Reading boss Brian McDermott insists they can pull off the Great Escape this season.

They were 16th in the Championship table in November, and trailed pacesetters Southampton and West Ham by huge margins before winning 15 of the last 17 games to finish top of the table.

McDermott said: "My view on that is that if you're 20 points off the lead, which we were at one point last season, and then go and win it I'm not sure anyone has done that before.

"It's a decent stat. We were loads and loads of points behind West Ham and Southampton and still managed to win the league. So it shows what this team can do.

"Our players are winners. They were champions last season in the Championship. The year before that they got to the Playoff Final. The year before we were in a relegation spot and won loads of games.

"What I've found with our players is that they are incredibly resilient. What I've found about myself is that I'm incredibly resilient."