1-1 Reading Post Match

[MarshallForEngland]

I thought we were the better side by far in the second half. I reckon Hammond had his best game for us tbh, not sure why he is getting slated as much as he is. Drinkwater's goal fooled everyone but I was annoyed at his failure to look for the pass when he belted it over the bar from 30 yards out in the final minutes; Mahrez was in so much space on the right-hand side and has scored from that position a couple of times. With Burnley losing on Saturday, it was only important that we got at least a point on the board, which we did. We could mathematically clinch the title next weekend if Burnley bottle it and we beat QPR.

[Kitchandro]

Christ above I don't know where to start with this post match, but here goes.

1. 'The step up to the prem is massive, Wes & Was wont cope.' Absolute bollocks, Palace and Hull are comfortably staying up with defences containing Damien Delaney, Danny Gabbidon, Alex Bruce and Curtis Davies. Are these all world beaters then? We are aiming to be better than 3 other teams, and I think we will finish higher than the 2 coming up with us.

 

2.'Dyer has lost his pace' Rubbish, very few times did he get a chance to drive at the full back tonight. If you moaners hadn't have fooked off at 70 minutes on Tuesday night you will have seen Dyer skin his full back at least 5 times and also lay a goal on a plate for GTF.

 

3. 'Hammond is useless.' If you actually watched what he contributes to the game you would understand. Just because he doesn't beat men or play defence splitting passes doesn't mean he doesn't contribute. Won almost every tackle and broke the play up as well as throwing his body on the line. Just little things like on goal kicks tonight standing infront of Pogrebnyak and winning the ball so they didn't have an easy out ball.

 

4. 'Nugent isn't good enough for the premier league.' Although i'm not his biggest fan and he didn't play well tonight, he was almost 20 goals this season. His work rate in tandem with Vardy is top drawer. Is no coincidence that when they play as a pair we look sharper all over the pitch. People also fail to forget he was fairly decent in the prem for Burnley and Pompey, enough so to get him an England call.

If you chaps want to moan and groan about things then it's your prerogative. But next season we are going to need constant support from the stands, because there will be times when we will be under the cosh and need a lift. Surely this group of player (the most successful in 10 years) have earned your support this season for crying out loud.

 

 

I was with you until you started defending Hammond.

 

Please, the man is way too off the pace at this level and to suggest he contributes by standing in front of players is laughable. I expect a lot more from my central midfielder. Maybe he did win every tackle, but I can't remember him actually making any. If he won one or two tackles that isn't enough.

 

It's no good just backing off players and refusing to actually take any responsibility like he did tonight.

 

Terrible player, he does bugger all. Now James, he wins tackles, he also properly contributes, he doesn't just stand there and make out he's doing something useful. You can see the difference between these two players.

[The Year Of The Fox]

Just got home 4.5hrs til work. WYS

[The Year Of The Fox]

Oh cracking 1mins silence by the way. Probably the 'best' I've ever witnessed

[MarshallForEngland]

I was with you until you started defending Hammond.

 

Please, the man is way too off the pace at this level and to suggest he contributes by standing in front of players is laughable. I expect a lot more from my central midfielder. Maybe he did win every tackle, but I can't remember him actually making any. If he won one or two tackles that isn't enough.

 

It's no good just backing off players and refusing to actually take any responsibility like he did tonight.

 

Terrible player, he does bugger all. Now James, he wins tackles, he also properly contributes, he doesn't just stand there and make out he's doing something useful. You can see the difference between these two players.

 

He didn't say Hammond was better than James though did he. Hammond had a good game tonight but he's another easy target for people on here to slate.

[Aus Fox]

Just reflecting on the last two games, does anyone else think possibly the players have given everything they have over the last 40 games and do not have anything left in the tank? Hence the number of changes in the last few games.

Already promoted and 2 games clear of 2nd place, having put everything into going on a massive unbeaten run, can we blame the players for taking the foot off the pedal slightly.

I think we will continue to see changes over the last four games, possibly Wes next in line for a rest, let's face it the title is pretty much secured of we lose our next two and Burnley win theirs, the full side will come out against Donny and Udders who will have nothing to play for, where we will secure the title.

[Socks]

Hang on a mo

 

Did we lose last night ??

[CosbehFox]

I was with you until you started defending Hammond.

Please, the man is way too off the pace at this level and to suggest he contributes by standing in front of players is laughable. I expect a lot more from my central midfielder. Maybe he did win every tackle, but I can't remember him actually making any. If he won one or two tackles that isn't enough.

It's no good just backing off players and refusing to actually take any responsibility like he did tonight.

Terrible player, he does bugger all. Now James, he wins tackles, he also properly contributes, he doesn't just stand there and make out he's doing something useful. You can see the difference between these two players.

Criticise him all you like; without Hammond playing yesterday Drinkwater wouldn't be as good as he was yesterday. Released Danny to push forward whilst Hammond sat.

James was not available, so there's no point comparing the two in this instance. So you have King as the other option but he can't play the role of sitting. It's not his natural game.

Simple as.

[whitlock]

May have been mentioned earlier but hats off to the hospitality of away fans in the concourse last night. Few nice touches from the club.

[Babylon]

We were brilliant in patches and terrible in patches.

 

I've never seen Morgan look so ill at ease in a game, when he got the ball he looked nervous and just wanted to get rid. He and Was were getting beaten in the air at almost every set piece / high ball and it felt lucky to escape with only conceding one.

 

Drinkwater and Mahrez ran almost anything good coming through us, Vardy, De Laet and at times Schlupp were good (not in defence though).

 

Hammond was awful first half, very very slow and got beaten too easily and was poor in possession, thankfully he did improve second half. Dyer had a few good bits of play first half (notably his ball for Mahrez just before we scored), but never had too many chances to run at people and his ball control lets him down so often, it was shown up even more by the fact Mahrez's control on the other side was almost impeccable.

 

We've been average or poor since Blackburn away, there were a few signs of good form coming back with Drinkwater and Mahrez playing well again.

[Bayfox]

Ok so it wasn't our best performance of the season. However it was a marked improvement on the previous match.

For me the positives were, Vardy back and unlucky not to score,(marginal offside) thought Mahrez was quality again, maybe needs to work on his shooting, but he has hips only Pontus could read.

Thought schlupp was good going forward, maybe a bit suspect going the other way, delaet playing gives us much more balance as well, but we knew that already.

Drinky could have had a couple, good save by the keepers face.

Negatives, Nugent looked like he had just crawled out a dustbin, he's only going to be a bit part player next season, surely. Dyer, never found any space to run into, just a one trick pony really, could learn from jeff about using a bit of power to nudge a defender.

Morgan had a shocker, time for a rest? Or i'd be tempted to bring Moore back in alongside him, just for the extra yard of pace.

Have to say having seen the effort reading made with the away end posters etc, they have gone up a notch in my estimation, that showed a touch of class, fair play.

[Guest]

I enjoyed the game. We could've won, we could've lost but it was entertaining.

 

Looking forward to the prem I thought that Kasper, Schluup and De Laet showed they have what's needed. Sure Schluup was beaten 2 or 3 times by a speedy skillful attacker but he recovered with speed and going forward he was dynamite. Those forays into the box and crosses are dangerous. I'll be quite happy starting all 3 next season.

 

Wes and Was didn't look good. Wes has been shown up more and more this season both on the ground and in the air ( especially at set pièces). I'm worried neither of them has enough for the Prem. I'd definitely bring Moore back in as his speed can cover whichever other guy is there. We need a rock in Central defense from our spending spree this off-season.

 

Drinky and James (injured) are definitely our CM, Hammond should be on his way to a mid table champ or even someone like Barnsley in L1. Mahrez and Knocky are going to get the chance to strut their stuff on the wings but Dyer is finished. He has no ball control, never has, and he'll be a heavy stone around our necks if he plays next season. 

 

Up front Speed Kills. Vardy should be given a chance because of that. Nuge didn't have a good game last night, I'd go with him next season but would prefer a big, target hitting striker to go next to vardy. One that can do something from set pièces would be nice.

 

Chris wood can be a backups backup. He knows how to hit a target but getting to that position is not a strength for him, not sure if he can learn it.

 

Konch would have been murdered or sent off last night he wouldn't have had the legs to stay with them.

[kingcarr21]

Some of these posts are just embarrassing. i dread to think what this forum will be like next season. At the end of the day i doubt anyone on here would of been disappointed with a draw before the game.

 

What we now need to remember is that 2 wins for Burnley is no longer enough to catch us. This point is vital as now Burnley cant afford to lose 2 games out the last 4 and with there fixtures of

 

Blackpool Away

Wigan Home

Ipswich Home

Reading Away

 

I can definately see Burnley lose 2 of them games. Blackpool have been awful but stranger things have happened. They are 2 points above relegation zone and are fighting for there lives. Write them off at your Peril.

 

The 3 other teams are all fighting for Play-Off spots. Wigan are certainly not guaranteed a spot and Ipswich and Reading both on 64 points and have a very real chance of making Top 6

 

Im going to throw it out there and say that Burnley wont even get 7 points out of them last 4 games. I think that point last night has given Burnley too much to do to catch us.

 

But back to the game last night and some of you fans just need to get a grip. This team have performed amazing over the season and everyone will have a bad game here and there but i thought overall we improved massively compared to Brighton game. I for one was delighted with a point away at Reading. They are a good team. Hammond did a good job which allowed Drinkwater to perform amazing last night. Our defence was ok but sloppy at times. My main Criticism is we really need to defend set pieces better but its more noticable now as teams know its really the only way they are gonna score against us. Lets just get behind the team in victory and defeat and enjoy the rest of the season

[Candidcamera]

Leicester showed that they are the best team in the championship and also showed where we will need strengthening.  This is clever because there can be no question why we need at least one centre half of better quality and on last night's performance perhaps two. This is no disrespect to the pair last night who have been great in the championship for us.  Both have exactly the right mentality and focus.The brilliance of Drinkwater was immense this man wants to win the league and quickly.  De Laet was excellent and Mahrez is going to be so good.  No question about Vardy such an improvement .to the team.  Nugent plays well with him but looks as though he needs a break and I do not expect by the end of next season he will be always a starter.  Hope I am wrong but he has to improve by 50 % to be average in the Premier.  Schlupp will be so exciting with his speed and talent.  Then there is James obvious how we miss him.  The defence would be better if he was playing too.  Knockaert will fit the Premier like a glove.  Not too sure about King but if he stays and improves he will be better than most we can buy.  Wood deserves a contract of 3 years to get to grips with it all.  Dyer has been great this year and is playing himself back to form I would want him around because he really has the correct focus.  Morgan will have to strike up a good partnership with whoever comes in and Moore is at some point going to get into the team and stay there. Not bad for a team going up that they will be a force to be reckoned with. The talent for finding great young players and the closeness of the Management Team A+.

 

 

[MGLCFC]

I enjoyed the game. We could've won, we could've lost but it was entertaining.

 

Looking forward to the prem I thought that Kasper, Schluup and De Laet showed they have what's needed. Sure Schluup was beaten 2 or 3 times by a speedy skillful attacker but he recovered with speed and going forward he was dynamite. Those forays into the box and crosses are dangerous. I'll be quite happy starting all 3 next season.

 

Wes and Was didn't look good. Wes has been shown up more and more this season both on the ground and in the air ( especially at set pièces). I'm worried neither of them has enough for the Prem. I'd definitely bring Moore back in as his speed can cover whichever other guy is there. We need a rock in Central defense from our spending spree this off-season.

 

Drinky and James (injured) are definitely our CM, Hammond should be on his way to a mid table champ or even someone like Barnsley in L1. Mahrez and Knocky are going to get the chance to strut their stuff on the wings but Dyer is finished. He has no ball control, never has, and he'll be a heavy stone around our necks if he plays next season. 

 

Up front Speed Kills. Vardy should be given a chance because of that. Nuge didn't have a good game last night, I'd go with him next season but would prefer a big, target hitting striker to go next to vardy. One that can do something from set pièces would be nice.

 

Chris wood can be a backups backup. He knows how to hit a target but getting to that position is not a strength for him, not sure if he can learn it.

 

Konch would have been murdered or sent off last night he wouldn't have had the legs to stay with them.

 

He could hardly been murdered anymore than Schlupp was defensively. Whilst everyone is creaming Schlupp going forward, he's being picked as a left back which means his primary duty is to defend, being able to attack is a bonus. If last night is the standard of his defending he will struggle. I am however optimistic he could learn the art of defending from Konch and become a very good defender. He was too easily exposed and we were lucky a couple of goals didn't materialise from his flank.

[Rob1742]

I think we hit a wall a good few games ago. Performances started to drop with Vardy, Nuge, The Pole, James plus to a lesser degree a few others.

Hard to keep that momentum going and before the job was done a few changes were needed to freshen it up.

We kept with the winning team though and carried on winning and drawing, but in less convincing style.

You have good runs and bad runs during a season, times when we tick and times when we don't. It's a pretty good sign that we are not top of our game at the moment, but still picking up points.

I think he is right to drop Anthony. He had a mare against Brighton and he needs to show him, like last season that if he does not produce, he will be replaced. He responded well to this tactic last season.

Set pieces are a worry, last night again and I am just glad we have hit an iffy patch when the job has been done.

Remember though, we are obviously pretty good as we are going to Wigan and Reading and picking up points despite us not being great. A bad squad / team wouldn't have done that.

A positive for me is that Pearson will be seeing our weaknesses at the right time. He has to look at next season now and seeing our current games will probably make him think more quality is needed, than if he had taken a view four weeks ago.

[MC Prussian]

He could hardly been murdered anymore than Schlupp was defensively. Whilst everyone is creaming Schlupp going forward, he's being picked as a left back which means his primary duty is to defend, being able to attack is a bonus. If last night is the standard of his defending he will struggle. I am however optimistic he could learn the art of defending from Konch and become a very good defender. He was too easily exposed and we were lucky a couple of goals didn't materialise from his flank.

To be fair and to take some blame away from Schlupp, any defense would've struggled against a player like McCleary. He was on fire yesterday.

[Master Fox]

I'm very excited about seeing Vardy in the prem next season. I really hope for the sake of the football world that he does really well. His story is fantastic. With an abundance of evil teams like Liverpool, Chelsea, City, Utd, Arsenal, and Spurs. I would love for Vardy to go to these grounds and show them who's boss and what football is all about.

[Candidcamera]

Vardy is so good can't wait to see him in the Premier too..

[Bert]

Thought Reading limited out playing style last night, quick to get in our faces and tried to stop us playing. When we did get a bit of space we destroyed them.

[Weller in Tights]

Enjoyed last night, a massive improvement on the Brighton performance.

This has been the most enjoyable season since the O'Neil cup winning years.

Looking forward to seeing a number of our players in the premiership, I really do think they will cope and hopefully some of them like Drinkwater, will shine.

Without a doubt there will have to be some adjustment though and we need to trust Pearson to make the right decisions.

Hate to say it but Lloyd is past his best and I feel he will not be good enough.

And here's the controversial one (this is where I will be shot down, but hey ho here goes), I really worry about Kasper. One of the best shot stoppers I've seen, but he does not win enough of those high balls in the box. Whenever there is a corner or a set piece that will be crossed in, I am nervous. Yes it is the whole defence's responsibility, but I would love a keeper that dominates their box or at least their six yard box.

There you go, I know it appears sacrilege to criticise Kasper, but that's just my observation.

[Fmfox]

Lloyd Dyer has one or two bad games after returning form injury and suddenly he's useless. Drinkwater has one or two bad games recently and it's because he's tired. They have both been great performers this season, just as Drinkwater has played himself back into form, I'm sure Dyer will too. 

[Guest MattP]

He could hardly been murdered anymore than Schlupp was defensively. Whilst everyone is creaming Schlupp going forward, he's being picked as a left back which means his primary duty is to defend, being able to attack is a bonus. If last night is the standard of his defending he will struggle. I am however optimistic he could learn the art of defending from Konch and become a very good defender. He was too easily exposed and we were lucky a couple of goals didn't materialise from his flank.

Beat me too it. Konch is clearly the better full back whenever we come agaisnt a quality attacking winger whilst Schulpp should be selected when we'll overwhelmingly be on the front foot.

Fif, I don't know how you can say "his pace got him out of trouble" last night, apart from one occasion after he was skinned the winger got a ball across everytime and we needed the centre backs or on one occasion an exceptional save from Schmeichel to stop a goal.

If we are going to give him a chance next season we could get massacred, he'll be facing a better winger than McCleary 90% of the time.

Left back is a priority position for me, we all agree Schulpp is good going forward and very average defensively, surely developing him into a left winger is an absolute no brainer.

[Col city fan]

Happy to take the point away at a team fighting for the play-offs.

The only aspects of last night's game which were a shame were conceding again from a set piece and not playing King further forward when he came on.

Especially when they went to ten men, I think King pushed further forward may well have sneaked the winner.

Generally though, happy with the result and the performance.

[LCCFox96]

Another decent point. We now don't have to worry about goal difference as much. 7 point lead allows us to lose 2 of our last 4 (which hopefully we won't need) so last night was a little bit of consolidation on Burnley's weekend defeat. Onto the next one.

Agree with COL that another set piece going in was disappointing. It's a real weakness of ours. Also disappointed we didn't bring Knockaert on to run at Wayne Bridge in the last few minutes as his legs were gone. Still a solid point and the performance was much better than vs. Brighton.

Anyone else think McCleary caused us some real problems last night? I've always liked him but last night he went up in my estimation even more; first time I've seen a winger really get at Schlupp and cause him major problems since he's come in at LB. I think he's an interesting player and potentially a good summer signing.