As our attention turns back to the league after a quick turnaround from midweek, we spoke with Simeon Pickup from The Tilehurst End for a preview of the Reading game.
When we played each other for the first time this season Reading were sitting in third, this time out Reading head to Wearside in 16th, what has led to the drop in the table?
Primarily I’d put it down to a lack of tactical evolution. Reading efficiently ground out results in the early stages of the season by being a very basic deep-block, organised, rigid side in a 3-5-2 that knew how to defend and had the habit of snatching a goal from a set piece or long shot to take the points. That clearly had to change though - we needed to be better in possession and in creating chances to give us better control of matches and more varied ways to score.
That simply hasn’t happened. It’s been next to impossible to work out what, tactically, Paul Ince is trying to do with his side this season. Sure, the basic 3-5-2 structure has generally been stuck to and we’re more a defensive side than attacking one, but there are no clear attacking ideas with this team. We don’t have a style that’s identifiably counter-attacking, possession-based, direct or even revolving around getting the most out of our best attacking talent. For example, key goalscorer Lucas Joao has been misused and underused, deprived of quality service in and around the area.
It’s felt an awful lot like we’ve stagnated. I don’t want to be too harsh - we’ve not majorly regressed as the fight is certainly still there and I’d say we look up for grinding out home wins, although we’ve not quite got it right in our last two matches.
Injuries haven’t helped either - Reading went through a defensive injury crisis in the period between the international break and World Cup, and that badly impacted our stability. We’ve missed the experience and composure of Sam Hutchinson at the back.
When we last spoke, we mentioned Ovie Ejaria, who you had said had been inconsistent. Has he been more consistent recently?
Not in the slightest - he’s gone backwards drastically. Back in mid-September I hoped he’d eventually come good this season, but in reality he continued to struggle with injuries and a disciplinary breach meant he was barred from a training trip to Tenerife during the World Cup. Reading reportedly wanted to get rid of him in January to free up a slot in our squad but couldn’t, leaving us with an unwanted, ill-disciplined and frequently injured player. I can’t see any way back for him at Reading any more.
We faced former Mag striker Mitrovic last Wednesday, and could face up against former Mag duo, Hendrick and Carroll, on Saturday. How have they been this season?
Both have their fans and detractors, but few would argue we’ve seen anything close to the standard you might expect from Premier League veterans.
Jeff Hendrick’s been an ever-present this season, starting every league game and only being subbed off twice (late on in each case). He’s generally solid and dependable, rarely making obvious errors, so he’s very much a manager’s favourite. He’s even popped up with some goals of late - two against QPR (the first of which was an absolute rocket) and one against Watford. The frustration for many fans though (myself included) is that he doesn’t exert much influence on games. He’s not clearly a ball-winner, passer or dribbler, so matches often appear to pass him by.
As for Carroll, you’ll get a very different answer depending on who you ask. Paul Ince clearly loves his experience and professionalism, and is keen to play Carroll whenever possible. On paper Carroll has his tactical uses too - most obviously as the classic Big Lump Up Top that’ll win every aerial duel you send his way. That’s only on paper though. As I said earlier, Reading aren’t committed to being a direct team, let alone a team that’s actually good at direct football. This side simply isn’t set up to get a high number of crosses into Carroll or have a mobile partner that can play off him. On the contrary, Paul Ince has been all too happy to play an immobile Joao next to Carroll, despite that being a painfully obviously bad combination. To be fair, I can’t doubt Carroll’s commitment. He’s a great professional who’s clearly highly respected at the club and that shouldn’t be overlooked - I just wish we used him as an option off the bench rather than someone to be relied on up top, especially when we have younger and better centre-forwards to pick from (Joao and Yakou Meite).
How about Boro loanee, Joe Lumley, how’s he been for The Royals?
As a goalkeeper, absolutely fine. He generally saves what he should save, with the odd exception. That seems like faint praise but, given how bad and frequent his errors were at Middlesbrough last season, we’ve been impressed by how much more dependable he looks in Berkshire. He’s a big character too, commanding his box confidently, which has helped calm nerves when we’ve had to see out narrow leads at home. As an entertainer, the fans love him. Lumley is more than up for a bit of time-wasting or goading of opposition fans - particularly in the 2-1 home win over Swansea City when he managed to wind up Russell Martin too.
You’ve got the father and son duo too, Manager Paul Ince and then his son Tom. You said Tom had been your player of the season so far back in September, is that still true?
Yep, definitely. Despite the side’s general drop-off, Ince’s level has remained consistent. He’s rarely had an off day and instead has a reassuring habit of being able to step up when others are playing below standard. His work rate off the ball is as good as it’s been throughout the season and he’s a vital source of creativity, particularly from set pieces.
A few others started off fairly well earlier in the season but dropped off, leaving Tom Holmes as the only real competitor as I see it. He’s stepped up really well as the middle centre half in our back three, playing with a maturity beyond his years. He was especially good in the 3-1 defeat at Manchester United in the FA Cup recently.
Did Reading make any major signings in the winter transfer window?
Just the one: Cesare Casadei, who joined on loan for the rest of the season from Chelsea. He’s a young attacking midfielder who can play as an 8 or 10. While he’s probably better in the former position, he made his debut last weekend at home to Watford as essentially a 10 in a 3-4-3 formation. When he’s fully up to speed he could add the creativity we’ve been in desperate need of this season, but at this stage it’s hard to work out how well he’ll take to Championship action, given that this is his very first taste of senior football at any level.
Luckily for you, Sunderland are without Ross Stewart, so in both games you have managed to avoid the Loch Ness Drogba. Who do you think will come up with the goals for Sunderland, if any?
Whenever I’m asked a question like this I immediately think of players that used to line up for us - we’ve got a bad record of former Royals scoring against us. Fortunately you haven’t got any former Royals at the moment, so that’s a small relief.
But Amad Diallo looks like a real talent so I’ll pick him out as my biggest worry - his long-range goal at Wigan Athletic was a real beauty. From the outside looking in, he appears to be developing really well with you under Tony Mowbray (as do others), and he might get into contention at Old Trafford next season if he carries on as he’s been going.
You had predicted we’d both be around 16/17th, now we’re further into the season where do you think we’ll both end up come May?
I’ve been surprised by how well Sunderland have done this season - you’ve hit the ground running at Championship level and properly look at home. The top six is probably a little out of reach for you this season, especially with Ross Stewart out, but that’s no bad thing. Another year of development in the second tier will do you good before pushing for the Premier League again. I reckon you’ll finish around 10th.
As for us, it’s a bit tricky to work out how the rest of the season will play out. We’ve gone without a league win for a little while now, but if we can pick up a few by the end of this run (we have games against Rotherham United, Cardiff City and Blackpool following our trip to Sunderland), we’ll be back on track for a mid-table finish. If we’re still struggling after that point though, I’ll really worry.
Still, I’m fairly confident we’ll be able to cobble together enough wins for an 18th-placed finish. Given that we were odds on to finish bottom at the start of the season, I’ll gladly take that (or anything above 22nd for that matter).
And finally, what do you think the score will be?
We’ve been terrible on the road this season and I don’t see a significant change on Saturday. Sunderland 3-1 Reading.
