is, simply, that they don’t have enough players. A senior squad of 17, with no senior left back or recognised winger on either flank, is the result of a club struck by the iron grip of the EFL and its FFP sanctions.

Despite Reading’s prudence in the transfer market last summer, as well as significant attempts to trim a horribly inflated wage bill, a lack of clarity from the authorities has left the Royals unable to sign any players to date. Free agents Acrhaf Lazaar and Kyle Edwards spent several weeks on trial with Reading, but with Lazaar extremely underwhelming and the EFL unwilling to provide clarity on the Edwards deal, both have left the club.

Another who has been touted was, ironically, ex-Crystal Palace winger Yannick Bolasie. Bolasie’s theatricals in the FA Cup tie between the two sides in 2016 won Palace the initial penalty that would set them on their way to Wembley. In light of Reading’s lack of squad depth, today Bolasie would be particularly welcome at the Select Car Leasing Stadium.

It has been reported that Reading have been given a fighting chance in the market by the EFL, with the league sanctioning signings under certain criteria. This summer has been markedly different for Palace, however, with Vieira looking to build a more youthful, hungry squad to the one that Roy Hodgson left behind upon his retirement at the culmination of last season.

Reading’s star boy Michael Olise was the first through the door, but won’t feature against his previous club due to injury. Centre backs Marc Guehi and Joachim Andersen seem like shrewd acquisitions, and the latter could make his first appearance for the Eagles on Saturday. Midfielder Conor Gallagher, who spent last season on loan at West Brom, is another player who is reported to be on the verge of linking up with Vieira’s squad on loan.

What can we expect on Saturday?

The away side are unbeaten in pre-season so far, but haven’t been entirely convincing. 1-0 victories against Walsall and Ipswich Town and a 2-2 draw against Reading’s last pre-season opponents Charlton have had their positives and negatives. Youngsters Jes Rak-Sakyi and Scott Banks scored each of Palace’s goals against Charlton, and Vieira praised both after the final whistle.

“Tonight gave us an opportunity to see some of the young players from the academy…some of them showed character, desire to compete at this level and that was the positive side of the game today.

Jes showed a lot of desire and he got rewarded by the goal. He showed fantastic talent…I want this kind of spirit from these young players, showing determination and today he and some of the other ones did really well…Scott Banks scored a really good right foot finish. He’s really smart, always finding the right position to allow himself to go forward”.

Vieira via Palace TV and London News Online. 

Reading have had a mixed pre-season results-wise, but, as with Palace, the Royals’ academy products have had to step up to the mark. The most promising of the players who have spent time with the first team has been attacker Femi Azeez, who scored the winning goal in Reading’s 2-1 victory over Brighton and Hove Albion earlier this week.

John Swift has twice been deployed in a false nine role (against West Ham and Charlton) in place of last season’s top scorer Lucas Joao, who’s currently injured. He could reprise this role against Palace on Saturday. Ethan Bristow is likely to fill in at left back due to Lazaar’s departure

Vieira and Paunovic will both be seeking a positive result, but, in a way, this may be weighing on Vieira’s mind more. There is little pressure on Reading on Saturday – only to put in a spirited and admirable performance ahead of the new season. Vieira, however, is still a bit of a rogue appointment, and despite showing nous and promise in the transfer market, doesn’t arrive at Palace with a head turning record.

Palace shouldn’t face too many issues against Reading, but, as is the nature of pre-season, who really knows what will play out?

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