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Match day thread: Reading

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  • edited October 2020

    @floyd said:
    Getting quite tedious now @malone.

    We're all aware of our manifold failings and struggles so far. You'll have to forgive some of us for not donning sackcloth and ashes, and thinking that a marquee signing and our most consistent performer in recent seasons will help out.

    I get you throwing your weight around with the Trevor types who never have anything positive to add and seem to revel in the bad result times.
    I'm not sure i deserve your little putdowns in the same way. I'm just a normal poster who tries to be honest about whatever we're seeing.

    I think the natural position is to be hopeful but more than a bit worried.

    @Right_in_the_Middle makes a decent point above previous poor runs but I'm not even sure we've lost 6 on the bounce even in that meltdown around Christmas last year.

    Would love to be pleasantly surprised by a turnaround.

  • edited October 2020

    It's a bit of a balancing act - being realistic that we are really up against it, while hoping that we might do the improbable, while remaining proud we are here in the first place.

    This all happening against the backdrop of empty stadiums and Covid makes it all the more strange. There is part of me that thinks we will get a record low points total, only for L1 and L2 seasons to be canceled and us stay up anyway.

    I certainly would not want to stay up like that compared to doing it on merit, but if it did happen, it would be just a tiny bit hilarious if Sunderland were leading L1 by a mile.

  • Now that cheered me up @shev.
    Just lol

  • Then I guess I’m in the natural position @Malone.

    Not sure whether to laugh or shrug at the rest of that.

  • I think I have pretty much the same mindset as @Shev on all this. I wasn’t even a tiny bit down after yesterday’s defeat and got a lot of enjoyment out of watching our players grow into the huge challenge they’re facing. It was a ridiculous achievement to get promoted last year, this year, well, whatever will be will be.

  • Worst case scenario, we should be a top League One team next season. I think that's pretty amazing. The aim should be - and will be - to stay up this season, but it's the best worst case scenario we've ever had.

  • Surely the worst case scenario is we do a Yeovil and suffer back to back 24th place finishes. I don't think it's a given this current squad would be at the top of League One. Last season was miraculous and miracles don't happen twice...

  • Yeovil were reckless, which we absolutely haven't been.

  • @aloysius said:
    Surely the worst case scenario is we do a Yeovil and suffer back to back 24th place finishes. I don't think it's a given this current squad would be at the top of League One. Last season was miraculous and miracles don't happen twice...

    That got very dark very quickly. I'm leaving the Dr Pepper sponsored 'What's the worst that can happen....' to the doom merchants.
    One thing on this post though. It was miraculous last season but don't you see that that achievement has moved the financial goalposts and it wouldn't be so miraculous next time.

    Oh go on then. For me the worst thing that can happen already is. I can't watch my team from the ground whilst they need as much support as they can get going in the highest league they've played in.

  • @aloysius said:
    Mehmeti is the new Freeman / Ryan Sellers! I'm not sure a couple of perky cameos means he should be considered an automatic choice even for the bench. I was surprised he was played ahead of Wheeler last night.

    @Username just out of curiosity how do you know that Uche had no obvious signs of injury on Saturday? Have you got special access to the ground somehow?

    Was asked to if I wanted to volunteer as match day help and obviously jumped at the chance!

    Think the club have it sorted "in house" from now so unfortunately that might be it for "live football" for the season.

  • I think we need to take worst case scenarios one season at a time, anyway, otherwise we have to factor in we could drop down through the divisions and end up playing the Dog and Duck in a Sunday league game in 2036.

  • Some of us always have the prospect of us playing at the Dog and Duck somewhere in our future factored in @Shev (and I’ll still be going along to watch us)

    Bizarrely it actually seems less likely than factoring in playing at Anfield at the moment

  • Dog and Duck? Do they have Rebellion beer?

  • That’s more seasons than a chicken Madras @Shev! Sadly, I won’t be at the Dog and Duck> @Doob said:

    Dog and Duck? Do they have Rebellion beer?

    If they do (and are open again) I’ll try to hang on in. 98 is just a number after all.

  • @aloysius said:
    Surely the worst case scenario is we do a Yeovil and suffer back to back 24th place finishes. I don't think it's a given this current squad would be at the top of League One. Last season was miraculous and miracles don't happen twice...

    No one could ever accuse you of being an optimist, could they?

  • edited October 2020

    Yup, If our squad is below the standard of the opposition it's only a sign of how well they have done to get there. Unfashionable, rose tinted, un-clickbaity and boring as that might be.

    @drcongo said:
    I think I have pretty much the same mindset as @Shev on all this. I wasn’t even a tiny bit down after yesterday’s defeat and got a lot of enjoyment out of watching our players grow into the huge challenge they’re facing. It was a ridiculous achievement to get promoted last year, this year, well, whatever will be will be.

  • According to a Reading supporting friend - not someone prone to baseless speculation -Lucas João, who scored their goal, cost £5million. That's what we're up against this season.

  • And on Saturday we'll be up against a team whose right-back Barcelona tried to sign this summer.

  • @glasshalffull said:

    No one could ever accuse you of being an optimist, could they?

    While @aloysius likes to paint the worst possible picture of any scenario, there is some underlying logic there. Most would accept that the fantastic success the club has enjoyed in the last few years has been built to a significant extent on team spirit and belief - instilled by our outstanding manager and his team.

    If (and it is by no means certain that we will) we get relegated by a large distance this year and the players have got used to and expect to lose most weeks, it will not be at all easy to stop that mindset and turn it around next season.

    Lets hope we are in Champ next year anyway.

  • Got half way through typing out an actual response to this

    Thankfully realised what I was doing and deleted it all

  • Norwich have had 6 tight games so far. 1 goal margin in 5 games and one 2-2, so haven't found their groove yet.

    Would be a superb place to get our points column activated.

  • @chairboyscentral said:
    And on Saturday we'll be up against a team whose right-back Barcelona tried to sign this summer.

    I liked the look of Tomas Esteves on Tuesday when he came on

  • @chairboyscentral said:
    Worst case scenario, we should be a top League One team next season. I think that's pretty amazing. The aim should be - and will be - to stay up this season, but it's the best worst case scenario we've ever had.

    I keep reminding myself that in the season after our relegation from the Gola League we amassed 101 points.

  • There’s a bit of a feel to me this season of that next season back in the conference (the Suddaby one).

    When we got thrashed 5-1 on Jan 2 we’d played 25, won 5 (2 in the first 3 games before God departed), drew 6 and lost 14.

    Some tough watches and real straw clutching, but we got better (admittedly changed manager which I’m not remotely suggesting we do) and turned it around and survived.

  • @MindlessDrugHoover said:
    According to a Reading supporting friend - not someone prone to baseless speculation -Lucas João, who scored their goal, cost £5million. That's what we're up against this season.

    Watford's starting eleven yesterday cost them over £58m in transfer fees. By the time they play us they hope to have Andre Gray and Will Hughes fit again which will add a further £23m in fees.

    For those advocating that we spend money signing players, this highlights the reality of the situation in the Championship.

  • We will be coming up against teams that include international and multi million pound players almost every week in the Championship. It’s not a level playing field and I’m glad that most people have accepted this.
    Sadly, there are still some (admittedly mainly on the Facebook page) who can’t seem to grasp this simple fact.

  • As I mentioned before Forest paying off Lamouche and his team and getting in Hughton and his team probably cost more than our playing budget!

  • @mooneyman I don't think anyone on here was advocating spending our way to the Premier League. My view has always been that we're effectively in a mini-division of four teams. The greatest success we could ever really hope for is to finish the season in 21st place - that for me would be a remarkable achievement that would guarantee the club's future and allow us to start to compete a little more next season.

    Who are we realistically competing against? Hard to say this early on but probably Rotherham, Luton, Barnsley, maybe Coventry. All I've ever wanted is for us to spend enough so that we're as competitive in this division as those teams. Have we so far? Given we lost narrowly against two of them, I would say not quite yet.

  • @aloysius said:

    Who are we realistically competing against? Hard to say this early on but probably Rotherham, Luton, Barnsley, maybe Coventry. All I've ever wanted is for us to spend enough so that we're as competitive in this division as those teams. Have we so far? Given we lost narrowly against two of them, I would say not quite yet.

    I'd say we've reached that point of being competitive haven't we? Since the break we were a JJ corner away from one or three points against Millwall and on Tuesday we more than matched the team on top of the table. Surely its time move on from the competitive argument.

    As for who our real competition is you have a point but show how tough it is to say who they are at this stage. Dismissing teams that are within three points of us now as they are big teams gives a different standard to our start to theirs. I would argue our ceiling for improvement is equally as high as others.

    I think the current financial situation and the pandemic will have a big say in if we are in the Championship for another season. I think some point penalties or league stoppages are all going to happen. Not a reason to relax but a reason to keep going for longer.

  • I could be wrong but I don't think Reading will win the league...

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