Reading’s small squad could cause them big problems

Velkjo Paunovic demands a high-intensity game from this Reading side and, by the looks of things last night, that had finally caught up with his players.

The first half against Birmingham was sluggish, to say the least, and the first 20 minutes of the game consisted of both sides exchanging long spells of possession, without any real chances on goal. Just before half time, Jon Toral’s two long-range strikes put the visitors 2-0 ahead and it was no less than they deserved.

The second half was better for the home team but, even despite the red card given to Harlee Dean, they could only pull one goal back. Lucas Joao’s penalty miss will be a big talking point but, in truth, there was plenty of chances for the Royals to find an equaliser against the ten men Blues.

It clearly wasn’t the same Reading we have seen over the last few games and, other than the always energetic Josh Laurent and Andy Rinomhota, there was a clear lethargy in the squad.

“I wish we started the first half like we did the second. That was the key – the intensity, the conviction, the fate…we put out the same line-up as Saturday so maybe it was fatigue, heavy legs but we didn’t look the same as in the last four games,” said Reading boss Velkjo Paunovic.

Is that surprising? Probably not, when you consider that they’ve played eight games in the last 35 days with pretty much the same starting XI. There have been calls for Paunovic to rotate the squad, especially over the congested fixture list in December, but is that possible without significantly weakening the starting XI?

The first-team outfield players not involved from the start against Birmingham: Tomas Esteves, Andy Yiadom, Tom McIntyre, Lewis Gibson, Alfa Semedo, John Swift, Sone Aluko, Sam Baldock and George Puscas. Yiadom, Swift and Puscas are currently out with injuries but could be available over the Christmas period.

When you look at that list, you could argue that only three or four of those players could come in and replace someone in the starting XI without changing things too much, in terms of quality and style of play, Yiadom at right-back, and  Swift and Semedo in midfield. There’s a case for Esteves too, but his defensive capabilities have rightly been questioned since the start of the season.

McIntryre and Gibson have both been given opportunities in the first team in recent weeks and have failed to replicate the partnership that Liam Moore and Michael Morrison have at the back. Aluko has looked solid so far this campaign, but he’s certainly not of the quality of Yakou Meite or Michael Olise. And Baldock and Puscas have extremely high standards to meet if they are to copy what Joao does for this Reading team.

To be able to confidently rotate three players throughout the course of a season without risking a drop off in quality in the team certainly isn’t ideal. That’s also without players picking up any injuries too.

When you compare this to other sides in the division, Reading’s squad is up there with the smallest. Unsurprisingly, all three relegated sides have very strong squads, but fellow promotion chasers Brentford, Bristol City, Stoke and Swansea have all been able to rotate quality players in and out of their starting line-ups in recent weeks.

Financial fair play has restricted Reading from splashing the cash over the last couple of transfer windows but, with January just around the corner, something needs to be done to increase the size of the squad. Otherwise, you can expect to see fatigue catch up with Reading and an inevitable slide down the table.

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