Derby face Championship rivals Reading at iPro Stadium in FA Cup fifth round
Sunday 15 February 2015 21:44, UK
Derby welcome Reading to iPro Stadium in the only all-Championship FA Cup tie of the fifth round.
Derby are in the hunt for promotion to the Premier League but boss Steve McClaren is firmly focussed on trying to book a quarter-final spot at the expense of a Reading side they have already beaten twice this season.
The Rams, who also reached the last eight of the Capital One Cup earlier in the season, recorded a 2-0 win over the Royals at home in that competition and won 3-0 in the Championship at the Madejski in October/
However since then Reading have brought in a new manager and Steve Clarke, who has won the FA Cup as both a player and a coach with Chelsea, has transformed his side's fortunes.
Defeat to Leeds in the league in midweek ended Clarke's side's four-game unbeaten run but confidence will still be high as Reading look to add to the list of FA Cup shocks in this season's competition.
Team news
McClaren is planning to freshen up his squad for the visit of Reading. January arrivals Stephen Warnock and Jesse Lingard are in line to make their first starts for the club, while George Thorne could feature after overcoming a knee injury sustained back in July.
However, the club's top scorer Chris Martin misses out after sustaining knee damage in the 2-2 draw with Bournemouth in midweek.
Midfielder Danny Guthrie is available for selection after returning to training following a frustrating spell on the sidelines.
However, Clarke has revealed Jem Karacan, Chris Gunter, and Anton Ferdinand are still sidelined through injury.
Betting
Derby are odds-on to get the job done inside 90 minutes, with Sky Bet going 3/4 on a home win and pricing Reading up at 18/5 for an upset, or 13/5 to force a replay.
Considering the Royals have failed to score in their two meetings with Derby already this season, McClaren’s men to win without conceding is proving popular at 2/1.
While in-form striker Darren Bent proving a hit at 4/1 to open the scoring.
