The bigger picture for this Reading side at the moment is the overarching progression it wants to make: there’s a tactical system to develop and new signings to bed in. However, it was ultimately the simpler side of the game that got the Royals over the line at Sixfields in Saturday’s early(ish) kick-off.
As far as formulas for winning matches go, “don’t concede a daft goal + take at least one chance + manage the game effectively late on = a victory and a clean sheet” is as fundamental as they come.
Being able to roll out that formula when the all-round performance isn’t all that convincing (more on this later) is, sometimes, exactly what you have to do.
No, Northampton Town aren’t a particularly good side, but away games against relegation-battling teams are always a slippery surface. You always need the right footwear for a trip to the Cobblers.
Although the overall display left a lot to be desired, four players in particular stepped up when it counted: Joel Pereira, Lewis Wing, Jack Marriott and Will Keane.
The first was at his commanding best, pulling off some key saves to maintain the clean sheet, while the second also put in a vintage display by his standards, in his case creatively.
Wing’s brace of excellent assists unlocked an otherwise stubborn Northampton defence, while veteran marksmen Marriott and Keane had their shooting boots on to convert their chances.
Of those four, I’m particularly pleased for Wing. He (fairly) came in for plenty of flak after a poor showing in midweek, and although his performance today was far from perfect, he did exactly what Reading most need from him: he took responsibility and made things happen.
The flipside to today’s display is that Reading collectively are most certainly still a work in progress. Though the Royals had plenty of the ball all afternoon, being a consistently threatening force going forwards was another matter – summed up by the fact that it took 38 minutes to get a shot on target.
Even in the rest of the game, bar the one-two punch of goals in the second half, there was no period when you really felt this side was in a groove, that it was really clicking.
I’d put a fair amount of that down to Reading’s system and personnel.
On the former point, the Royals are generally still acclimatising to Leam Richardson’s 3-2-4-1 (the formation used in possession*), with a few recent tweaks thrown in. For example, it’s clear Paudie O’Connor is getting used to the need to directly switch the ball out to left-wing-back Haydon Roberts (a sub-plot of today was the Irishman doing that more and more as the first half went on).
*NB: I refer to it as a 3-2-4-1, while Ross prefers to call it a ‘3-box-3’ due to the box-like combination of two deeper central midfielders and two more advanced ones. Either way, in possession, Reading have three centre-backs, a double pivot, two wing-backs, two central attacking midfielders and a lone striker.
Similarly, Ryan Nyambe is a new part of the back three (taking Andy Yiadom’s spot on the right, but with a much more defensive job), while there’s a fresh pairing behind lone striker Jack Marriott. Kamari Doyle has shifted left, with January signing Will Keane being shunted into the other 10 spot (which didn’t work on Tuesday or today, bar two well taken finishes).
Richardson was also prompted into using some square pegs in round holes. Daniel Kyerewaa’s enforced absence denied Reading a proper right-wing-back with the ability to stretch the game on that side, meaning Paddy Lane was put into a role that didn’t suit him. We could really do with Randell Williams, a more natural wing-back, returning.
It’s also crucial when playing a back three to have technically good, progressive passers, and Jeriel Dorsett most certainly is not that. You can see exactly why Benn Ward’s been brought in, and it’s surely only a matter of time before he’s introduced to Dorsett’s position.
The bottom line here is that, although there was a lot wrong with Reading’s performance today with the ball, it’s important to keep the above in context. Hopefully some time on the training ground, match practice and a few personnel tweaks to the starting XI will begin to pay off in the coming weeks.
Richardson made one change to the side that drew with Exeter: Kyerewaa being replaced by Lane. The former’s absence from the matchday squad opened up a spot for new arrival Ward on the bench.
Reading (4-2-3-1): Pereira; Nyambe, O’Connor, Dorsett, Roberts; Wing, Savage; Lane, Keane, Doyle; Marriott
Subs: Stevens, Yiadom, Burns, Ward, Fraser, Ritchie, Ehibhatiomhan
Side note: the presence of ‘Burns Ward’ on the bench struck me as somewhat ominous when I first read it.
First half
Reading started off pretty well, showing initiative in the opening 10 minutes, with Marriott and Wing having shots blocked. However, momentum soon stalled, with the hosts beginning to hold firm in a stubborn mid-block that was reminiscent of Exeter’s approach on Tuesday night. The onus, then, was again on the Royals to up their game offensively.
Halfway into the first 45, the hosts were looking the likelier to score. Elliott List did well to get in behind on 20 minutes and win a corner, prompting a mini barrage from set-pieces, with Reading at one point scrambling the ball off the line and another time relying on an astute header from Marriott to block a goal-bound effort from range.
Down the other end, Reading needed urgency and invention, but came up with so little of either. The Royals’ distribution wasn’t positive enough, but more advanced attacking players were struggling to get into the game either, and Northampton ‘keeper Ross Fitzsimons wasn’t tested before the interval.
Pereira most certainly was though. Shortly before the break, Northampton’s List was in again when Reading switched off, but the Royals’ shot-stopper stood tall to deny him one-on-one.
Half-time: 0-0
Reading didn’t have a lot going forwards in the opening 10 minutes of the second half, but all of a sudden, Wing took charge.
On 55 minutes, he lofted a perfectly placed pass over the top for Marriott, who slammed home with his left foot past Fitzsimons in front of a delighted away end. 0-1.
Three minutes later, Wing popped up on the right wing as Reading recycled an attack, whipping the ball into the six-yard box for Keane to power home with a header, in off the underside of the bar. 0-2.
Attention then turned to how Reading could manage the game, and Richardson took the first step in doing that by replacing Charlie Savage with Liam Fraser shortly after the hour mark. Just over 10 minutes later, Lane and Doyle were swapped out for Kelvin Ehibhatiomhan and Matt Ritchie, who went to the right and left wings respectively.
There wasn’t much of a sense at 0-2 that Reading wanted to push for a third, which made perfect sense. It was much better for the Royals to hold what they had.
In place of that, Northampton pushed for a way back into the contest in the closing stages. Tom Eaves came closest to achieving that, being granted a free header at close range in the 84th minute, but fortunately he couldn’t keep his effort down.
Pereira then had to stand tall a couple of times later on as Reading shut up shop. That process was reinforced by a switch to a back five in the last few minutes, with Andy Yiadom replacing Nyambe and Finley Burns coming on for Keane, and ultimately the Royals got over the line.
Full-time: 0-2
That caps off a January that feels worse than it actually was. Back-to-back home wins at the start of the month have faded from the memory somewhat after a bad misfire on the road at Leyton Orient and two cases of dropped points at the SCL this week, but it’s still three wins, two draws and a loss. Not bad at all.
Now it’s time to really kick on though. Reading are back on the road in their next two outings – AFC Wimbledon and Wigan Athletic – and should be targeting wins both times, with those sides managing just one win and three draws in the last 12 games between them.
