West Bromwich Albion manager Valerien Ismael has confirmed that Matt Phillips will not be available for tomorrow's clash with Reading at The Hawthorns.

The winger was forced to watch on from the sidelines during last weekend's showdown with Coventry City after picking up a hamstring injury.

In Phillips' absence, West Brom managed to secure a morale-boosting victory over the Sky Blues as they closed the gap between them and the automatic promotion places.

An own-goal from Coventry defender Kyle McFadzean and a strike from Karlan Grant sealed all three points for the Baggies at the Coventry Building Society Arena.

Currently third in the Championship standings, West Brom will be determined to back up their recent triumph over the Sky Blues by producing a positive performance against Reading tomorrow.

However, the Baggies cannot afford to underestimate their opponents in this fixture as the Royals have only lost one of their last five league games.

Making reference to Phillips' injury, Ismael has revealed that the winger will not be ready to make his return to action on Saturday.

Speaking to the Birmingham Mail about Phillips, Ismael said: "He will be out of the game as well.

"He needs more time.

"We cannot take any risks with muscular injuries.

"We hope maybe next week he could be back, but he's out tomorrow."

The Verdict

Ismael would have been hoping to call upon Phillips' services for this fixture as the winger has played regularly for the Baggies in the second-tier this season.

However, the Baggies boss will now need to look elsewhere for inspiration after revealing that the winger is not fit enough to feature against Reading.

Grant, Grady Diangana and Callum Robinson may all be included in West Brom's starting eleven in Phillips' absence as the club look to take the game to the Royals.

Phillips will be determined to improve his consistency at this level when he is ready to make his return to action as he has only managed to provide an underwhelming total of five direct goal contributions in 19 Championship appearances during the current campaign.