Royals v Blackburn Match thread

[leon]

Our manager has a history of mental illness, he has no way of adding to the squad until January (through his own fault).

Meh

does he? define mental illness...

[holsgrove breaks a leg]

LOL @ anyone that thinks Reading will be signing anyone significant in January

We'll see. We will certainly try going by what he's said. One major factor is who is going to want to join a team struggling to stay up?? but we'll see.

As much as I love Steve Coppell, he has never been in charge of Reading football club when there is serious pressure on.

I personally think he may flip if results keep going as they have been.

He has never been under the kosh since he has been here, and in my opinion his transfers and team selections suggest he does not know how to deal with it.

I think the results and in particular the performances in the year before we got promoted put him under pressure, and then a 2-1 home loss to Plymouth had quite a few people questioning his position. I think reality is hitting home, we are where we all expected us to be last season, it's just come a year late. I don't think its 'second season syndrome' because we aren't the same team we were a year ago. Our team is weaker than it was last season. They say you can't stand still in this league, well we've gone backwards.

That's the one thing Coppell can be criticised for, he's too loyal to too many people in this squad. People that have been excellent players for the club but they are past their sell by date at this level and need replacing. It's a shame but that's life.

I think he knows he made a mistake today, he thought about it too much. Changed a team that had finally won and kept a clean sheet around far too much. I had no problem with the two icelanders being left out, neither has played well recently and they've both travelled lots. If Doyle was fit he should have started and if not then Lita should have done, playing Kitson on his own was madness.

The next 2 games are vitally imprtant for Reading because after that we welcome some of the top teams here. It's going to be a very tough time for them.

yes good post i agree, as much good service players like ingi,murty,gunna have given us there comes a time where you have to say thanks but goodbye. I think it has always been a case for these players that they had excelled for a few seasons at the peak of their career but they would inevitably flatter to deceive. I would just like to see us get to xmas in a position where we are competing still and then look to add reinforcements on the right wing and in midfield-both a creative and holding midfielder. It would be great to see Rosenior play in his natural right back position as well.

[The whole year inn]

Our manager has a history of mental illness, he has no way of adding to the squad until January (through his own fault).

Meh

does he? define mental illness...

After bottling out of the Man City job, I thought it was public knowledge that he seeked professional help.

If things start to go wrong, there are guys you want in the mix. SC is obviously not one of them. He will jump ship when we are in the bottom 3 at xmas.

[seahawk10]

Just back from the couch, where I watched the game off the delayed broadcast (plastic, I know) on FSC. I want to focus on a couple of positive points:

1 - Sonko is back, I thought he played very well and his presence should help settle us down in the back. (Along with an in-form Ingimarrson.)

2 - Doyle. Three goals in two games, you have to love that. Having him back to scoring bodes well for our future.

3 - Coppell's sub pattern. For all those complaining about him waiting too long to sub, I think Coppell has shown he is willing to throw out the book when needed. He messed up with a 5-3-1 and changed it up at halftime. And brought on the third sub at around 63 minutes if I remember correctly. And he played three strikers up front! Something I rarely remember him doing (even when we are trailing).

[The whole year inn]

Playing 5-3-1 is not a reason to be positive

[Barry the bird boggler]

If things start to go wrong, there are guys you want in the mix. SC is obviously not one of them. He will jump ship when we are in the bottom 3 at xmas.

cobblers

[The whole year inn]

If things start to go wrong, there are guys you want in the mix. SC is obviously not one of them. He will jump ship when we are in the bottom 3 at xmas.

cobblers

We'll see.

Look at his stint at Palace. What happened there when they started to struggle?

Jumped ship.

Could anyone on this website pick a side that went into a game with the aim of conceding less than 4 goals and succeed? I honestly think so.

Reading are a joke.

[Barry the bird boggler]

Well that was a game rather ruined by the 45 minutes of utter shambles that paraded itself up and down the pitch in a rather less than ostentatious manner in the 1st half

By the time the second half began the game was over - and I'm sure one or two of our supporters had left Blackburn in the vain hope that the M6 would be more entertaining than another 45 of expected, well lets be blunt, rubbish.

SC said he got it wrong in the team selection and tactics and that he was to blame, not the players, and while I agree to a certain extent, I think many of us may have done something similar with the formation and selection had we been manager.

Personally I think this was 50/50, yes SC made a wrong call but then he must have had faith, in the players at his disposal, that they would be able to put his plan into action with rather more success than that which they did.

As to the players themsleves, think only Doyle and Lita looked OK based on their 2nd half appearances as subs. Gunnarsson is plainly low on confidence and right off form, Rosenior continued to prove he is not a right winger - an OK right sided midfielder yes but not a right winger - Fae just isn't ready for Premiership games but then needs Premiership games to be able to acquaint himself with the speed and physical nature so just what can you do there?

On the upside though we didn't concede the standard goal or two within 10 minutes of the restart so perhaps things are improving plus, when you look at things this season, it would suggest that for teams like us getting any points whatsoever from ManU, Liverpool, Arsenal, Chelsea, ManC, Blackburn and Portsmouth would merely be a bonus its therefore the other games we need to be worried about.

As a matter of interest does anyone know how many penalties in league games Marcus has faced for us as, at a guess, I reckon he must have the worst save ratio of any keeper we've had in our history. 1 save isn't it? (from Neil Cox of Watford) any other failures to convert against us have been through opponents missing the target altogether. And when you compare that with our rather less than good record in taking them over recent years is it any wonder a penalty is the last thing you want to see in a game Reading are playing!

[Barry the bird boggler]

If things start to go wrong, there are guys you want in the mix. SC is obviously not one of them. He will jump ship when we are in the bottom 3 at xmas.

cobblers

We'll see.

Look at his stint at Palace. What happened there when they started to struggle?

Jumped ship.

Not that I recall he didn't. He left Palace (the first time) in June 1994 for Alan Smith to take over and even then it was because he took the role of Technical Director. When Smith got the push he took over the reins again but retained the Director title until Dave Basset came in in Feb 1996.

As regards Man City SC has gone on record as saying he turned them down once or twice in the weeks before he finally accepted as he felt it was the wrong job for him. He was subsequently persuaded by the then chairman, Francis Lee. He decided to jack it in after a month as he felt finally that he would not do the club or himself justice by remaining so what would be the point in wasting everyone's time - one of the biggest issues was the travel as he was still based in Surrey and obviously having to journey up to Manchester and back. There maybe more to it than that, there may not, but we will never know...

Even if you do class the ManCity job as jumping ship - the rest of his managerial career is hardly fraught with signs that he cracks under pressure.

[The whole year inn]

Coppell left Manchester City based on medical advice he was given.

[TommyF]

He messed up with a 5-3-1 and changed it up at halftime.

I agree he messed up there - we needed all eleven on the pitch today

Moving away from 4-4-2 was a mistake but thank god he's done it and learnt his lesson in this game. I seriously don't believe we could have got 3 points from this one so worse case scenario it's a point lost and a lesson learnt.

We seriously need some changes in January though as 'holding in there' in a midtable position is really rather uncomfortable.

As for 'can Coppell take the pressure'? Too bloody right he can. You're mad if you think there was no pressure in the season we got promoted, always looking over our shoulders expecting a blip, or when we went 13 without a win the season before or lost 4 or 5 in a row last season.

[Bowman's Quiver]

Coppell left Manchester City based on medical advice he was given.

For Christs sake man. Grow up.

[The whole year inn]

Coppell left Manchester City based on medical advice he was given.

For Christs sake man. Grow up.

That's what the doctor said

poor Coppell

[Man Friday]

On the upside though we didn't concede the standard goal or two within 10 minutes of the restart so perhaps things are improving

Scraping the barrel for positives as we were 3-0 down at halftime. Blackburn were hardly going to come out all guns blazing were they? Agree with all your other commnets, though.

[RoyalBlue]

LOL @ anyone that thinks Reading will be signing anyone significant in January

We'll see. We will certainly try going by what he's said. One major factor is who is going to want to join a team struggling to stay up?? but we'll see.

As much as I love Steve Coppell, he has never been in charge of Reading football club when there is serious pressure on.

I personally think he may flip if results keep going as they have been.

He has never been under the kosh since he has been here, and in my opinion his transfers and team selections suggest he does not know how to deal with it.

I think the results and in particular the performances in the year before we got promoted put him under pressure, and then a 2-1 home loss to Plymouth had quite a few people questioning his position. I think reality is hitting home, we are where we all expected us to be last season, it's just come a year late. I don't think its 'second season syndrome' because we aren't the same team we were a year ago. Our team is weaker than it was last season. They say you can't stand still in this league, well we've gone backwards.

That's the one thing Coppell can be criticised for, he's too loyal to too many people in this squad. People that have been excellent players for the club but they are past their sell by date at this level and need replacing. It's a shame but that's life.

That's spot on and that same misplaced loyalty will lead to his downfall unless he can snap out of it and develop a slightly harder side to his character.

When asked about USA yesterday he once again harped on about how well he has done for us in the past. Well by that token get Mick Gooding back out there in midfield for us!!

Players get old, Sir Steve. Others reach their ceiling and can't improving to the level required as others around progress. When that time comes, you have to have the guts to take difficult decisions. Thank them for everything they have done and the loyalty they have shown but explain the need for both parties to move on. Deep in their own hearts, most players know when that time is nigh.

Oh and Marcus, when you're facing a penalty at least make it look as though you want to try to save the damn thing, instead of standing like a leaden statue on your line and then making a half-hearted dive that takes you nowhere near either post! At the moment I reckon the penalty taker would feel under more pressure if the goal was left empty!!

[Uke]

Twat

MOTD only had USA at fault for one goal.

The defence responsible for four

[Chaney]

Just back from the couch, where I watched the game off the delayed broadcast (plastic, I know) on FSC. I want to focus on a couple of positive points:

1 - Sonko is back, I thought he played very well and his presence should help settle us down in the back. (Along with an in-form Ingimarrson.)

2 - Doyle. Three goals in two games, you have to love that. Having him back to scoring bodes well for our future.

3 - Coppell's sub pattern. For all those complaining about him waiting too long to sub, I think Coppell has shown he is willing to throw out the book when needed. He messed up with a 5-3-1 and changed it up at halftime. And brought on the third sub at around 63 minutes if I remember correctly. And he played three strikers up front! Something I rarely remember him doing (even when we are trailing).

so thats why we lost, we were a man short

[Ian Royal]

LOL @ anyone that thinks Reading will be signing anyone significant in January

We'll see. We will certainly try going by what he's said. One major factor is who is going to want to join a team struggling to stay up?? but we'll see.

As much as I love Steve Coppell, he has never been in charge of Reading football club when there is serious pressure on.

I personally think he may flip if results keep going as they have been.

He has never been under the kosh since he has been here, and in my opinion his transfers and team selections suggest he does not know how to deal with it.

I think the results and in particular the performances in the year before we got promoted put him under pressure, and then a 2-1 home loss to Plymouth had quite a few people questioning his position. I think reality is hitting home, we are where we all expected us to be last season, it's just come a year late. I don't think its 'second season syndrome' because we aren't the same team we were a year ago. Our team is weaker than it was last season. They say you can't stand still in this league, well we've gone backwards.

That's the one thing Coppell can be criticised for, he's too loyal to too many people in this squad. People that have been excellent players for the club but they are past their sell by date at this level and need replacing. It's a shame but that's life.

That's spot on and that same misplaced loyalty will lead to his downfall unless he can snap out of it and develop a slightly harder side to his character.

When asked about USA yesterday he once again harped on about how well he has done for us in the past. Well by that token get Mick Gooding back out there in midfield for us!!

Players get old, Sir Steve. Others reach their ceiling and can't improving to the level required as others around progress. When that time comes, you have to have the guts to take difficult decisions. Thank them for everything they have done and the loyalty they have shown but explain the need for both parties to move on. Deep in their own hearts, most players know when that time is nigh.

Oh and Marcus, when you're facing a penalty at least make it look as though you want to try to save the damn thing, instead of standing like a leaden statue on your line and then making a half-hearted dive that takes you nowhere near either post! At the moment I reckon the penalty taker would feel under more pressure if the goal was left empty!!

You're criticising the keeper for standing still on his line rather than jumping about a bit and then getting as close to a shot as pretty much any keeper would when it's placed to perfection in the corner?

Get your priorities right ffs. He went the right way and would have stopped anything shy of the perfect placement you numpty.

[RoyalBlue]

Twat

MOTD only had USA at fault for one goal.

The defence responsible for four

So, Marcus, how many goals does a keeper have to be at fault for conceding, before he can be questioned? USA has done well for us in the past but his performances this season (with the exception of Man U) have been pretty average at best.

As for penalties, contrast his half-hearted effort to that of Stuart Taylor for Villa and the latter had only just put his gloves on!

LOL @ anyone that thinks Reading will be signing anyone significant in January

We'll see. We will certainly try going by what he's said. One major factor is who is going to want to join a team struggling to stay up?? but we'll see.

As much as I love Steve Coppell, he has never been in charge of Reading football club when there is serious pressure on.

I personally think he may flip if results keep going as they have been.

He has never been under the kosh since he has been here, and in my opinion his transfers and team selections suggest he does not know how to deal with it.

I think the results and in particular the performances in the year before we got promoted put him under pressure, and then a 2-1 home loss to Plymouth had quite a few people questioning his position. I think reality is hitting home, we are where we all expected us to be last season, it's just come a year late. I don't think its 'second season syndrome' because we aren't the same team we were a year ago. Our team is weaker than it was last season. They say you can't stand still in this league, well we've gone backwards.

That's the one thing Coppell can be criticised for, he's too loyal to too many people in this squad. People that have been excellent players for the club but they are past their sell by date at this level and need replacing. It's a shame but that's life.

That's spot on and that same misplaced loyalty will lead to his downfall unless he can snap out of it and develop a slightly harder side to his character.

When asked about USA yesterday he once again harped on about how well he has done for us in the past. Well by that token get Mick Gooding back out there in midfield for us!!

Players get old, Sir Steve. Others reach their ceiling and can't improving to the level required as others around progress. When that time comes, you have to have the guts to take difficult decisions. Thank them for everything they have done and the loyalty they have shown but explain the need for both parties to move on. Deep in their own hearts, most players know when that time is nigh.

Oh and Marcus, when you're facing a penalty at least make it look as though you want to try to save the damn thing, instead of standing like a leaden statue on your line and then making a half-hearted dive that takes you nowhere near either post! At the moment I reckon the penalty taker would feel under more pressure if the goal was left empty!!

You're criticising the keeper for standing still on his line rather than jumping about a bit and then getting as close to a shot as pretty much any keeper would when it's placed to perfection in the corner?

Get your priorities right ffs. He went the right way and would have stopped anything shy of the perfect placement you numpty.

I won't bother responding to the insults - just watch the replay and see how much effort/power was put into his dive. He more collapsed into the dive than stepped/pushed into it. The only penalty he might have stopped would have been one straight down the middle! He does sod all to try to put off/influence the penalty taker. Fine, if he manages to keep out the occasional penalty but I reckon he must have one of the lowest penalty save ratios in the PL.

BTW Ideal, if we were to take him out the back and shoot him, we might be able to apply for an emergency loan!!

[Uke]

Funny things penalties given that they are supposaed to be a 80-90% cert for a goal - the player is at fault if he misses, the goalkeeper at fault if he doesn't save...

Just how these are compatible I don't know