Skip to main content

Reading's XI

It feels like Summer has only just started, but the team are already back in for the start of pre-season so I've decided to take a look at what team we could put out if the season started today. With the only real loss being Le Fondre, who was so often found on the bench anyway, plus our previously announced releasees it's not too far from the team that finished the season. With the return of Karacan, and other players hopefully being able to recuperate after the impressive amount of knocks our team seemed to pick up in the second half of the season, it may even be stronger.


4-2-3-1 seems to Adkins' preferred way to line up any side, and our only real weaknesses could be on the left wing - Blackman (although HRK is another option) generally looked solid last season even if his rocky start lives long in the memory, but he needs to improve his final ball if he was given the winger role permanently - and our lack of pace at the back - I went with Morro and Pearce as I think that's the way Adkins will go, but Hector, in my mind, is probably well worth a starting place this season. It'd work perfectly well as an old fashioned 4-5-1, with Karacan as the holding midfielder, Williams and Guthrie in the center of the park, and the two wingers playing in a slightly more conservative role on the flanks.

There is a possibility of a much more orthodox 4-4-2, pushing Blackman up front and Obita into his more natural position on the wing, with Kelly or Cummings could then come in at left back alternatively HRK could come in on the wing/up front. That does sacrifice one of the CM three who could be so crucial to the team, with Williams the most likely to miss out. We could also give Obita and Gunter a much freer role in a 5-3-2, but then there's no room in the side for McCleary - who contributed 12 assists from his wing last season - and we'd lose the wing play that has been crucial aspect of Reading side's play.

However they do line up it's clear that there's little serious cover in any position, and hopefully our dealings in the transfer market will change that. If the reports are right, and Adkins has been handed £10m - when the sale of the club goes through - then I think that'd go a long way to helping us avoid an injury crisis like in the last season.

Either way a new striker, or two, is a priority, Billy Sharp is probably the most obvious candidate, but whether he'd even want to come back to the Madejski after his reception during his loan spell. In 21 starts he only scored six times this season, although three quarters of those were in a struggling Doncaster side. We're reportedly also chasing Cardiff City's Joe Mason, who spent last season on loan at Bolton. He found the net six times in sixteen matches, and played a crucial part in Bolton's late season resurgency, when he scored five times in eight games.

One of a left winger - if Obita is happy to continue playing further back - or a left back - as Adkins doesn't appear to rate either of the other possibilities in that position - is also a fairly fundamental piece of this season's potential puzzle.

However, I'm fairly confident that as long as our side stay fully fit, and there's no more players leaving the club - other than the ongoing Drenthe saga, then we're in for another good season of performing slightly below expectations. First thing's first though, let's get this takeover sorted.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

If Anything, Reading's Win In Wales Is Just More Of The Same

Paunovic has been under increasing pressure in recent weeks. Last Tuesday he received criticism from all quarters after a dire midweek defeat to Sheffield United, where he changed the shape of the team to nullify the opposition threat. Although there were some interesting takes by those who didn't seem to fully appreciate the formation, it was clear that it wasn't just the opposition's attacking threat that the manager put the mockers on. And yet, one win seems to redeem all. My personal view on The Gaffer is that, given the injuries in the squad, he's doing as well as could reasonably be expected. Obviously he's made errors, but he's also been handicapped by off field matters. The six-point deduction has made the gap to relegation closer than it ought to be, but the team are clearly good enough to comfortably pull clear over the course of the season and, indeed, have been achieving if Reading had started on minus 6.  So my issue isn't with him, but with th...
Post a Comment
Read more

August.

After a good second half to last season, and a squad that largely stayed together, it was hoped that Reading would hit the ground running, despite a tough start. That start looks even harder given we've played three of the top 6, thankfully the international break meant our game against league leaders Stockport was moved to late October. Seven points from that run is a great return and we're the only team so far to take points off Birmingham or Charlton. David Button's form last season left a lot to be desired, and there were calls for Joel Pereira to take his place early on. At the back end of last season he showed himself to be a good shot stopper, a trend that's continued into this year, but with a habit of making costly errors with his feet. Thankfully his tendency to give up easy goals has, so far, been left in 2023/24. I would also say that while his shot stopping has been good, Opta have him as fourth best in the league for goals prevented, it can occasionally be...
Post a Comment
Read more

"We’ve never been so flat"

There have been some abysmal Reading performances this season, I don't really need to list them out. But in that dirge, there are two performances that I haven't fully come to terms with my feelings on. The visits of Sheffield United and Luton to The SCL are a clash between feeling like the concept behind the tactics was  reasonable and the implementation clearly not working. But there's one issue with my reading of the game; Veljko himself wasn't happy with either performance. In fact, he used the exact same word to label both - 'flat'. Reading's three in midfield meant they could cover SU attacking midfielders and wing backs And yet, the set-ups for both seem to perfectly explain why the team may be flat. Against The Blades they switched to a 4-3-2-1, with Ejaria dropping deeper to form the three alongside Drinkwater and Laurent. That trio were effectively tasked with stopping McGoldrick and Gibbs-White from being able to come central. On Wednesday we may ...
Post a Comment
Read more