Injuries mount for Reading
08 Sep 2006 - 07:36:14
Reading aim to bounce back after two successive defeats when they entertain Manchester City on Monday evening.
After coming back from two goals down to beat Middlesbrough 3-2 on the opening day of the season, the Royals have slumped to disappointing setbacks at Aston Villa and Wigan Athletic.
There has been bad news for boss Steve Coppell off the pitch too, particularly last week's arrest of striker Leroy Lita on suspicion of grievous bodily harm.
The England Under-21 international has been accused of head-butting a man during a night out in Bristol, leaving the alleged victim with a black eye.
Dave Kitson's knee ligament injury is also taking longer than anticipated to heal. The 26-year-old former Cambridge United forward picked up the problem during the victory against Boro, and had hoped to be back in action in time for City's visit on Monday.
However, a course of injections has not helped the problem and he is still having difficulty changing direction while running.
To add to Coppell's woes, Sam Sodje will be sidelined for a month after the defender was forced to have surgery on his injured knee. It is hoped the operation will cure the 27-year-old's niggling injury.
Graeme Murty is a doubt because of a hamstring problem while Aaron Brown is on the long-term injury list as he battles back from a broken leg.
City finally kick-started their season by beating Arsenal 1-0 in their last game two weeks ago following woeful displays in defeat at Chelsea and goalless home draw against Portsmouth.
The fall-out from Ben Thatcher's horrendous challenge on Pompey's Pedro Mendes has continued, with the former Wimbledon defender continuing the suspension handed to him by City but, in better news for boss Stuart Pearce, recent signing Andreas Isaksson is back in training after making good progress in his recovery from ankle surgery.
Darius Vassell is out for at least two weeks with knee ligament damage while Nedum Onuoha (calf), Didi Hamann (foot) and Sun Jihai (hamstring) all hope to be available for Monday's encounter.
The last time the two teams met was in the 1998-99 season when Reading won the third-tier clash at Maine Road 1-0 with City winning the return match 3-1.