Burnley travel to Reading tonight for their re-scheduled FA Cup tie at the Madejski Stadium hoping to turn around a disappointing run of form that has seen the Clarets slip to 12th in the Championship table. Steve Cotterill's men are without a win in their last six games and their two latest results – defeats at both Hull and Barnsley - prompted the Burnley chief to splash out £750,000 on taking Sheffield United striker Adi Akinbiyi back to Turf Moor. Given Reading's last performance was a 6-0 demolition of West Ham, it should be a severe test for the visitors though and givemefootball's Mark Shail got the pre-match thoughts of defender Michael Duff.
Q:ARE YOU LOOKING FORWARD TO TONIGHT'S MATCH?
A:Yes, it should be a tough test for us because Reading have been going very well this season. Their last result was a 6-0 win against West Ham so they're sure to be full of confidence. I'm not sure what kind of team they will put out, but even if they include a few fringe players those individuals are sure to want to impress manager Steve Coppell.
Q:HAVE YOU BEEN SURPRISED BY READING THIS SEASON?
A:I have to some degree because they hardly bought a player in the summer but they've still managed to keep the momentum going from last season. That just goes to show what a good group of players they are and the fact that they have managed to draw with Manchester United and Chelsea and beat Bolton underlines that.
Q:YOU MUST BE DISAPPOINTED WITH THE LATEST RUN OF RESULTS?
A:Yes, we have been disappointing, especially in the last two matches. Before the Hull and Barnsley games, I didn't think we were playing that badly, but just weren't getting the rub of the green and losing by the odd goal. But those performances against Hull and Barnsley weren't good enough and we need to put that right.
Q:WHAT DO YOU PUT THE DIP IN FORM DOWN TO?
A:It's difficult so say, obviously we're not playing as well as we were earlier in the season but, having said that, we have played quite a lot of the better teams in the Championship prior to the Hull and Barnsley games. With us having the New Year's Day game called off, as well as the one against Reading on Saturday, that's given us a little bit of time to work on where things have been going wrong of late.
Q:DESPITE THE CLUB'S RECENT PROBLEMS, YOU'RE STILL ONLY SIX POINTS OFF THE PLAY-OFFS?
A:That's right, and if we win our game in hand it could be down to just three points so there's still everything to play for. So it's important for us to re-group because a couple of wins on the trot can change the complexion of the league position very quickly.
Q:DO YOU THINK THE ARRIVAL OF ADI AKINBIYI WILL GIVE EVERYONE A LIFT?
A:I'm sure it will because we've struggled finding the net on a regular basis ever since Andy Gray broke his foot. Because Adi was here as recently as last season, most of the players know him very well and he should settle in quickly. That said, we shouldn't expect him to start firing in the goals left, right and centre straight away because he hasn't played much football this season. The fact that the board are prepared to spend that kind of money on a player shows the club's ambition and he has always been a popular player, both in the dressing room and certainly with the fans.
Q:WHAT DO YOU MAKE OF THE CHANCES OF YOUR OLD CLUB CHELTENHAM STAYING IN LEAGUE ONE THIS SEASON?
A:It's going to be tough because they've got such a limited budget, but I hope they can do it. My brother plays for them and he told me they're playing okay at the moment, they just need to start turning decent performances into wins. Given the size of the club, it's always going to be a struggle but in John Ward they have a good manager who seems to be able to get the best out of players that other clubs have discarded.
