Opposition Lowdown: Steve Bruce’s Blackpool
Noel Hunt’s first home game as permanent Reading manager sees the Royals take on Blackpool at the Select Car Leasing Stadium. Join us as we take a closer look at the opposition.
Form
Blackpool finished eighth in League One last season, only three points outside of the playoffs in their first season back in the third tier following their relegation from the Championship alongside Reading in 2023.
The Tangerines currently sit 13th in the league following six wins, five draws and seven losses. Their recent form has been mixed, having seen two wins, one draw and two losses in their last five games. Their match last weekend was postponed due to Storm Darragh, so they come into this weekend’s game off the back of a 1-2 away win at Shrewsbury Town.
Last season’s matches between the two teams saw a bumper 10 goals scored. Blackpool beat Reading 4-1 at Bloomfield Road last September before Reading claimed a 3-2 win at the Select Car Leasing Stadium to end their season on a high, after goals from Sam Smith, Harvey Knibbs and Femi Azeez.
The boss
Steve Bruce: Blackpool appointed Bruce as manager in September this year following the sacking of Neil Critchley in August. The former defender had a 20-year career as a player, captaining Manchester United in the 1990s.
Bruce started his managerial career at Sheffield United in 1998 and spent a year at the Blades before short stints at Huddersfield Town, Wigan Athletic and Crystal Palace. He joined Birmingham City in 2001 and spent six years at the club, where he guided the Blues back to the Premier League in 2002. He suffered relegation with Birmingham in 2006 but guided them back to the Premier League the following season, before joining Wigan Athletic for a second spell in charge.
Bruce spent a year and a half at Wigan before then joining Sunderland and then Hull City, where he spent four years, guiding the Tigers back to the Premier League on two separate occasions. Spells at Aston Villa, Sheffield Wednesday and Newcastle United followed, with his most recent job coming at West Bromwich Albion, where he spent eight months in charge back in 2022.
Bruce has won eight of his 17 games in charge of Blackpool so far and actually saw them win his first four in charge, picking up the League One manager of the month award in September.
Despite having a playing career focused on defending, the 63-year-old likes his sides to play attacking football.
Squad
A total of 11 players joined Blackpool over the summer, with seven arriving on permanent deals and four signing on loan. Defenders Hayden Coulson and Zac Ashworth signed from Championship sides Middlesbrough and West Brom, alongside midfielder Elliot Embleton, who joined from Sunderland.
They also completed the free-transfer signings of midfielders Lee Evans and Josh Onomah and forwards Ashley Fletcher and Jordan Rhodes. Loan signings included goalkeeper Harry Tyrer (Everton), defenders Odeluga Offiah (Brighton & Hove Albion) and Elkan Baggott (Ipswich Town) and former Royal loanee Dom Ballard, who joined from Southampton.
Goalkeeper Daniel Grimshaw left for Championship Plymouth Argyle for a six-figure fee, while defender Marvin Ekpiteta, midfielders Callum Connolly, Matty Virtue and Luke Mariette and forward Shayne Lavery all left on free transfers.
Blackpool are expected to welcome back Hayden Coulson and Jordan Rhodes from injury, while Olly Casey and Ollie Norburn are both available following suspension.
Predicted lineup
Tyrer, Offiah, Pennington, Casey, Husband, Norburn, Evans, Morgan, Onomah, Joseph, Fletcher
Key player
Lee Evans: Midfielder Evans joined Blackpool this summer, signing on a free transfer following the expiry of his contract at Portsmouth.
He started his career in the youth setup at Bristol Rovers but it was Newport County where he made his professional debut in 2012. The Welshman went on to join Wolverhampton Wanderers in 2013 and made 67 appearances over the course of four and a half years, while also having loan spells at Bradford City and Wigan.
A permanent move to Sheffield United followed in 2018, before Evans went on to rejoin Wigan on loan, who he then joined permanently. Spells at Ipswich Town and Portsmouth followed, before the 30-year-old joined Blackpool this summer.
Evans has made 20 appearances for the Tangerines since signing and has three goals and five assists to his name. He has four caps for Wales, having also played for their under-21 and under-23 teams. Evans is a centre midfielder who is comfortable on the ball with a good eye for a pass.
One to watch
Kyle Joseph: Forward Joseph joined Blackpool on a free transfer last summer, following his release from Swansea City.
He started his youth career at Wigan and made his debut for the Latics in 2020. He went on to make 20 appearances that season, scoring five goals, before joining Swansea on a permanent deal at the end of the season. Joseph found appearances harder to come by at Swansea and had season-long loan spells at Cheltenham Town and Oxford United.
The 23-year-old has made 60 appearances for Blackpool since joining the club last summer and has eight goals to his name, with six of those coming this season. Joseph is a centre-forward who can also play out wide. He is strong in the air but is also an effective dribbler.