Reading Preview

As potential Banana skins lurking round corners go, this could be as big and slippery as they come. Reading come to Goodison lying in tenth in the Championship, still firmly in the hunt for promotion, which isn't exactly a cavernous gulf in class as they come in the FA Cup.




Speak to most and they'll tell you who they'd prefer in the last eight, or why we have a better chance at Villa Park than we do at The City of Manchester and that they're booking the monday off for good measure. All conversations should be expected as much as they are mildy exciting, truth is though, theres 90 minutes of football to play first. If it wasn't for those pesky kids etc etc.
This Reading team have already knocked Premiership opponents out of the competition this year in West Brom and have had a habit of doing it in the past.

We've injury doubts over several key players in Fellaini, Cahill and Bekford, not to mention everybodys favourite auburn haired French Fart Louis Saha, who in a fit of anger after playing well and failing to slot against a limp Sunderland defence, decided to write off £150,000's worth of Italian sports car in Alderley Edge. The surprised look on most Evertonians faces when serious injury was dismissed, was uncannily similar to that of most Libyan's when Colonel Gaddafi recently declared underneath an Umbrella that ''Im in total control and anyway, they all still love me lar''.

Reading have a few injuries themselves in goalkeeper Adam Federici, captain Ivar Ingimarsson  and Alex Pearce. Clear your collective booing gullets though for probable kopite and swine eye'd Irishman Noel Hunt and confirmed kopite and gap toothed work experience kid Shane Long.
                    

Seriously though, we could hardly have asked for a better draw at this stage of the competition with it being at home and against a lower league club and putting all caution aside, this could be this group of players last and only chance of silverware(and possibly Europe) this season and beyond.

Most of the players were here two years ago and know what it takes at this stage, furthermore after watching an honest Birmingham City triumph against the gracious, gracious Arsenal at the weekend and getting their noses in front against Chelsea in the last round, you would hope that the carrot has been well and truly dangled, they have the bit firmly between their teeth and that they fancy taking on these last 3 hurdles and going for something special.


FA Cup Donkeys or Everton Thoroughbreds?