We know you’ve missed the Madejski, so we snuck in to show you around. Paunovic missed you guys this season, and we can’t wait to see you back where you belong! 

Terms and Conditions

1. Entrants must be aged 18 or over.
2. No deposit is required to enter the competition.
3. One correct winner will be chosen at random.
4. Competition periods:

Count the shirts: 

Competition launched: Saturday 8th May 2021 at 10:00 CET 

Winner announced: Monday 10th April at 16:00 CET 

5. To enter the competition you must follow the instructions in the competition post published by Casumo’s Global Twitter account (https://www.twitter.com/CasumoSports). Which are the following; 

Follow @CasumoSports and comment on the tweet with your answer to the question: how many kits are hanging in the dressing room. 

6. Entrants can only enter once. 
7. Edited comments/screenshots will not be considered as a valid entry and automatically disqualified.
8. Any comments deemed to be offensive or in any way deemed to be offensive will be deleted and these will not be taken into account for this competition.
9. The prize per giveaway will be 1 Signed Reading FC shirt
10. The price will be announced:

Monday 10th May at 16:00 CET 

11. The winners will be announced via the competition thread and a separate twitter post.
12. The promoter’s decision is final on all matters relating to the competition and no correspondence on the matter will be entered into.
13. Winners will then be contacted via private message through Casumo’s Global Twitter handle within 2 working days from the date the draw takes place. 
14. The Winners will be asked to provide their full name and address via private message to Casumo. This information is then passed to Reading FC who use it in order to post the prize. The information you provide is not used by Reading FC or Casumo for any other purpose than sending you your prize. 
15. Winners have 72 hours to reply to this message with these details. If this is not done in the stipulated time, you will forfeit the winnings and another winner will be chosen.
16. Each entrant is responsible for monitoring his or her Twitter account for notification.
17. Prizes will be sent via normal post to the Winners at Reading FC’s expense. 
18. There is no cash alternative to the prizes.
19. By entering this competition, participants agree to these Terms and Conditions.
20. This competition is in no way sponsored, endorsed or administered by, or associated with, Twitter.
21. You are providing your information to the promoter, not Twitter.
22. The information you provide will only be used for the purpose of facilitating the competition winner.
23. By entering the competition, all participants agree to give Twitter a complete release from any and all legal liability in connection with the competition.
24. The promoter reserves the right to amend or withdraw the competition if deemed necessary due to circumstances outside its reasonable control.
25. Promoter: Casumo Services Limited, The Unicorn Centre, Triq I-Uqija, Swieqi, SWQ 2335, Malta. 

We know you’ve missed the Madejski, so we snuck in to show you around. Paunovic missed you guys this season, and we can’t wait to see you back where you belong! 

The La Liga title race has been pulsating this term, and there are still three teams jostling for the Championship. We will preview this week’s blockbuster showdowns, which include Barcelona v Atlético Madrid on Saturday, and Real Madrid v Sevilla, which takes place a day later. Reference will be made to the latest match odds and we discuss the talking points.

Barcelona still keeping themselves in the title picture

With the Copa del Rey already bagged, Barcelona will be eager to complete a domestic double. Although the Catalan giants suffered a surprise 2-1 home defeat at the end of last month, it didn’t prove to be too costly. They recovered efficiently last weekend, seeing off Valencia in a 3-2 thriller.

Barca’s victory kept them in third place. They are now level on points with second-placed Real Madrid, and just two points adrift of Atlético Madrid with four games to play. However, Barcelona have tasted defeat on six occasions this term — more than both Atlético and Real (four). Ronald Koeman’s men therefore can’t afford to be too open or else they will be picked off by Atlético.

• Barcelona to beat Atlético Madrid @4/5 with Casumo
• Lionel Messi to score the first goal for Barcelona @10/3 with Casumo

Lionel Messi provides free-kick masterclass against Valencia

So far this term, Lionel Messi has been in scintillating form. He has netted 28 La Liga goals, which is seven more than his nearest rival Karim Benzema. Messi has made scoring from set pieces an art. Against Valencia, one of his goals came from a free-kick, and it was sublime. Now, Messi has scored 50 career free-kicks in a Barcelona shirt in all competitions.

Barcelona hoping to make amends at home against Atlético Madrid

Barcelona will be looking to get one over on Atlético Madrid at the Nou Camp this weekend. Earlier this term, Atlético Madrid claimed a 1-0 victory over Barca, and Yannick Carrasco popped up with the only goal of the game on the stroke of half-time. Diego Simeone’s charges will be pumped, and eager to complete a rare double over Barca.

Atlético Madrid will hold onto special Nou Camp memories

Atlético could end their long wait to secure the La Liga title in a few weeks. In 2014, they went to the Nou Camp and secured a 1-1 draw to clinch their first league title in 18 years. Simeone’s men will know the stakes that are involved, but the Nou Camp will still hold fond memories. They should feel confident of getting a result.

Real Madrid learning to keep things tight at the back

Real have been watertight at the back in the past few weeks. In their last five La Liga outings, Los Blancos have conceded just once, and that came in a 2-1 victory in El Clásico against bitter rivals Barcelona. Zinedine Zidane’s men have been held to two draws in their past four league fixtures.

Following their exit from the Champions League, Real are at a critical juncture of the season. Real won’t want to relinquish their title just yet, and clean sheets are always warmly welcomed!

• Real Madrid to beat Sevilla @21/20 with Casumo
• Both Teams to Score @4/6 with Casumo

While they are six points adrift of table-toppers Atlético, Sevilla won’t want to throw in the towel just yet. Although overhauling Atlético will be a tall order, Sevilla are already guaranteed a top-four spot. However, if they win their remaining games, they could pip Real and Barcelona to second spot.

Real Madrid v Sevilla: A tale of past La Liga encounters

Real Madrid v Sevilla has been a storied encounter in La Liga. Unsurprisingly, Real have come out on top. Indeed, Sunday’s clash will represent the 50th meeting in Spain’s top flight. Los Blancos have prevailed on 33 occasions, while Sevilla have won 13 times and there have been 3 draws.

Earlier this term, Real pinched a 1-0 victory away to Sevilla. An own goal by Sevilla shot-stopper Bono 10 minutes after the restart, proved to be the difference. Victories in the Spanish capital have been hard to come by for Sevilla, with their last win arriving in December 2004 when Julio Baptista netted the only goal of the game.

It’s tight at the top, and anything can happen. Have you picked your La Liga winners yet?

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Inter Milan have ended a long wait to clinch a Scudetto and managed to do so with four games to spare. However, we will focus our attention this week on the race for the top-four, which is bubbling up nicely. We provide odds for and preview Spezia v Napoli on Saturday, and Sunday’s showdown between Juventus and AC Milan.

Napoli on the coattails of Juventus and AC Milan

Although their top-four charge was slowed down by Cagliari last weekend when the honours were shared, Napoli have only lost one of their past six Serie A matches. That defeat came at the hands of Juve at the start of last month. However, Napoli have a team brimming with talent and are potent up front with Dries Mertens, Lorenzo Insigne, and Hirving Lozano.

Intriguingly, Napoli have been more prolific than Juve and AC Milan, as Gennaro Gattuso’s charges have hit 74 goals this term in Serie A. That is seven more than Juve, and 12 more than the Rossoneri. Currently, Napoli are fifth in the table just two points behind Juve and AC Milan, who are third and fourth respectively.

• Napoli to beat Spezia @13/25 with Casumo
• Total Goals Over 3.5 @7/5 with Casumo

Napoli have to be wary of Lazio

While Napoli are still in contention for a top-four spot, and with it a coveted Champions League berth, they should not ignore Lazio who are in their rear mirror. As things stand, Lazio occupy the sixth spot in Serie A, and they are three points behind Napoli with a game in hand.

Spezia trying to keep their heads above water

Currently, Spezia are 16th in Serie A and just three points above the relegation zone. Preserving their status in Italy’s top flight will be vital, and on the surface, a home clash with Napoli may well be daunting. However, in their corresponding game earlier this term, Spezia went to Napoli and came away with a 2-1 win.

Juventus’ Serie A dominance comes to an end

After a near-decade dominance of Serie A, Juventus will hand over the title to Inter Milan. There will most likely be a guard of honour for when Inter roll into town a week on Saturday. Things may not have transpired as Juve fans would have hoped for this term; however, the Bianconeri can finish the season strongly and claim second spot.

Andrea Pirlo pays tribute to newly crowned champions Inter

As a player, Andrea Pirlo had a touch of class! And that has carried on as a manager too. After seeing his side cede the title to Inter, Pirlo was quick to hail the new Serie A champions. He said: “My congratulations to Inter. They had a great season, and they deserved it.”

Juve had lifted the Scudetto nine seasons on the trot, and there will be some hurting in the camp of the Old Lady. Nevertheless, Pirlo and his men will be desperate to wrench the title back from Inter next term and claim what they may well believe is rightfully theirs.

• Juventus to beat AC Milan @8/11 with Casumo
• Juventus to win to nil @23/10 with Casumo

After years in the doldrums, AC Milan have made real progress over the past couple of seasons. And in Zlatan Ibrahimovic, they have a player who knows how to find the back of the net. Despite being in the autumn of his career, the Swede’s strike rate has been impressive, as he has scored 15 goals in 18 Serie A appearances this term.

Juventus v AC Milan: How past encounters have unfolded

Sunday’s meeting will see two of Serie A’s most decorated sides face off. A cursory look at the head-to-head record makes for interesting reading. Juve have come out on top in the 60 top-flight clashes, winning on 28 occasions, while Milan have tasted victory 16 times.

Juve ran out 3-1 winners when the two sides met in January. Last term, Milan enjoyed a rousing 4-2 comeback victory in which the Rossoneri rallied from 2-0 down. Zlatan Ibrahimovic pulled one back from the penalty spot just after the hour mark before Franck Kessie, Rafael Leao and Ante Rebic added further strikes.

As Inter strolled to the title, Roma announced Jose Mourunho will take over in time for next season and we already can’t wait for another year with the Special One in charge of a sleeping Italian giant! 

18+ All odds are subject to change please gamble responsibly begambleaware.org T&CS apply (https://www.casumo.com/en-gb/sports-terms-and-conditions/)

Arsenal are the most wobbly piece of our prediction of an all-England Europa League final, but that pressure-penalty from Nicolas Pepe changed the tie massively. Over in Rome, Manchester United are four to the good, but you just never know in football, do you?

We predicted that the Champions League would give us an all-England final, but will recent history repeat itself by having an English quartet in both competition finals as we did in 2019?

Back then Chelsea won the Europa League final against Arsenal while Liverpool won their sixth Champions League trophy against Tottenham, but who will triumph in the 2021 editions?

Pepe’s penalty the lifeline for Arsenal

That was a rotten semi-final performance by anyone’s standard. Arsenal only managed two shots on target in Spain, with one of those coming from the penalty spot. They were flat, unambitious and well, basically, very Arsenal.

Somehow however they are still alive in the tie. That penalty can literally save their season, and that’s a good summary of just how poor they have been. An unacceptable league position, yet they can still qualify for the Champions League should they go all the way in the Europa League. 

They bounced back against 10-men Newcastle with a 2-0 away victory, but it is only Newcastle, and they only had 10 men… so it is hard to call that progress in any way, shape or form.

The good news is that club captain Pierre-Emerick Aubamayang is back from illness after struggling with Malaria and he was kon the score sheet against Newcastle. 

It’s funny how a returning player can boost a team. He might be the missing piece of the puzzle, but you can’t underestimate Villareal… not with Europa League specialist Unai Emery in charge. Would he like revenge? Sure he would, who wouldn’t? 

While at Sevilla he won an unprecedented three Europa League titles in a tow, but he struggled in the Premier League. Well, he’s back where he belongs now, so watch out Arsenal, this one might come down to a case of bitter revenge.

We’re not calling this one, but you can see the odds here:

• Arsenal to go through: 5/4 or 2.25
• Villareal to go through: 13/20 or 1.65

United can’t possibly mess this one up, can they?

If ever a performance typified a club this season it was last week’s demolition of Rome by Manchester United. A terrible first half, yet again from United, balanced out by a brilliant second half, yet again from United. They just keep doing it. Scoring 5 goals in the second half takes some doing as Roma had no answer to their speed, desire and brilliance in the final third.

It was a night of class as Pogba, Cavani and Bruno Fernandes all shined and that’s exactly what this club is built on doing: attacking. It was some hiding and no one is expecting Roma to get anything out of this tie… they might escape with some pride if they win the second leg, but they won’t manage to overturn the 6-2 first leg result. United have both feet in the final and even managed to get some rest as the Liverpool clash was postponed due to protests at Old Trafford. United’s focus is now Europe and whoever they face in the final needs to beware: United are hungry. 

Manchester United are 1/2 or 1.5 to win the Europa League 

18+ All odds are subject to change please gamble responsibly begambleaware.org T&CS apply (https://www.casumo.com/en-gb/sports-terms-and-conditions/)

There’s something romantic about playing the final game of the season at home. In an ideal world, Reading players would use the opportunity to do a lap of honour, a final salute to the fans after a long, good season. 

We know Paunovic would love to see fans at the Madejski as he’s only ever been able to see 2,000 in attendance as Reading brushed Nottingham Forest aside in early December.

The strangest season comes to an end against Huddersfield and even though promotion is off the cards, Reading will try to cling on to seventh place in the Championship table. The opponents are safe and have only won one of their last five matches.

The density of the football calendar has allowed for fatigue to creep in and you can see this in all the tiers across the game. Even defences in the Champions League seem wide open, such is the demand on the modern professional.

January was when Reading last met Huddersfield when a brace from Royals’ top scorer Lucas Joao secured the three points. He’s scored 19 goals this season and showed great promise throughout the campaign.

Reading’s current overall form has not been good but there’s been a big improvement when playing at home. The unbeaten run at the Madejski now stretches to six games and it’s just extra motivation to keep that going to ensure the season ends on a high.

We hope you enjoyed our match previews and more importantly tried your luck in our final giveaway where you can win a signed home shirt by answering a simple question on twitter.

Bring on another exciting season in August… Yes, we already can’t wait to kick off after another busy international tournament.

18+ All odds are subject to change please gamble responsibly begambleaware.org T&CS apply (https://www.casumo.com/en-gb/sports-terms-and-conditions/)