Liam Rosenior insists he owes a debt of gratitude to Bristol City.

But the stylish defender will put sentiment firmly to one side when he lines up for Reading against his former club at the Madejski Stadium this afternoon.

Currently third in the table and hard on the heels of leaders Wolves and second-placed Birmingham, the Royals are attempting to return to the Barclays Premier League at the first attempt following relegation last season.

And Rosenior is quite prepared to put a dent in City's play-off push if it enhances his own prospects of regaining top-flight status.

"It would be great to see Bristol City in the Premier League, but not at our expense," confided Rosenior, who launched his career at Ashton Gate seven years ago.

"I owe the club a lot because they gave me my big chance in professional football. Everything I have achieved since has stemmed from the grounding I had at City.

"They were prepared to take a chance on me and I'll always be grateful to them for that."

An attacking midfielder under then-City boss Danny Wilson, Rosenior made his Football League debut in April 2004 and made 25 appearances for the Ashton Gate club before moving to Fulham and the Premier League 18 months later in a deal worth £55,000.

He recalled: "I joined City as a kid and came through the ranks.

"I worked with some really good people and I still have quite a few friends at the club.

"But that will be put to one side on Saturday. I'm a Reading player now and my focus is on helping this club get back into the Premier League.

"We're playing catch-up on Wolves and we need to make sure we get the three points. I wish City all the best in their push for the play-offs, but only after this game."

City took the Championship by storm last season, finishing fourth and reaching the play-off final to confound the critics. But the success achieved by Gary Johnson's side in recent years has come as no surprise to 24-year-old Rosenior.

He said: "City were always a bit of a sleeping giant and they always had the potential to go further.

"It took them a while to get back into the Championship, but I've not been surprised by how well they've done over the past few seasons.

"They are a big club with a strong fanbase and everything was in place for them to become an established Championship team. They're proving that and are even looking beyond the Championship to the next level."

Reading's supporters expect their team to be in the Premier League and the Royals are under pressure following a run of one win in their last four outings.

But Rosenior does not expect a repeat of the 4-1 drubbing meted out to City when the sides last met in November.

He reasoned: "That was one of our best performances of the season and everything we tried seemed to come off for us.

"City were going through a bit of a rough patch back then and had a few players missing. But they've turned the corner since then and put together a great run to climb the table.

"They're a more settled side now and they'll come here full of confidence knowing that they have a great chance to get into the play-offs."