Leam Richardson has stated that Manchester City would have faced similar struggles to his Reading side as they slumped to a draw at Port Vale.
The Royals were coasting to a nervy 1-0 win at Vale Park, but late heroics from loanee Martin Sherif gave Jon Brady’s side a vital point in their faint hopes of avoiding relegation.
Lapses In Judgement Costly
The draw marked the second straight game that Reading dropped points late on, with Bolton Wanderers also snatching a draw deep into added time, putting big dents in their hopes of reaching the playoffs.
Speaking following the match, Leam Richardson stated that it was his side’s inability to find a second goal which ultimately cost them claiming all three points on the day. (Quotes via Reading Chronicle):
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“I thought first half, probably as good as we’ve been away from home, with and without the ball. Deserved to be in the lead. Second half, they’ve got nothing to lose so they throw men forward, I thought we defended resolutely.
“Then there are the moments, the moments where you suffer. We’re 30 seconds away from being clapped off the pitch, from a good away performance and the ball’s in the back of your net from an aimless ball forward.
“We have a chance to go two-nil up, a couple of chances possibly to be better, to finish the game off. We don’t, and you’ll always leave yourself open.
“You’ve got to respect your opposition, regardless. As you can see, if you walk on the pitch, the pitch is a leveller. I think Man City can come here and it’ll be a similar game.
“And then that goal, it’s nothing tactical. It’s nothing they didn’t play through us. Same as Tuesday night. It’s nothing tactical at all. It’s a corner. It’s an aimless ball forward.
“So it’s not a demise. It’s not tactical. It’s not anything else other than just, you know, it is one of them moments.”
With a game in hand on Huddersfield Town directly above them, Reading have the chance to narrow the gap to a single point if they match the Terriers’ results.
Next Game Vital To Chances
Reading have been exceptional as of late, rising from relegation contenders to banging on the door of the playoffs within a very short space of time.
However, standards have perhaps slipped in their past two performances, with late errors costing them four points which could have drawn them level with Huddersfield Town.
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Those results getting away from Reading can be attributed to the lack of clinicalness from their attacking ranks, but their opposition in Bolton and Port Vale were allowed to dominate their respective second halves, opening the door for their goals.
Reading have to redeem themselves next weekend against Bradford City, otherwise they will find themselves being swallowed up by the chasing pack behind them, including a resurgent Plymouth Argyle and Wycombe Wanderers.