Norwich (A) match thread

[sandman]

Jake Cooper could well be the new Michael Hector.

[KC Royal]

Looking at the highlights it looked a fortunate win, but we were due one as imo we deserved to be a couple of points better off before yesterday.

[CountryRoyal]

Missed the first 30 mins but everything I saw after that was utterly hopeless. Pleased with the win, but this isn't even papering over the cracks. We were so bad it's incredible we won. Norwich were a bit meh, dominated the game and couldn't finish.

Gunter is the most pointless player on the pitch, what's the point of tracking back with his man - only to let crosses come in anyway? Well done Jake Cooper but second was horrific from Ruddy. We defended well (for us) but had so many men behind the ball we didn't have a choice but to hoof it to no one. Murray didn't stand a chance, but that being said annoyed me with his stupid fouls - looks frustrated to be playing in this team.

This nice passing possession football is hilarious. We insist on taking two-touch passes between our back four, invite pressure, panick, then hoof. Wash, rinse, repeat. I've never seen so many back passes in my life.

We have no speed to our play, we lose every 50/50 and are second to every loose ball. Movement is poor, passing poorer, decision making even more so. Taking it to the corner with like 10 minutes to go was lols, especially because we lost it within 2 seconds.

I can't fault the effort of he players, they genuinly looked like they were really trying, we are just clueless.

But we won. Yay.

[Man Friday]

Agree with every single word. An absolutely spot-on analysis. Please post on here more often. You'll stick out like a sore thumb amongst the delusional, short-termists.

[Man Friday]

Reading have lots of possession, don't score and lose = Reading are shit

Opposition have lots of possession, don't score and lose = Reading are shit

Some people are never satisfied!

As Royal Ginger said:

"Being happy with a win and not thinking we were great aren't mutually exclusive."

[Man Friday]

It's great we won and no one's more pleased than me.

But it was dreadful stuff and we were VERY lucky. Play like that every week and, football being football, yes we'll scrape a win now and again - it's how football works - BUT more times than not we'll lose, usually by at least two goals.

And that's exactly what's been happening these past few months...we've been poor and more times than not, we have lost, usually by at least two clear goals.

Over time, performances = points. Not every match, but over a longer period of time. So you short-termists should celebrate the win because if we continue to play like that (as we have been these past few months) we'll lose a lot more than we win.

Exactly like what's been happening.

[winchester_royal]

Get your point, and agree that in the long run performances are more important than points, but what's odd is that whenever the 'delusional short termists' tried to make similar arguments about the McD reign they got shot down by posters like yourself.

I actually think we've played a lot better in previous away games than that. I don't agree that yesterday was the continuation of poor performances, I thought it was NA abandoning the idea of dominating away from home and just setting up to get a result on the break. Like we did so many times under Maccy.

[Pepe the Horseman]

It's great we won and no one's more pleased than me.

But it was dreadful stuff and we were VERY lucky. Play like that every week and, football being football, yes we'll scrape a win now and again - it's how football works - BUT more times than not we'll lose, usually by at least two goals.

And that's exactly what's been happening these past few months...we've been poor and more times than not, we have lost, usually by at least two clear goals.

Over time, performances = points. Not every match, but over a longer period of time. So you short-termists should celebrate the win because if we continue to play like that (as we have been these past few months) we'll lose a lot more than we win.

Exactly like what's been happening.

It's not though is it? We've been playing well in games and then often capitulating. Yesterday we got ourselves in front, then did a job on them, a lot like Charlton did to us a few weeks ago.

Are the short-termists you're on about the Adkins supporters who (rightly or wrongly) believe he can eventually assert his style of football on the team, which will benefit us in the long term?

[sandman]

Get your point, and agree that in the long run performances are more important than points, but what's odd is that whenever the 'delusional short termists' tried to make similar arguments about the McD reign they got shot down by posters like yourself.

I actually think we've played a lot better in previous away games than that. I don't agree that yesterday was the continuation of poor performances, I thought it was NA abandoning the idea of dominating away from home and just setting up to get a result on the break. Like we did so many times under Maccy.

Difference between an ideal and a performance. The ideal you have with Adkins is a Barcelona style possession game whereas McD's teams put in consistent performances within the abilities of the players and budget at the club's disposal.

[Ian Royal]

Get your point, and agree that in the long run performances are more important than points, but what's odd is that whenever the 'delusional short termists' tried to make similar arguments about the McD reign they got shot down by posters like yourself.

I actually think we've played a lot better in previous away games than that. I don't agree that yesterday was the continuation of poor performances, I thought it was NA abandoning the idea of dominating away from home and just setting up to get a result on the break. Like we did so many times under Maccy.

Difference between an ideal and a performance. The ideal you have with Adkins is a Barcelona style possession game whereas McD's teams put in consistent performances within the abilities of the players and budget at the club's disposal.

NO!

Adkins is not about possession for possession's sake. If you look at Saints and Scunthorpe under him, they played nothing like Barcelona. Adkins Reading side is different to Rodgers Reading side, which is the closest we've had to trying to play like Barcelona.

It's not Barcelona or Direct. There are degrees of play.
Direct <----> Possession
Route One ---McDermott---Pardew--Coppell--Adkins------------------------Rodgers---Burns--Barcelona

Adkins approach isn't working well at the moment, but if it were we'd be playing incisive passes moving quickly forward. Our movement and confidence isn't up to it at the moment. But we've certainly showed flashes of it.

[wingnut]

I must've missed all these times we've played well and lost coz every time I've seen us lose we've thoroughly deserved to do so.