Brady reveals his respect for crisis-hit Reading ahead of Good Friday clash

Cobblers boss Jon Brady has revealed his admiration for Ruben Selles and Reading’s players ahead of their Good Friday trip to the Select Car Leasing Stadium.

Reading are on course to survive this season despite some major off-field troubles. The club have had six points deducted for financial breaches over the course of the season but they are 18th in League One, six points above the bottom four.

It was announced on Tuesday that the Royals are in ‘exclusive negotiations’ with a buyer after controversial owner Dai Yongge committed to a letter of intent. Both parties will now try to agree the final terms which could take up to two months.

"I don't think their circumstances are circumstances that anyone wants to work under,” said Brady. “I'm sure that Ruben and his players have had more than a few tough weeks and some horrible days to contend with.

"But it looks like it has galvanised them and it's probably given them a siege mentality and you can see that because we've watched them and analysed them a lot and they are working incredibly hard for their manager and their supporters.

"They've had some really good results recently and they are probably one of the most in-form teams in the league and that's testament to everyone there. They could easily have gone under but they have shown an immense amount of character and for us going into the game, we know what a tough test we face.

"We believe we have great character ourselves and we have good ability but they have similar so it should be a good game.

"They have a lot of pace and power in their side and that's evident in the way they play and the way they score a lot of goals. They are a young side with a lot of energy so we have to make sure we're at our best because otherwise they will cut through us. "