West Brom will host Reading at the Hawthorns on Wednesday in the Championship, and will hope to make it two wins in as many games.
The Baggies came from behind against Luton Town on Saturday as they secured a 2-1 win away from home. Slaven Bilic’s men have collected seven points from their three league outings so far, and are currently third in the league table.
Reading had also managed a 3-0 win against Cardiff City last weekend, and so expect a closely fought encounter come Wednesday.
West Brom Team News
Ahmed Hegazi is the only player unavailable for West Bromwich Albion for their upcoming game.
West Brom Lineup vs Reading (4-2-3-1)
Defence
Sam Johnstone should once again line up in goal. He is yet to pick up his first cleansheet this season, and will hope he can end his wait against Reading.
Kieran Gibbs, Kyle Bartley, Semi Ajayi and Nathan Ferguson could form the four-man defence.
Gibbs and Ferguson have been pretty impressive so far this season, and average at least two tackles and interceptions per game in the Championship.
Midfield
Jake Livermore’s 2.7 tackles per game in the league is more than any other player in the squad, and he is expected to play in the deeper role once again.
Romaine Sawyers and Filip Krovinovic could start slightly ahead of Livermore. Sawyers had a pass accuracy of 98.4% against Luton, and he will pull the strings in midfield for the Baggies.
Krovinovic’s creative prowess will be instrumental in unlocking Reading’s defence.
Attack
Instead of Kenneth Zohore, Bilic might be tempted to start with Charlie Austin up top. He is a proven goal scorer and his experience could prove to be handy.
Grady Diangana could start on the left-wing in the midweek fixture. He scored a brace in the previous league outing for his side, and the attacker deserves to start this time around.
Matt Phillips might start on the right flank. He will aim to stretch Reading’s defence with his pace, and can also beat players with his dribbling ability.
Phillips will have to improve his conversion rate, as he averages 3 shots a game, but has only managed to find the back of the goal once this season.
