Off the back of a victory against Championship opposition, Reading are in high spirits. A very nice 2-1 win over Portsmouth means the Royals will face this weekend’s opponents in round two of the Carabao Cup, but that’s out of the way now, and the players need to turn their heads back to the league – where they are yet to register a point and sit rock bottom of the league.
Opponents AFC Wimbledon are off the board after last week beating Lincoln City 2-0, and most recently defeated Gillingham in the cup.
I spent a while looking for past matches between the two teams and found two pre-season friendlies. There has never been a competitive match between them since the “new” Wimbledon was formed. A head-to-head record of one a piece sparks even more confusion as I don’t know what to predict.
In this preview I will talk about that win in the cup providing Noel Hunt a selection headache; give my opinion on who should start at the weekend; mention Wimbledon’s game against Lincoln, seeing where the Royals could exploit the newly promoted side; and share my predictions for the game!
What? League One matchday three
Season? 2025/26
Who? AFC Wimbledon
Where? Select Car Leasing Stadium
When? Saturday August 16
Time? 15:00
Opposition manager? Johnnie Jackson
Portsmouth and selection conundrums
After Reading were beaten in both league games, and defeated in pre-season by Pompey themselves, not many went into this game optimistic. Then the starting 11 was released and there were nine changes: there was a glimmer of hope but nothing too big.
Reading definitely began the better side, and Kelvin Ehibhatiomhan was very lively, but it was youngster Andre Garcia who popped up with the first goal after two good saves by Portsmouth goalkeeper Ben Killip. Then the big man himself, Ehibhatiomhan, ran through on goal and fired a shot past Killip to make it 2-0 within four minutes of the opener. There was a little bit of a scare towards the end of the game when the hosts got a goal back, but it was too late for anything else to be done.
It was an all-round good performance from the Royals with stand-out players being the two I mentioned and that of Ashqar Ahmed, who I saw described as a young Cafu in some Instagram comments. So, what does Hunt do at the weekend?
The ultimate conundrum is who starts.
In my opinion – and I will predict the whole starting lineup for the game later on in the preview – there are four players who need to start. The first is Ahmed. In a man-of-the-match performance, the young right-back made the most tackles (four), the most dribbles (three) and the most successful aerial duels (13). For me he has to start in that right-back slot.
The second, and I think it is a fairly obvious one, is Ehibhatiomhan. Scoring a goal and being involved in the other is all you want from a striker. Mark O’Mahony is still yet to register a shot, so a change needs to happen. He looked strong coming off the bench in the second half and Ehibhatiomhan deserves a couple of games to prove he can score some goals.
The third is Garcia; I’m still uncertain where I would play him as I think he would be more suited to playing on the wing than at full-back. Plus, I would 100% start Kelvin Abrefa as he was our best player in the first two games by a country mile. So where does he fit in?
Daniel Kyerewaa looks dangerous when coming off the bench but hasn’t shown enough for me to be starting the next game. Mamadi Camara has been good in the games he has played but, once again, doesn’t offer enough. Garcia should start on the left-hand side of the attack this weekend.
Finally, Michael Stickland. I am unsure how much longer Paudie O’Connor will be out for so this may be a given, but the academy graduate has been the better of the two centre-backs in the first three games. He seemed to have grown some confidence in that back line and I am really enjoying watching him. He took the captaincy on Tuesday and he used it very well. Don’t get me wrong, he lacks a bit of recovery pace, but the other parts of his game are solid.
Wimbledon vs Lincoln
After beating Reading in the first game of the season, Lincoln came into this game the favourites against the newly promoted side. However, a red card in the 23rd minute to centre-back Adam Jackson saw the Imps crumble under pressure, registering two shots the entire game. The Dons were bullying them all over the field, having 16 shots, three on target, and capitalised from the mistakes made by the Lincoln players.
It all went downhill after the red card but they were falling at an even quicker rate when Sonny Bradley handled the ball and gave away a penalty that was cooly slotted into the right-hand corner by striker Mathew Stevens.
The second goal was a corner routine, floated to the edge of the box and headed down to Nathan Asiimwe, who took a magnificent touch, Cruyff-turned and slotted the ball into the goal. A brilliant bit of play from the right-wing-back then saw the game fall Wimbledon’s way. Asiimwe nearly grabbed himself a second but lofted his shot over the bar.
It is man of the match Asiimwe I want to focus on. He won the most duels (10) but also lost the most too (11). He saw a lot of the ball and this is why I think Abrefa will start on the left of defence for Reading this game. He has been very clearly our best defender, being my man of the match on both occasions he played.
I think he will be able to lock down someone like Asiimwe and completely take him out of the game. He is also very composed on the ball and will be able to find passes to the midfielders and wingers with pressure being applied to him.
My bold prediction for the game is that Abrefa locks Asiimwe down so much that Asiimwe gets subbed before 65 minutes.
Another potential opening Reading may have is due to the formation that Wimbledon play. They have very attacking wing-backs, and I think Reading will have a lot of joy in behind those players, with the likes of Paddy Lane and Garcia hugging the lines and playing balls into Ehibhatiomhan.
My lineup
Although Jack Stevens did well in the cup game, Joel Pereira will start in goal.
The defence will be Ahmed, Stickland, Finley Burns and Abrefa.
The midfield I am predicting will be Charlie Savage, Ben Elliott and Liam Fraser. I would have Lewis Wing in there, but I am uncertain of how long he is out for.
The front three will be Lane, Ehibhatiomhan and Garcia.
Score prediction: 2-0 Reading!
Good luck to those going to the game, I hope we come out on the winning side in this one.
Come on you Royals!
