Our prediction for this League 1 match:
Reading
Match Time & Date:
13/01/2024
16:00
Prediction: 1-1
Port Vale
Reading will look to recover from the EFL Trophy defeat to Brighton U21 when they face Port Vale in the League One round 28. The Royals are undefeated in the previous six league matches, but bear in mind that they head into Saturday’s clash with a severely-weakened squad. All Ben Elliott, Andy Yiadom, and Mamadi Camara are on international duty, which it the main reason why home win should not be considered.
The Valiants, on the other hand, played out a thrilling 3-3 draw with Charlton Athletic at the weekend and given their attacking potential, we believe that there is a big value in betting on both teams to score. Jesse Debrah limped off with injury against the capital club, with Alex Iacovitti likely to replace him in the starting XI. It has to be noted that under 2.5 goals have been netted in eight of the previous nine meetings between the two sides in all competitions.
Highlighted Player (Funso Ojo ):
Funso Ojo is a Belgium international who plays for Aberdeen as a midfielder. Ojo was born in Antwerp on August 28, 1991, starting his youth career at Olse Merksem. In 2004 he was spotted by PSV scouts, moving to Eindhoven very soon.
Funso Ojo made 11 appearances for PSV in the Dutch Eredivisie before moving to Beerschot AC, yet another club from his youth career. The Belgium international played for the likes of Royal Antwerp, Dordrecht, Willem II, and Scunthorpe United before signing a deal with Aberdeen in 2019. Funso Ojo made his Scotland Premiership debut in a 3-2 win over Hearts.
Speaking of his international career, Ojo has one cap with the Belgium U21 team, but he has yet to earn a call-up for the Belgium senior team. His primary position is central midfield, but he is capable of producing fine displays as a defensive midfielder. As his parents are of Nigeria descent, the Aberdeen footballer has a dual citizenship.
Highlighted Team (Reading):
Reading FC is a professional football club that play in the Championship. The club was formed in 1871 and Madejski Stadium has been the home of Reading since 1998. The Royals used to play their home games at Elm Park in the past (1896 - 1998). Reading made it to the FA Cup semi-finals on two occasions (1927, 2015), but they have yet to win the prestigious trophy.
The likes of Robin Friday, Trevor Senior, Steve Death, Shaka Hislop, Phil Parkinson, Alf Messer, Jimmy Quinn, Michael Gilkes, Ronnie Blackman, Pavel Pogrebnyak and Martin Hicks are some of their more notable footballers. Aldershot Town were considered Reading’s fiercest rivals, but the Shots went out of business in 1992.
Seeing that Aldershot rejoined the league in 2008 it remains to be seen if the rivalry is going to be re-established in near future. Swindon Town and Oxford United are considered Reading’s big rivals as well.
Monza 
Juventus
