Lucas Joao has missed the last 12 games for Reading.

He started the season as a Sheffield Wednesday player. In what was his fifth season at the club, Joao scored on the opening day of the season against no other than Reading.

It began what was a miserable start to the season under Jose Gomes, with Joao scoring in Wednesday's 3-1 win at the Madejski, before signing for the Royals only days later.

He then scored on his Reading debut the following weekend in the 2-1 defeat to Hull City, and fans thought they'd made the signing of the season - the 26-year-old was looking sharp, clinical and hungry to prove a lot of Wednesday naysayers wrong at his new club.

But as he did for Wednesday throughout his spell there, Joao fell off the boil and out of contention, and looked to the club's third-choice striker at one point through inconsistent performances.

Under Mark Bowen though, Joao reemerged into the starting line-up and before picking up an unlucky injury last month, had scored four in his last seven games.

That's taken his Championship tally to six for the season (including his one Wednesday goal) and fans were left wondering where their goals might come from in his absence.

But the remaining forwards have upped their game, and it might well push Joao down the pecking order once again.

George Puscas, the man who's split opinion all season continues to do so, but with two goals in his last two taking his Championship tally to eight for the season, fans are starting to see their money's worth for the Romanian.

Better than Puscas though has been Yakou Meite - he became the first Reading player since Adam Le Fondre in the 2012/13 season to achieve double-figure for goals in consecutive campaigns, when he netted against Wednesday last weekend.

He's also experienced some resurgent form of late and has become pivotal to Reading's attack, but he's unlikely to step down for Joao when he returns.

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It's become a problem for Bowen, albeit a nice one, and he'll have to keep at least one of them on the bench and whomever it may be, likely they won't be happy with the choice.

Joao, then, faces another uphill battle to work his way back into the team. Inconsistency has been his downfall since he arrived in England back in 2015 but he's shown at both Wednesday and Reading that he can deliver at this level.

It'll be interesting to see when Joao returns to action and how Bowen will deal with having three good strikers to choose from. But there's enough time for the current goals to dry up, and Joao could end up walking straight back into the side.