Championship tips: Reading to stutter?

Can Hecky’s troops get an eighth win in 13?

Here are The Football Lab’s betting tips for the weekend’s Championship action.

For the acca

Huddersfield Town had been edging out closely-fought games for much of the season, but now there are signs that confidence is starting to flow. Their Experimental 361 record on 23rd Jan gave them the league’s best defence over the previous six games.

Since then, they won 4-0 at Rochdale in the FA Cup before handing setbacks to two of their fellow promotion challengers. Three days prior to Michael Hefele’s deserved late winner against West Yorkshire rivals Leeds, the Terriers put in arguably the best performance of the Championship season to date.

David Wagner’s side outplayed then leaders Brighton with pace, verve and creativity, culminating in a 3-1 win. While momentum is with Huddersfield, the same expected goals graphic shows QPR to have the division’s third worst XG against record in the same time frame. They have since taken just one point from three games, a creditable draw at Newcastle undone by defeats to relegation rivals Burton and Blackburn. Huddersfield win at 23/20

Outside chance

Reading might have taken 10 points from their last four games, but their victories were not overly convincing. A 1-0 win over Fulham hinged on a successfully rebounded penalty before the opposition missed theirs late on. Neil Warnock could not believe that his Cardiff side had not earned a point in Berkshire and while their display at Birmingham was more encouraging, the opposing striker missed a near-post sitter at 0-0. After a 2-2 draw at Ipswich last time out, Jaap Stam acknowledged that the performance had been indifferent and said that automatic promotion is an unrealistic target.

If Reading do not play well on Saturday, they could come unstuck against an underrated Barnsley side. The Tykes have the pace in Adam Armstrong and Ryan Kent to take advantage of their opponents’ tendency to play out from the back. Despite a difficult time for the club, they have won seven of their last 12 games. Although they miss Conor Hourihane and Sam Morsy in midfield, Paul Heckingbottom has added Matty James, a composing influence who has won a Championship title with Leicester. Tom Bradshaw is a hardworking striker who has not been prolific this term, but played his part in the team’s impressive attacking record. Despite a mini-exodus, Hecky’s side should be shown some respect. Barnsley to win at 3/1

Goalscorer tip

If Britt Assombalonga was as good at staying fit as he is scoring goals, he would be a Premier League regular by now. The ex-Peterborough performer has perfect pace, power and poaching ability. A brace against Rotherham was shortly followed up by a fine display in a 2-1 win over Aston Villa, in which he both scored and assisted. Nottingham Forest’s improvement under Gary Brazil and Jack Lester, who this week have been given the job until the end of the season, suggests they may be undervalued by the bookies this weekend. It could be worth taking advantage of that with a Britt reward. Assombalonga to score in 90 minutes at 2/1