Ince out!

[bcubed]

Getreading article on the 10th feb quote from ince

‘Would I love to play four at the back? Yes. Can I? At the moment, I can't.’

Moore is ready, he came through an u21’s unscathed. I expect to see a 4 at the back with him in the team. Yiadom playing in his natural position. Holmes and Moore and cb and rahman as a lb not a lwb which I think we will suit him better. It will make us more balanced and less square pegs in round holes. I think this formation will see us home for the season.

Like a lot of clubs these days, you can’t get proper full backs, ie players who defend first and foremost and offer the occasional effective foray forward. Now it’s all about having full backs halfway up the pitch, so you can pack the midfield out, and they can offer as much by way of wing play as they do defensively. Personally think it’s yet another way those in the game atrying to destroy the art of defending. I’d much prefer proper fullbacks and proper wingers than a load of blokes getting in each other’s way in midfield.

+1

I remember being drilled in the art of proper tackling at a young age (at St John Bosco). I seriously wonder if that happens at all these days. Its no longer seen as important. Shame because a tackle that gets the ball and cleans up the player as well was one of the most satisfying things about playing imo!

[karbota]

4 wins in 20. Not good enough. I can see Ince being under pressure if we don't beat Rotherham on Tuesday

Beyond sacking territory at 90% of clubs but who is out there that wants this gig? He certainly isn't the long term answer....especially when we want to spend money again.

Parkys Wrexham won again that's now 18 wins from 20, WTF are we waiting for? Premier clubs are scouting, he would jump at the chance to rejoin his home club. JM wake up use your wasta.

[YorkshireRoyal99]

I do think Yiadom is more of a "defending" full back rather than an attacking one, or at least I think that's where his strength is but he'd good at getting forward and enjoys it, his end product is just a bit iffy. Rahman obviously wants to get forward quite a bit.

I think 4 at the back would work, I just don't see it changing this season. I think we've got to keep Holmes and Mbengue in the backline at the minute but I think it might be a bit naive to play them as just a pair and it probably does need an experienced CB like Hutch, Dann, Moore or even Sarr between them to guide them through games and communicate. Having said that, McIntyre has looked especially comfortable at CB when Moore plays, but think McIntyre could be better off as a holding midfielder and as a 6. That's where his place in the team will probably end up being.

[Franchise FC]

That is always the question posed when you start to get into sacking territory. However, I believe the likes of Ady Williams and Mick Gooding when they say there are plenty of managers out there that would snap off your hand to get the opportunity of managing at Reading. Despite the cries of 'tinpot club' from supporters of other teams, it really is a pretty decent club with (I still believe) pretty decent, committed owners and great facilities.

Perhaps now we're moving out from a cloud, but where have they been for 10 years? It's not like we've provided a shortage of opportunities to get in touch.

.

They have reached out and have been ignored (probably because they had the wrong agent). Ian Holloway claims that they didn't even have the decency to respond to him when he threw his hat into the ring a while back.

Depending on the timing of the Holloway claim, there’s a big disparity between what he’s said to the media and what he said in direct conversation. In my conversation with him he said that he’d applied but the Club made it clear to him that they’d already got a first choice. That was at the time of the Rogers appointment.

[Snowflake Royal]

He's said he applied more recently than that hasn't he? One of the last few appointments.

[YorkshireRoyal99]

He's said he applied more recently than that hasn't he? One of the last few appointments.

Rings a bell with me, was it around the Clement era? Either when we appointed Clement or when he was sacked.

Agree with the point that was made in principle, now that we should be coming out of restrictions come the summer, it would be a pretty attractive job for most managers at this level to take.

[URZZZZ]

From Stam onwards in terms of entertainment only (not quality) I’d go

Gomes - Ince - Bowen - clement - Pauno - Stam

Not been exactly blessed with entertaining football tbh

I suspect your version of this list and mine might be in the opposite order!

I really liked the way we played under Stam, it was proper football, allowed the talent in the team to shine, and it got results. Swift, Beerens, Kelly, Joey - Stam got us purring. Flying wingers, midfielders who moved the ball well, defenders who were comfortable in possession (except McShane), a goalkeeper who played like he had a Cruyff turn bonus - it was a joy to watch.

“Flying wingers” - if only he’d actually used them in some capacity in what was the biggest game of his managerial career! Could understand replicating the same XI given how well we’d masterminded Fulham in the semis but the lack of responsiveness in the final was staggering. Three like for like subs with very little impact on the game

Take Beerens. Popped up with important goals on a regular basis that first season. Gained us 7 points alone in the three league home fixtures against the three respective playoff sides. Yet Stam saw fit to leave him on the bench. Ditto Mendes who had ended the season in fine form. Very little intention to win the game. Sure Stam will have regrets about how he managed the game

It’s a shame as I reckon his style could have fared better in the Prem where teams are less reluctant to sit in but we’ll never know!

[YorkshireRoyal99]

From Stam onwards in terms of entertainment only (not quality) I’d go

Gomes - Ince - Bowen - clement - Pauno - Stam

Not been exactly blessed with entertaining football tbh

I suspect your version of this list and mine might be in the opposite order!

I really liked the way we played under Stam, it was proper football, allowed the talent in the team to shine, and it got results. Swift, Beerens, Kelly, Joey - Stam got us purring. Flying wingers, midfielders who moved the ball well, defenders who were comfortable in possession (except McShane), a goalkeeper who played like he had a Cruyff turn bonus - it was a joy to watch.

“Flying wingers” - if only he’d actually used them in some capacity in what was the biggest game of his managerial career! Could understand replicating the same XI given how well we’d masterminded Fulham in the semis but the lack of responsiveness in the final was staggering. Three like for like subs with very little impact on the game

Take Beerens. Popped up with important goals on a regular basis that first season. Gained us 7 points alone in the three league home fixtures against the three respective playoff sides. Yet Stam saw fit to leave him on the bench. Ditto Mendes who had ended the season in fine form. Very little intention to win the game. Sure Stam will have regrets about how he managed the game

It’s a shame as I reckon his style could have fared better in the Prem where teams are less reluctant to sit in but we’ll never know!

Agree with that - I think Stam will regret what we did in that final. It seemed like we didn't play like we had been doing all season but seemed more content to pick up where we left off against Fulham, whereas if we just played what was successful for us over the course of the season, we would have probably won the game.

I'd have been interested to see our style in the PL and how it would have worked.

[Snowflake Royal]

Badly.

That Stam team got repeatedly dicked by good sides. It would have got absolutely smashed on the regs in the PL.

[YorkshireRoyal99]

We'd have no doubt invested on better quality players though than what we had in our PO season though. Not to say we would have survived and not taking a few beatings along the way however.

[Sutekh]

I suspect your version of this list and mine might be in the opposite order!

I really liked the way we played under Stam, it was proper football, allowed the talent in the team to shine, and it got results. Swift, Beerens, Kelly, Joey - Stam got us purring. Flying wingers, midfielders who moved the ball well, defenders who were comfortable in possession (except McShane), a goalkeeper who played like he had a Cruyff turn bonus - it was a joy to watch.

“Flying wingers” - if only he’d actually used them in some capacity in what was the biggest game of his managerial career! Could understand replicating the same XI given how well we’d masterminded Fulham in the semis but the lack of responsiveness in the final was staggering. Three like for like subs with very little impact on the game

Take Beerens. Popped up with important goals on a regular basis that first season. Gained us 7 points alone in the three league home fixtures against the three respective playoff sides. Yet Stam saw fit to leave him on the bench. Ditto Mendes who had ended the season in fine form. Very little intention to win the game. Sure Stam will have regrets about how he managed the game

It’s a shame as I reckon his style could have fared better in the Prem where teams are less reluctant to sit in but we’ll never know!

Agree with that - I think Stam will regret what we did in that final. It seemed like we didn't play like we had been doing all season but seemed more content to pick up where we left off against Fulham, whereas if we just played what was successful for us over the course of the season, we would have probably won the game.

I'd have been interested to see our style in the PL and how it would have worked.

Possibly the worst quality play off final ever, two teams with no interest in trying to win just content to play safe and get to penalties. Opportunity disgracefully thrown away.

[RoyalBlue]

He's said he applied more recently than that hasn't he? One of the last few appointments.

Yes. It was the more recent Holloway application I was referring to. I think it might have been at the time Bowen took over as manager.

[Dirk Gently]

I suspect your version of this list and mine might be in the opposite order!

I really liked the way we played under Stam, it was proper football, allowed the talent in the team to shine, and it got results. Swift, Beerens, Kelly, Joey - Stam got us purring. Flying wingers, midfielders who moved the ball well, defenders who were comfortable in possession (except McShane), a goalkeeper who played like he had a Cruyff turn bonus - it was a joy to watch.

“Flying wingers” - if only he’d actually used them in some capacity in what was the biggest game of his managerial career! Could understand replicating the same XI given how well we’d masterminded Fulham in the semis but the lack of responsiveness in the final was staggering. Three like for like subs with very little impact on the game

Take Beerens. Popped up with important goals on a regular basis that first season. Gained us 7 points alone in the three league home fixtures against the three respective playoff sides. Yet Stam saw fit to leave him on the bench. Ditto Mendes who had ended the season in fine form. Very little intention to win the game. Sure Stam will have regrets about how he managed the game

It’s a shame as I reckon his style could have fared better in the Prem where teams are less reluctant to sit in but we’ll never know!

Agree with that - I think Stam will regret what we did in that final. It seemed like we didn't play like we had been doing all season but seemed more content to pick up where we left off against Fulham, whereas if we just played what was successful for us over the course of the season, we would have probably won the game.

I'd have been interested to see our style in the PL and how it would have worked.

I'm convinced the 7-1 thrashing at Norwich, just seven weeks earlier, had a lot to do with the way they were in the play-off final. IMHO it really seemed to inhibit the team and after that they were more concerned with not conceding than actually scoring themselves. Yes they got decent results to cement the play-off place, but it was a less open team, free-flowing and uninhibited team in a lot of those later matches.

[South Coast Royal]

“Flying wingers” - if only he’d actually used them in some capacity in what was the biggest game of his managerial career! Could understand replicating the same XI given how well we’d masterminded Fulham in the semis but the lack of responsiveness in the final was staggering. Three like for like subs with very little impact on the game

Take Beerens. Popped up with important goals on a regular basis that first season. Gained us 7 points alone in the three league home fixtures against the three respective playoff sides. Yet Stam saw fit to leave him on the bench. Ditto Mendes who had ended the season in fine form. Very little intention to win the game. Sure Stam will have regrets about how he managed the game

It’s a shame as I reckon his style could have fared better in the Prem where teams are less reluctant to sit in but we’ll never know!

Agree with that - I think Stam will regret what we did in that final. It seemed like we didn't play like we had been doing all season but seemed more content to pick up where we left off against Fulham, whereas if we just played what was successful for us over the course of the season, we would have probably won the game.

I'd have been interested to see our style in the PL and how it would have worked.

I'm convinced the 7-1 thrashing at Norwich, just seven weeks earlier, had a lot to do with the way they were in the play-off final. IMHO it really seemed to inhibit the team and after that they were more concerned with not conceding than actually scoring themselves. Yes they got decent results to cement the play-off place, but it was a less open team, free-flowing and uninhibited team in a lot of those later matches.

The fact is that we recovered quite well after that Norwich game by winning 4 of the next 5 games.
We then went to Fulham and played good flowing football in such a big game, one of the best performances under Stam.

Subsequently, knowing that we could play as well as that, the Huddersfield game was such a let down and non-event and it all went downhill after that for the club and for Stam.

[TTutt12]

should never have been in. hate failing upwards culture in football. these leopards never change their spots.

[Vision]

Getreading article on the 10th feb quote from ince

‘Would I love to play four at the back? Yes. Can I? At the moment, I can't.’

Moore is ready, he came through an u21’s unscathed. I expect to see a 4 at the back with him in the team. Yiadom playing in his natural position. Holmes and Moore and cb and rahman as a lb not a lwb which I think we will suit him better. It will make us more balanced and less square pegs in round holes. I think this formation will see us home for the season.

One of the key aspects of our good start to the season was that from time to time we would revert to a back 4 during games. Ironically Ince alluded to the Sunderland home game where he did so too early and we got played off the park. He appears to have been frightened off of it ever since.

[From Despair To Where?]

He's said he applied more recently than that hasn't he? One of the last few appointments.

Yes. It was the more recent Holloway application I was referring to. I think it might have been at the time Bowen took over as manager.

It was definitely when Bowen got the nod. He was very salty about Bowen "appointing himself" and moaned about it pretty much every time he appeared on the EFL highlights on 5.

[Snowflake Royal]

He's said he applied more recently than that hasn't he? One of the last few appointments.

Yes. It was the more recent Holloway application I was referring to. I think it might have been at the time Bowen took over as manager.

It was definitely when Bowen got the nod. He was very salty about Bowen "appointing himself" and moaned about it pretty much every time he appeared on the EFL highlights on 5.

And Bowen's loss rate was about 35% compared to about 50% for Holloway's last two appointments.

[Royal_jimmy]

Lose tonight and the calls for Ince to go will increase for sure

[RoyalBlue]

Yes. It was the more recent Holloway application I was referring to. I think it might have been at the time Bowen took over as manager.

It was definitely when Bowen got the nod. He was very salty about Bowen "appointing himself" and moaned about it pretty much every time he appeared on the EFL highlights on 5.

And Bowen's loss rate was about 35% compared to about 50% for Holloway's last two appointments.

Out of interest, how did the win rates compare?