MATCHWATCH : Luton Town (a)

[royalstevep68]

Best way to sum up that game.

The Luton keeper could’ve lied on a sun lounger with a martini.

[Elm Park Kid]

Patient play seems to allow the opposition to regroup and get 11 players behind the ball thus making them harder to break down.

No idea what goes through the minds of Reading players, for weeks they've looked like they don't want the chance of getting into the play offs and a opportunity to play in the Premier League. They've gone through the motions but they lack something - Passion? Effort? Ideas?

As for where this leaves Pauno and his back room staff, was the season a success (well we'll finish higher than in the past few seasons) or a failure (we had a flying start but have gradually slipped down the table to 7th and recorded a number of poor performances and duff results)?

Players will tell you that this is biggest fan misconception - that they just don't 'want it' enough. In reality when it looks like they're not working hard enough it just that they're not sure what they should be doing on the pitch. They don't have the confidence in the system or each other to work. It's like asking someone to kick through a brick wall, how long before you just stop hurting your legs?

[Crowbar6753]

I watched the highlights the other day of our away win 4-2 at Blackburn. The first half of that game was a joy to watch and was the most excited i've felt about a Reading team in years!!
We played fast, exciting and incisive football on the break and tore then to schreads!!!!

Now look at the second half of the season and we don't even remotly resemble the same team....something has gone wrong somewhere. Yes, it's been a long hard season which has been condensed, however, these are proffesional athletes we are talking about not Sunday league footballers.

There has been zero passion or intensity over the last two must win games, which for me is unforgivable!! Whether your good enough or not you still have to give 100%....end of.

This was probably our one chance at promotion, as our better players will probably get picked off post season and we literally don't have the cash for a rebuild!!!

[Royal_jimmy]

Yep.

How many times have we started a season with the same one who started the season before in the last 10 years?

It's Stam.... and .. er... does Adkins squeeze in? And neither of them finished that second season as manager.

To be honest I'd take 3 seasons of 15th if it was the same oxf*rd manager in all three for a change.

What about if we had back to back relegations Ian?

[Scutterbucketz]

That was dogshit and I haven’t enjoyed watching a single Reading game all season.

Hmm really?

Been quite a few good ones

Yeah I’m sure they’re were but I’ve completely forgotten them. Don’t enjoy watching them on tv playing in an empty stadium. Seems meaningless. This whole season has been that way.

If the euros are played like that then I’ll be as interested.

[tidus_mi2]

That was dogshit and I haven’t enjoyed watching a single Reading game all season.

Hmm really?

Been quite a few good ones

Yeah I’m sure they’re were but I’ve completely forgotten them. Don’t enjoy watching them on tv playing in an empty stadium. Seems meaningless. This whole season has been that way.

If the euros are played like that then I’ll be as interested.

Most recent example of a very good performance was when we beat Bournemouth 3-1.

[Lower West]

He's looking to control possession and dictate the game.

Might be the plan. Normally it simply results in hoofed up balls from the back. The opposition know that by pinning us back we have no out ball. Our passing is generally too poor for intricate passing movements.

[leon]

That was dogshit and I haven’t enjoyed watching a single Reading game all season.

Hmm really?

Been quite a few good ones

Yeah I’m sure they’re were but I’ve completely forgotten them. Don’t enjoy watching them on tv playing in an empty stadium. Seems meaningless. This whole season has been that way.

If the euros are played like that then I’ll be as interested.

Yeah same here to an extent. I’d rather be at the game and if I’m not I’d rather wish I was at the game.

An empty stadium with us aimlessly pissing about with the ball has lost its appeal as the season has gone on.

[Getthebeerens]

My argument has always been that it takes multiple seasons for a team to develop a specific style. Players have to know each other and the manager's tactics extremely well in order to to make the quick decisions necessary on the pitch to play quick, attacking football; they need to know instinctively who is covering them before deciding to push forward. Sometimes you can have a team that has the potential to jell together, but a lack of confidence or a particular management style prevents it. In which case bring someone else in can result in fast results. But more often than not it's just a long, tough process of working together towards a common objective that the players believe in. It's why it's so important for a manager to be respected and seen as long-term fixture - why work hard towards any particular goal if you don't have confidence it will work or that the manager (or fellow team mates) will be around in a few months?

We've repeated the same managerial decisions for long enough now to know that they don't work. We're not going to just randomly find a 'diamond in the rough' who's going to magically transform the club into PL material, even though it seemed like it a couple of times. Either we take a public decision to stick with Pauno for multiple seasons, or we bring in an established Championship manager and let him start the process. To be honest, I don't mind which one, as long as we stick with a manager going forward.

Spot on,

It’s been an unusual season and quite frankly we just look a bit jaded. The club are screwed for money now, so it’s time to build for the long term and assemble a good quality squad to fit the tactic & style Pauno has created. Come back next season with a years more experience & hopefully some better options from the bench. Shame the season looks like it’s going to finish with a whimper but it’s a lot better than the last few years.

[Zip]

He's looking to control possession and dictate the game.

Might be the plan. Normally it simply results in hoofed up balls from the back. The opposition know that by pinning us back we have no out ball. Our passing is generally too poor for intricate passing movements.

We have become very predictable. The biggest disappointment is the lack of movement,
Olise and Ejaria can beat several players and still have no options. The likes of Puscas and Meite have to do more.

[Scutterbucketz]

Hmm really?

Been quite a few good ones

Yeah I’m sure they’re were but I’ve completely forgotten them. Don’t enjoy watching them on tv playing in an empty stadium. Seems meaningless. This whole season has been that way.

If the euros are played like that then I’ll be as interested.

Most recent example of a very good performance was when we beat Bournemouth 3-1.

I have no memory of this whatsoever.

[URZZZZ]

He's looking to control possession and dictate the game.

Might be the plan. Normally it simply results in hoofed up balls from the back. The opposition know that by pinning us back we have no out ball. Our passing is generally too poor for intricate passing movements.

We have become very predictable. The biggest disappointment is the lack of movement,
Olise and Ejaria can beat several players and still have no options. The likes of Puscas and Meite have to do more.

Baldock’s movement is top notch. Always looking to get beyond the back line, runs the channels well, moves defenders around

Maintain that he still could have been a decent option for us this season. Not up top by himself as his end product ain’t good enough but as a support striker

His cameo alone put the front four to shame today IMO and that was without him actually doing anything decisive

[URZZZZ]

Back seven did OK - aren’t conceding many and a clean sheet away from home is always a positive. As usual - would like to see more offensively from Yiadom and Richards but their main task is to defend well and they both did so

Front four were embarrassing - Olise and Puscas in particular, neither got hold of anything. Ejaria worked hard but really doesn’t offer enough and Meite hasn’t been the same since his latest injury (although in his defence he’s pretty much the only one still scoring)

Rafael - 6

Yiadom - 6
Holmes - 8
Moore - 7
Richards - 6

Laurent - 7
Rinomhota - 6

Meite - 4
Olise - 3
Ejaria - 4

Puscas - 3

Subs - 5

[yuomi]

Back seven did OK - aren’t conceding many and a clean sheet away from home is always a positive. As usual - would like to see more offensively from Yiadom and Richards but their main task is to defend well and they both did so

Front four were embarrassing - Olise and Puscas in particular, neither got hold of anything. Ejaria worked hard but really doesn’t offer enough and Meite hasn’t been the same since his latest injury (although in his defence he’s pretty much the only one still scoring)

Rafael - 6

Yiadom - 6
Holmes - 8
Moore - 7
Richards - 6

Laurent - 7
Rinomhota - 6

Meite - 4
Olise - 3
Ejaria - 4

Puscas - 3

Subs - 5

The more prolific Olise and Richards have become posting modelling shots of themselves on instagram, the worse they've been on the pitch. Honestly, if someone offered the supposed/non-existent break clause tomorrow i'd say take it. Both undoubtedly have talent, but also stratospheric opinions of themselves which don't bear out with what they're doing where it matters right now. Olise is becoming a slightly less faffy Ejaria w/ a moderately better delivery. Two players who consistently slow the ball down, showboat, and then lose it feels like a luxury. I know it wasn't always like this and they've contributed over the course of the season, but their form has fallen off a cliff.

[URZZZZ]

So the thing that comes to mind here, is that with previous successful Reading teams, you know the most likely XI, you know the shape, and you know the pattern of play for how the side will score.

WIth Pauno, we know the XI, we know the shape, but I genuinely don't know the plan for scoring other than retain possession and hope one of the midfielders creates something out of nothing, or go long and hope the striker creates something out of nothing.

Contrast that to:

Coppell - get the ball wide, get down the flanks and then get the ball in the box. Go hard and fast.

McDermott - Soak up pressure, spoil spoil spoil, and hit the ball into the channels for Long & Hunt etc to chase. Or get the ball wide and cross to Le Fondre to find space and tuck it away.

Pardew - soak up pressure and then break break break, hard and fast with Fozzie and Hughes. Or get wide and swing the ball in for Butler and Cureton.

McGhee - play at pace through the pitch, find the gaps in the lines

Under Paunovich, no one seems to know what the pattern of play is. Ejaria, Richards, Olise, Meite and Yiadom all want to cut inside where it's just stupidly crowded. If you have wide forwards who want to cut in, you have to have fullbacks who want to overlap and cross. If you've got wingers who want to hit the byline and cross then full backs who'll cut inside and have a dig work well. Puscas wants crosses in, but no one wants to send them and he's asked to win long balls against 3 defenders that aren't even to him often. Not to mention he and Meite seemed to be playing in each other's pockets half the time.

There's a lot of talent and a lot of good stuff. But what's the actual repeatable understood way to attack? There isn't one. So no one really knows what anyone else is going to do. When to run, when to pass, where to pass, when to cross, when to take someone on.

I think this is the underlying problem. Maybe Pauno is doing a Coppell and trusting his players to make good decisions on the pitch, but he needs to give them more structure IMO.

It's been a good season. It's a solid foundation. But now we need a proper pattern of play. Forget plan B. Let's have an actual defined Plan A, and if it isn't working, don't just immediately change the whole thing. Switch up the players who aren't delivering on the Plan.

Would add Stam to your list even if the football wasn’t particularly exciting and it all ended on a sour note

Simple 4 3 3, play from the back, retain possession, make the pitch wide and tire the opposition (hence the number of wins we’d grind out under him and the late goals we managed to score)

Player for player, you could argue the current squad was better than Stam’s one. Yet his team had a clear shape, clear style, balanced midfield (holding player, box to box and advanced one) and two decent wide players

Just struggling to work out the current identity of the team. Feel we constantly try to overcomplicate things. Not needed in a division like the Champ

[alfie9]

What an epic meltdown of a season. Personally I wouldn't fire Pauno but I think he's gone. Glad I didn't watch!

[Notts Royal]

Hmm really?

Been quite a few good ones

Yeah I’m sure they’re were but I’ve completely forgotten them. Don’t enjoy watching them on tv playing in an empty stadium. Seems meaningless. This whole season has been that way.

If the euros are played like that then I’ll be as interested.

Yeah same here to an extent. I’d rather be at the game and if I’m not I’d rather wish I was at the game.

An empty stadium with us aimlessly pissing about with the ball has lost its appeal as the season has gone on.

Anyone else think the standard has really decreased since the start of the season?

The players are knackared & in a sense, it was madness to think football could complete a full season at the same level. As interesting as some of the games have been, what’s been achieved by playing out the whole thing on the TV? It’s not the real thing is it

[CountryRoyal]

So the thing that comes to mind here, is that with previous successful Reading teams, you know the most likely XI, you know the shape, and you know the pattern of play for how the side will score.

WIth Pauno, we know the XI, we know the shape, but I genuinely don't know the plan for scoring other than retain possession and hope one of the midfielders creates something out of nothing, or go long and hope the striker creates something out of nothing.

Contrast that to:

Coppell - get the ball wide, get down the flanks and then get the ball in the box. Go hard and fast.

McDermott - Soak up pressure, spoil spoil spoil, and hit the ball into the channels for Long & Hunt etc to chase. Or get the ball wide and cross to Le Fondre to find space and tuck it away.

Pardew - soak up pressure and then break break break, hard and fast with Fozzie and Hughes. Or get wide and swing the ball in for Butler and Cureton.

McGhee - play at pace through the pitch, find the gaps in the lines

Under Paunovich, no one seems to know what the pattern of play is. Ejaria, Richards, Olise, Meite and Yiadom all want to cut inside where it's just stupidly crowded. If you have wide forwards who want to cut in, you have to have fullbacks who want to overlap and cross. If you've got wingers who want to hit the byline and cross then full backs who'll cut inside and have a dig work well. Puscas wants crosses in, but no one wants to send them and he's asked to win long balls against 3 defenders that aren't even to him often. Not to mention he and Meite seemed to be playing in each other's pockets half the time.

There's a lot of talent and a lot of good stuff. But what's the actual repeatable understood way to attack? There isn't one. So no one really knows what anyone else is going to do. When to run, when to pass, where to pass, when to cross, when to take someone on.

I think this is the underlying problem. Maybe Pauno is doing a Coppell and trusting his players to make good decisions on the pitch, but he needs to give them more structure IMO.

It's been a good season. It's a solid foundation. But now we need a proper pattern of play. Forget plan B. Let's have an actual defined Plan A, and if it isn't working, don't just immediately change the whole thing. Switch up the players who aren't delivering on the Plan.

This x10000.

People going on about plan B and Pauno’s inability to change a game. Agreed, a problem - but what’s more of a problem is a lack of a plan A.

We have always relied on individual skill to create chances this season, and in this league - that’s a bit of an issue because by and large the players that can consistently produce match winning skill don’t exist.

Are you trying to tell me that player for player for we aren’t better than Luton? Or Wycombe? Or heck even for the most part - Barnsley and or Swansea? I don’t think our performances are for a lack of trying - you can see there is effort but it’s just so hopelessly misplaced with no clear attacking structure. The only “identity” we seem to have is a patient approach. Lost count how many times we end up back in our half after having possession on the outside of the opposition box.

That is all the managers fault. However, the decision making of our players is really poor. The amount of times they pick the wrong options is so frustrating, rushing when the pass isn’t on, not taking the chance when they should, wrong pass selection etc etc

Oh and to top it off, we create oxf*rd all but when we do our finishing has been absolutely dire for a while.

[Vision]

Might be the plan. Normally it simply results in hoofed up balls from the back. The opposition know that by pinning us back we have no out ball. Our passing is generally too poor for intricate passing movements.

We have become very predictable. The biggest disappointment is the lack of movement,
Olise and Ejaria can beat several players and still have no options. The likes of Puscas and Meite have to do more.

Baldock’s movement is top notch. Always looking to get beyond the back line, runs the channels well, moves defenders around

Maintain that he still could have been a decent option for us this season. Not up top by himself as his end product ain’t good enough but as a support striker

His cameo alone put the front four to shame today IMO and that was without him actually doing anything decisive

He can only do it for about 10 minutes though. Short cameos off the bench are about right for him.

Meite was poor last night but I counted at least 4 occasions when his "out to in" run from the right hand side would have seen him get behind the defence. Each time Olise, Ejaria, Rino and Laurent overhit the pass.

In general we've looked a bit "leggy" recently and I keep coming back to the fact we've used the fewest players in the Championship.
That's down to the manager of course to utilise his squad to the fullest (especially with a curtailed pre-season) but I feel with the likes of Olise and Ejaria in particular they've been run into the ground somewhat and it's showing.

[Royal_jimmy]

I'm surprised Paunovic hasn't used more of the academy lads this season if fatigue is a problem in the squad. Yes they might not be as skilled but it'd give a bit more respite to the likes of Ejaria, Olise and Meite. Having 1 or 2 fill in every so often wouldn't have hurt our results too much.