SB Nation - Pavel Pogrebnyak

Match Report - Royals Blunt At The Hawthorns

Wimb — Sat, 22 Sep 2012 20:50:39 -0000

Reading Prem Watch

2006/07: P4 W2 D0 L2 PTS: 6 8th

2007/08: P4 W1 D1 L2 PTS: 4 15th

2012/13: P4 W0 D1 L3 PTS: 1 20th

Reading: McCarthy (8); Shorey (7), Pearce (8), Gorkss (7), Gunter (7); McAnuff (5), Leigertwood (5), Guthrie (6), McCleary (5); Pogrebnyak (5), Le Fondre (6) - Subs: Robson-Kanu (6), Hunt (6)

When you've just spent 10 hours of your day watching Reading conjure up 1 shot on target and lose 1-0 to an off-key West Brom side, you do sit and wonder, is it all worth it? Then you remember the wins at West Ham, Southampton and that magical night against Nottingham Forest and think, yeah it's worth it.

As far as today goes, to put it simply, Reading weren't very good and didn't really deserve to come away from the Midlands with anything. The front line looked blunt and was hardly helped by a lacklustre display from both wingers and Mikele Leigertwood.

On the bright side the defence looked a damn sight sharper than it has done for most of this young season. Alex McCarthy showed exactly why he's been given a chance over Federici, while Alex Pearce showed why he's earned International honours this year.

After the jump, we'll try and pick the positives out of another frustrating day for Reading at the Hawthorns and ponder where we go from here.

Travelling up on the STAR coaches I can't say I had an overwhelmingly positive feeling travelling to a ground where we've hardly enjoyed rampant success in the past. While West Brom's Peter Odemwingie was suspended, there was still the threat of Romelu Lukaku and former Royal Shane Long to deal with and it was quite relieving to hear that Long had been left out of Steve Clarke's starting lineup.

Reading meanwhile responded to the 3-1 defeat at Spurs by dropping Ian Harte for former Baggie Nicky Shorey, while Jem Karacan was sacrificed for Adam Le Fondre as we went back to a more familiar 4-4-2. I don't think Ian Harte can have many complaints after a disappointing start to the season and as Adam Federici has found out, you're only as good as your last couple of games.

Reading actually started this one pretty brightly and while there wasn't too many chances created, it was a game in which we more than matched our hosts across most of the pitch, something that couldn't be said last Sunday against Spurs. Sadly the one area we couldn't match West Brom was in the final third and the Baggies had by far the best chances throughout the game. Thankfully Alex McCarthy was in top top form, as good as he'd been at Goodison Park or throughout his successful spell 18 months ago. The young 'keeper made fine saves in both halves from Kames Morrison and commanding his area very well as Reading largely kept West Brom at bay.

McCarthy was ably assisted by his defence, with Pearce and Gorkss dealing well with the physical presence of Lukaku, or as West Brom fans sang, 'The Fridge from Stamford Bridge'. Chris Gunter had probably his best performance in a Reading shirt while Nicky Shorey showed touches of class and his extra mobility enabled Reading to press West Brom back far more than they've been able to do to other sides this season.

Sadly despite a great performance as a unit, they couldn't keep the clean sheet as Lukaku's shot from just outside the box squeezed through a defender's legs past an unsighted McCarthy to secure the points twenty minutes from time.

I say secure the points because Reading's attacking unit really never looked like threatening Ben Foster and each of them with the possible exceptions of Guthrie and Le Fondre, will once again be wondering if they've actually earned their wages this week.

While his former Forest team-mate Gunter had perhaps his best game for Reading, unfortunately the same can't be said of Garath McCleary who seemed frightened to take on his man and whose delivery from the byline was sub-par. The winger did have our best effort on goal though, with his overhead kick being well struck, but sadly going straight at Foster. On the opposite wing and Jobi McAnuff once again looked a frustrated figure who struggled to influence the game and was given little help by referee Chris Foy. To his credit McAnuff did fizz in a nice cross in the first half and a couple of times cut in well to make surges towards the box, but on each occasion he found himself either upended or blocked by some good defending from the Baggies.

I'm not going to pin too much blame on Jobi because it's obvious that he's trying his heart out but you can understand the growing frustration from the terraces as he just seems to be lacking an edge that's going to beat full-backs at this level. His lack of a consistantly quality left footed delivery doesn't help his cause and I can't help but wonder whether the left wing is an attacking outlet that's being under-utilised by playing McAnuff. His defensive work remains excellent but Jobi isn't scaring anybody and his repertoire of tricks hasn't really fooled anyone in the four league games this season. He deserves plenty of patience and support, not least because I don't think there's anybody who'll really do a better job there right now while he's also a good captain. However, Jimmy Kebe's imminent return is going to pose one of, if not the most serious selection dilemmas of Brian McDermott's tenure.

In the centre and Danny Guthrie was once again a composed presence but he struggled to make a real impact when playing against a five man midfield. His partner for the day Mikele Leigertwood had a poor game and struggled to hang on to the ball. His off the ball work was as good as ever but again the five man midfield from West Brom left him struggling to make an impact while his lack of quality on the ball hardly helped our strikeforce who were feeding off scraps for the entire game. Leigertwood is a good player that's capable of playing at this level but today's performance has once again demonstrated his limitations and he cannot afford to give the ball away so cheaply in this league.

Up front and you can't help but feel a bit sorry for Pavel Pogrebnyak who could well be thinking 'what have I signed up for?'. The Russian was given virtually no service on the deck, instead being eft to try and win headers and come deep for the ball to try and get into the game. Lukaku showed that if you give a good player the ball on the edge of the area he's capable of crafting something and you can't help but wish that Reading's midfielders would try and play a few more balls up to his feet rather than forcing him to try and win everything in the air. Adam Le Fondre is a player a bit more used to the direct style and his movement was again excellent, even if his touches were minimal. Alfie can actually consider himself unlucky not to have been 1-on-1 with Foster when he burst through on to a bouncing ball in the second half only to get a boot in the face from the West Brom defender. Unsurprisingly no foul was given by Chris Foy who kept his whistle blowing to a minimum and let the majority of strong challenges go unpunished.

With the team a goal down, McDermott threw on Robson-Kanu for Gunter, and Hunt for Pogrenyak and while both were full of energy, neither looked overly threatening. Robson-Kanu did have a good headed chance but could only steer his effort over the bar.

The lack of quality on the subs bench was quite alarming and with the greatest respects to Shaun Cummings, Karacan, Churchy and Adrian Mariappa, none of them were ever likely to change a game in the same way that West Brom's first sub, Shane Long, could have done. With that in mind, Reading fans' attention has grown ever more on the treatment room and news of the fitness of Jimmy Kebe and Jason Roberts. Both played vital roles in our promotion and both are match winners, something that's lacking in the XI right now. Kebe in particular has a spark that none of our other wing options seem to posses, while Roberts has been around this level long enough to know where the goal is and help bring others a bit more in to the game. Kebe featured for 60 minutes yesterday in a friendly match so could be ready to be in the squad for Newcastle next week. Roberts is a bit further away, but said on BBC Berks last weekend that he hopes to be back in training in 2 weeks, meaning a return after the international break at Liverpool would seem a realistic target.

A word or two for West Brom who demonstrated the sort of level of performance that Reading need to be working towards if they've going to operate on a similar budget. West Brom don't have the superstars that are going to ensure top quality performances every week, but they've got enough ability and options in their squad to create chances and make sure they pick up points in games like this one. Most Baggies fans will admit that they hardly dominated this game and the home crowd was pretty quiet in a game that hardly set pulses racing amongst either set of supporters. Shane Long got a good reception from the travelling fans and took the time to shake hands and give out hugs to many of his former teammates at the final whistle. Lukaku looks a real talent and while he didn't look that sharp, you could see the quality and given a run of games he'll be a great asset for them this season. It's just a shame that he'll doubtless head back to Chelsea in the summer and once again you have to ask yourself why teams like West Brom have to resort to developing players for a team in the same divison... but still that's an issue for another day.

So is it time to panic?

No not really but there's a few reasons to be concerned. If you took these results in isolation you'd probably say we've dropped two points to Stoke and maybe should have taken a point at the Hawthorns. You can't expect results against Chelsea and Tottenham and considering West Brom have taken 7 points from Spurs, Liverpool and Everton, even the Baggies are out of our 'mini-league'. Realistically we haven't dropped anything from our big big six-pointers and as our last relegation season showed, taking a point at Old Trafford is meaningless if you give 6 points away to teams who will be around you come the end of the season.

The growing confidence in the back 5 is also something to be positive about. Alex McCarthy looked every inch a Premier League goalkeeper while the four in front of him looked a good unit that was capable of largely shutting down a side that had scored five goals against the two Merseyside clubs to start the year. Danny Guthrie continues to look a wise purchase and while he had an off-day, McCleary has shown he's got something about him as well.

It's impossible to deny that question marks over some of the old guard. Leigertwood and McAnuff have both proved over and over again that they are top Championship players but both have to prove themselves again at this level and neither has made a convincing case to start the year. They've still got positive credit based on their previous form for this football club, but neither is guaranteed a spot going forward based on their current performance levels. Pog and Alfie are also a work in progress but I can't really say too much good or bad given their very, very limited service levels.

Reading now find themselves bottom of the league but hey, it's FOUR GAMES INTO THE SEASON. Last season we were one off the bottom of the Championship after dire performances against Hull and Watford but slowly began to grind out results before romping to the title. I don't think Manchester City have much to be worried about but it's certainly possible to see a Reading side with Kebe and Roberts, slowly picking up momentum and heading back up the table.

Anyway, that's me done and if you've made it this far perhaps you're prepared to go a little further and avoid feeling too down-hearted about things over the next week. Bring on Newcastle and hopefully, a first win.

PS. There's also some big, big changes coming to this website very soon, so stay tuned for that, I promise it'll be worth it.

View From The Town End - Tottenham

Wimb — Fri, 14 Sep 2012 11:58:50 -0000

IT'S NEARLY HERE!

Yes Premier League football returns after an absence of nearly 4 weeks this Sunday as Tottenham are the visitors to the Madejski Stadium.

Ahead of this Sunday's game we spoke to Kevin McCauley from fellow SB Nation site Cartilage Free Captain about his thoughts on the game.

What have you made of Tottenham's start to the season?

It hasn't been fun, and I'm scared that we look like AVB's Chelsea, but this kind of slow start could have happened to any team in Tottenham's situation. With a new manager and without the players that they bought with the money they made from selling their best player, Tottenham haven't been great. That's not too surprising. If they fail to win again this week, I'll get concerned.

There are already stories circulating that some Spurs fans want AVB out, how much time do you think he has to impress and win the fans over?

Anyone who wants any manager fired after three games, ever, is an idiot. Anyone reasonable isn't pulling the plug unless we're firmly in the bottom half at Christmas.

Gylfi Sigurdsson is a player that Royals fans remember fondly, what have been your early impressions of him?

He was great for Swansea last season and had impressive stints at Reading and Hoffenheim, but he hasn't gotten off to a good start in a Tottenham shirt. Without Luka Modric in the team, there hasn't been anyone to get him the ball, and with Jermain Defoe up top, there hasn't been anyone to hold up the ball and bring him into play. I think he'll look much better when he gets a chance to play with Moussa Dembele and Emmanuel Adebayor.

Best memory of Reading v Tottenham?

Oh come on, did you really have to ask? The awesome 6-4 game, of course.

Tottenham 6-4 Reading 2007-2008 (via youroyals1871)

And the worst?

Reading's 3-1 comeback win in 2006 was no fun. I don't recall any epic FA Cup ties between the sides, but I might be drawing a blank.

Reading 3-1 Tottenham 2006-2007 (via youroyals1871)

Anyone we should be particularly worried about on Sunday?

Probably Dembele. He looked very sharp in his first substitute appearance and I expect him to start on Sunday. Considering Tottenham's lack of movement off the ball and their struggles to play a great final pass during their first three games, Dembele should help the side quite a bit.

Anyone Spurs fans are worried about?

As usual, Reading have a solid group of players but no one who really turns games by themselves. The closest thing to that kind of player that you guys have is probably Pavel Pogrebnyak. It's incredible how well he's done in England after having such an awful stint in the Bundesliga. He looks like your most dangerous player at the moment.

Score prediction?

2-0 Tottenham, but maybe that's just wishful thinking.

Cheers again to Kevin and you can follow the guys on Twitter

@cartilagefree we'll have a full match preview up tomorrow here on The Tilehurst End.

Opposition Scouting Report: Falcao central to Atletico Madrid

Tim Palmer — Wed, 29 Aug 2012 10:38:51 -0000

Part of Chelsea's prize for winning the Champions League is the right to play in the less prestigious Super Cup, and that's exactly what they'll be doing this weekend, squaring off against Spanish side and Europa League winners Atlético Madrid. I'm going to split the scouting preview into two parts for this match, firstly, I'm going to take a look at Madrid's clearest danger, Radamel Falcao, and later this week I'll be taking look at the Madrid side as a whole.

Falcao is the stereotypical centre forward in an era where those stereotypes have perhaps ceased to have meaning. He is essentially, a pure centre forward, and stifling his predatory instincts will be Chelsea's most difficult task on Friday. Many of you will be well aware of what Falcao brings to the table, as he's been a long mooted target for the club. With his astonishing goal scoring stats, it's hard not to see what is so attractive about the Colombian. He's scored thirty goals in two years in Europe, scoring in consecutive finals in 2011 and 2012 for Porto and Madrid respectively. There's certainly an argument to say that Falcao is the best pure striker in the world at present time.

What makes him so dangerous? Firstly, his primary attribute is finishing, and he's very good at it. Capable of scoring with both feet, he has a Mario Gomez style knack for popping up inside the box for scrappy goals, but also the ability to make clever runs, especially off the shoulder of opposition defenders. Much like Didier Drogba demonstrated in the FA Cup Final, he has an acute understanding of knowing when to peel away at the right time, opening up space for his midfielders to make passes towards goal. Despite standing at just 5'10", he also a remarkable capacity for scoring goals with his head, and the likely Chelsea centre back pairing of David Luiz and Gary Cahill (John Terry is suspended) will need to ensure they stay tight to the striker in the likelihood of service out wide, especially from Koke on the right wing. Cahill in particular will need to be more mobile than he was against Pavel Pogrebnyak of Reading. Falcao likes to make runs from the left side of the pitch, meaning he will most likely attack the right side, where Cahill will be stationed.

Taking a holistic tactical look, Falcao is always the central man of any side he plays in. He doesn't really have the skill set to play in any other position (although for a while at Porto he played on the wing), and while this versatility may seem a hindrance, it is perhaps negated by his clinical finishing. Furthermore, while he may not be versatile in terms of positions, he is certainly versatile systematically: he played as the lone striker in a 4-3-3 under Andre Villas-Boas, supported by two wingers who played high up the pitch (Varela and Hulk). Last season at Madrid, he played in a 4-2-3-1 system which was rather similar to the formation adopted by Roberto Di Matteo, relying on a blossoming relationship between a central playmaker and a centre forward. Last season that was on-loan Diego, who has since returned to Wolfsburg. It seems Arda Turan will move into the Brazilian's central role this season, with the Turk having been selected there for Madrid's first two games of the season (this was perhaps natural given Turan's tendency to drift into central playmaking positions).

For Madrid, he is the fulcrum of the sides attack, working the channels as the lone striker to shut down passing lanes for the team in possession. He's actually quite good from a defensive point of view - he did an excellent job closing the ball down in last season's Europa League final, whilst remaining an outlet on the counter attack (epitomised by his brilliant second goal) - and this carries on from his time at Porto, where he was crucial to the pressing approach adopted by Andre Villas-Boas side.

Chelsea will constantly need to be aware of Falcao's threat. They can, theoretically, shut down the service and thus deny Falcao the ball, as he doesn't boast the physique to enable him to turn direct balls into a goal threat that say, a Zlatan Ibrahimovic possesses. He's a very fine breed of striker though, and one that will provide real headaches for Chelsea's defence. Chelsea could also, in theory, play a high line and attempt to bring Falcao higher up the pitch and away from his zone of most comfort, the penalty box, although he does possess the pace to capitalize on any balls over the top. If Chelsea deny Madrid possession, Falcao may look to come deep in search of the ball, as he did for Colombia in 2011 Copa America. That wasn't taking full advantage of his talents, and it showed. The primary focus for Chelsea will be ensuring that the double pivot provides enough protection to deny him the service he needs.

Follow We Ain't Got No History on Twitter

Chelsea vs. Reading - Gary Cahill battles Pavel Pogrebnyak, not quite successfully

David Pasztor — Fri, 24 Aug 2012 18:33:37 -0000

Ladies and gentlemen, in Wednesday night's main event...

Fighting out of the blue corner, hailing from fair Dronfield, standing at six feet two inches and weighing 160 pounds, the Bull of Bolton, the Derbyshire Destroyer, the Heir to JT's Crown...Gary "The Quiet Man" Cahill!

Fighting out of the...other...blue corner - make that yellow corner - straight from the salt mines of Siberia*, standing at six feet two inches and weighing an even 200 pounds, Andrei Arshavin's bodyguard, the Beast from the East, Pavel "I must break you" Pogrebnyak!

For the thousands in attendance and the millions around the world, from WAGNH Towers...llllllllllllet's get ready to rumble!

* Fulham FC, actually

We all knew how Reading were hoping to attack Chelsea: speed on the wings; big man in the middle. We all knew how Chelsea were going to combat this: Gary Cahill and the aerial advantage he provides over David Luiz. It should, however, be noted at some point that Branislav Ivanovic was the one marking the big Russian on set pieces instead of Cahill (or Terry).

In open play, Pogrebnyak floated from side-to-side, picking his battles. It was always going to be a frustrating assignment for the Reading man and Chelsea, as a team, did a very good job of denying him the ball in dangerous areas. A virtual passenger in the second half (just a handful of touches, half of which were fouls, eventually resulting in a yellow card), McDermott took mercy on his center forward, withdrawing him from the contest on 77 minutes.

Yet see those four triangles in the Chelsea penalty box? Those four times that Pogrebnyak was allowed even a sniff at a flighted ball, alarm bells were ringing around Stamford Bridge. The last of the four, closest to the goal and the only one in the second half, came on the back end of a somewhat busted play. Petr Cech claimed/punched well.

The other three involved Cahill directly, which made sense since he was in there specifically for that purpose. Let's see how he did (or did the title spoil it already?).

INCIDENT #1: 17th minute (0-0); TERRY clearance

The play starts from a Ramires turnover. Despite being faster than Pogrebnyak, Cahill consistently plays a couple yards off of him. Gary is also very slow to react and this will prove costly later.

To be fair, Cahill is at a disadvantage as Pogrebnyak is already cutting toward the goal at speed (turnovers are bad, kids!). Fortunately the defense is compact and the chipped ball is slightly underhit, which allows Terry to drop into a high-low double team with Cahill and clear the ball with an acrobatic header.

INCIDENT #2: 23rd minute (1-0); GOAL

The move starts with a throw-in on the far side. Pogrebnyak drops deep to receive the throw and passes backwards. As Reading switch the play to the near side, the center forward jogs back towards the middle. Cahill is keeping an eye on him, yet doesn't get very close.

Keeping that extra yard of cushion is helpful when facing faster and more agile attackers (allowing for a step or two to react to the attacker)...yet Pogrebnyak is none of those. The situation turns even more criminal when despite the cushion, Pogrebnyak jukes Cahill, leaving the Chelsea defender hopelessly stranded on his heels (check out his body shape in #3). The forward fakes a run towards the back post, then with a nice cut, accelerates diagonally across the penalty box. Throughout it all, Cahill is at least two steps behind, unable to catch up, and entirely defeating the purpose of playing off of his man.

As Garath McCleary delivers a cross with perfect pace and Pogrebnyak powers it into the back of the net with a free header (and what a sweet header that was!), Gary Cahill is seen flailing in the distance. He is awarded zero points for the task of actually marking the Russian. May we have mercy on his soul.

INCIDENT #3: 41st minute (1-2); CAHILL clearance

Almost a carbon copy of the second incident, crucially different in its outcome. Once again it's McCleary swinging in the cross and once again Cahill is playing off his man. This time, however, Cahill reacts faster, while Pogrebnyak's run is sloppier and the cross is a bit deeper. The ball is cleared for a corner.

On first viewing, I was very happy with this clearance, assuming that Cahill learned from the previous incident and changed up his strategy to get closer to the threat. Yet on the replay, it's painfully clear that the strategy was exactly the same. Cahill did react noticably faster to Pogrebnyak's movement, which in the final balance made all the difference.

FINAL RATING: 5.0

While the community at large rated Cahill a rather generous 6.6, Graham's rating of 5.0 is much-much closer to the truth. Cahill's primary job was to use his aerial prowess to combat (and defeat!) Pogrebnyak in the air. He was not very successful at it.

Gary himself admitted as much in his post-match interview, so I have confidence that he will learn from this experience. Despite our initial reservations about the 7 Million Dollar Man, Cahill has been a solid option at the back (even chipping in with a few timely goals) and I'm sure he will only get better.

Fan Focus: Reading What Reading Have To Say

Daninfrance — Thu, 23 Aug 2012 14:00:20 -0000

Welcome back to another Fan Focus, the feature where you really know that the match is just around the corner.

As ever, we've got in touch with fans of our future opponents, to see what they have to say about the game on Saturday, a little about their transfer dealings, and how they see their (and our) season going.

So, we're delighted to welcome The Tilehurst End along to Roker Report. They, like us, reside on SB Nation, and suggest that anyone with any desire to know anything about Reading FC goes to their site, now.

Without further ado, let's hear what they've got to say...

So, Reading, it's nice to have you back. What have you made of your summer activity in the transfer market?

The Tilehurst End: I think the majority of Reading fans have been pretty happy with the dealings so far. Of the six major signings we've made, five have Premier League experience, two were players of the season for their old clubs and another was one of the stars of the second half of the PL season last year. Brian McDermott has spent wisely and we now have two players for every position in the squad, something that's going to prove vital over a tough Premier League season.

The only area some fans are still hoping for activity is up front, as there remain question marks over whether the likes of Noel Hunt, Simon Church, Jason Roberts will be of good enough quality to support our main front pairing of Pogrebnyak and Le Fondre. We've been linked with a host of names from Jermain Defoe to Jordan Rhodes and even a return to the club for Shane Long, so I wouldn't be shocked if we make a move on deadline day.

Do you think that your squad is now in a better position to survive than last time?

THE: Our relegation last time shouldn't have happened, as the squad was more than capable of staying up, but just shot itself in the foot in key six-pointers. The squad that went down contained 10 of the 11 starters that saw us finish 8th the season before, and many who had won the Championship with a record 106 points, so to see them fall of a cliff in such a short space of time was galling.

I think that a fully flying 2007/08 squad would still edge out this one, but there's a lot more team spirit and a bit more depth to this current crop than the 2008 model.

Your manager always comes across as an impressive character. Is he the right man for the job?

THE: 100% Yes. To take a side that Brendan Rodgers left hanging above the relegation zone and transform them into a top 10 side who reached an FA Cup Quarter-Final inside six months was impressive enough but to repeat the trick in the cup the following year AND get to Wembley for a play-off final was even more of an achievement. Brian then had to rebuild the side after losing our captain Matt Mills and top scorer Shane Long and with subtle tweaks and the addition of Jason Roberts, took us to a Championship even the most optimistic of fans wouldn't have expected.

A point on the opening day against Stoke shouldn't be sniffed at. How did that game go?

THE: You can never be totally unhappy with a point but it was a game that was there for the taking, Stoke were pretty average but we were hardly impressive either. Our game plan over the last 18 months has been to contain the opposition and then to break out and nick a goal, but that plan is always harder to pull off when you go a goal down, especially at home. The goal Stoke scored was a fluke and uncharacteristic for Adam Federici who was immense last season, he won't let it get to him and I'll expect he'll win us plenty of points over the season. As for our goal, it took a great little cameo from new winger Garath McCleary to win the penalty and credit to Adam Le Fondre for keeping his nerve and slotting home.

Ex-Sunderland man Ian Harte's legs are still going. Is he a key player in your team?

THE: When we sold Gylfi Sigurdsson we lost our key set piece taker and that's one reason Brian turned to Harte two years ago. Since then he's won us plenty of points with his free-kicks and set pieces and he's one of our best goal providers even at this stage in his career. Defensively he's not elite, his pace is always a concern but then again he's never had much of it so it's not as great a flaw as you might think. His positioning has gotten steadily better since he's been back playing at a decent level and he looked fine against Stoke on Saturday. In the summer we signed Nicky Shorey who's a bit more mobile and almost as experienced as Harte so if we do play a team with a lot of pace down the right you might just see Shorey slot in.

What do you make of Sunderland this year? How do you think we'll do?

THE: Sunderland are always an impossible team to predict! You guys go from amazing wins at places like Stamford Bridge to losing at home to Wigan and you're one team I try and avoid if I'm doing an accumulator. However with a full season in front of him, hopefully Martin O'Neill can get a bit more consistency from what remains a talented squad that's easily capable of finishing in the top 12. Saturday's point at Arsenal was a great result and I like the blend of youth and experience you've now got in your squad. Conor Wickham was with us as a youngster before his family left the area and it's great to see him doing so well, while players like Saha and Larsson have been there and done it for a while now and know how to get results.

On to the match itself, who should we be wary of in your team?

THE: Pavel Pogrebnyak is the one name most opposition fans look to, but keep an eye Danny Guthrie in the middle who's impressed in his brief time with the club, as well as wingers Garath McCleary and Jobi McAnuff who are both capable of hurting opposition defences.

And, along the same lines, do we have anyone that you aren't looking forward to facing? Do you have any weak links that we should be looking to exploit?

THE: We came very close to nabbing James McCLean last year until you guys swooped in and with Harte's lack of pace I do worry that he might hurt us if he's in full flow and employed down the right wing. Reading conceded plenty of goals from set pieces last year and given that you've got one of the Premier League's best takers in Seb Larsson that will also be an area we'll be worried about at the weekend.

What are your goals for the season? Survival? Mid table?

THE: Cliched as it sounds, anywhere above 18th is the one and only true aim for this season. With the new TV deal survival has never been so valuable, and if we can finish the year out of the bottom three we'll all be delighted.

And how do you see Sunderland doing?

THE: Like I said, you've easily got the talent to finish in the top 12, and I'd back Mr O'Neill to have you guys inside the top 10 with a bit of luck."

And, finally, can I trouble you for a prediction for this weekend's game?

THE: Reading's style of play suits them more away from hom,e and we'll go to the Stadium of Light looking for all three points. I'm going to stick my neck out and be bold and say Reading will sneak a 2-1 win with a goal in the last five minutes.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Thanks to The Tilehurst End for answering our questions, I wish them all the best this season (apart from their games against us, obviously.

Chelsea vs. Reading - Lineups & Game Thread

David Pasztor — Wed, 22 Aug 2012 17:54:05 -0000

This is the first match at Stamford Bridge since that faithful May night in Munich. Expect the Bridge to be rocking...so don't come-a knocking!

Or do. Because the CHAMPIONS OF EUROPE are in the house! Stand up; turn up the volume; appreciate.

Chelsea starting lineup (4-2-3-1): Petr Cech; Ashley Cole, Gary Cahill, John Terry, Branislav Ivanovic; Frank Lampard, John Obi Mikel; Juan Mata, Eden Hazard, Ramires; Fernando Torres

Substitutes from: Ross Turnbull, Ryan Bertrand, Michael Essien, Oriol Romeu, Raul Meireles, Oscar, Daniel Sturridge

Reading starting lineup (4-5-1): Adam Federici; Ian Harte, Alex Pearce, Kaspars Gorkss, Chris Gunter; Garath McCleary, Jobi McAnuff, Jem Karacan, Danny Guthrie, Mikele Leigertwood; Pavel Pogrebnyak

Substitutes from: Alex McCarthy, Shaun Cummings (ex-Chelsea trainee!), Adrian Mariappa, Jay Tabb, Hal Robson-Kanu, Adam le Fondre

So that's about as first choice as it gets for Chelsea, with the added aerial presence of Gary Cahill back there with Terry. Let's take care of this one early and keep the legs fresh!

View From The Town End - Chelsea (A)

Wimb — Tue, 21 Aug 2012 13:58:50 -0000

After an opening day point against Stoke, Reading now must travel to play the reigning European Champions Chelsea at Stamford Bridge.

Ahead of Wednesday's game we spoke to Stephen Schmidt from SB Nation's Chelsea blog We Ain't Got No History about tomorrow's match.

How did you rate your performances in the Charity Shield and League opener?

I haven't really been able to take too much from either of those matches to be honest. Once Chelsea went down to 10 men in the Shield, it really became more about playing out the match in healthy fashion than anything meaningful. Chelsea went 2 goals up inside of 6 minutes in the opener, and at that point they seemed content to defend and conserve energy for the upcoming game.

Do you think you'll do any more transfer business before the deadline?

I have a feeling we'll still see 2-3 more signings, although none of them will be for regular starters. Right back depth is needed, and one more player capable of playing center forward would be useful as well. I don't think most Chelsea fans would be overly upset with adding another central midfielder either, but I get the feeling the club aren't pressing to fill that need.

Best memory of Chelsea v Reading?

I'll be honest, I don't really have too many fond memories of playing Reading. We've not had a real standout performance against them that I can recall, and the 2 clubs just haven't met all that often since I've been alive. When they have played, it's seemingly always been ugly. I just have a hard time thinking of Reading and seeing anything other than that one incident...

And the worst?

Back to that incident, as Petr Cech still wears the headgear as a reminder. It's been a few years now, but I'm sure this will still be a huge talking point before the game.

Who should Reading fans be particularly wary of on Wednesday?

Eden Hazard was fantastic in the opener, and Fernando Torres has been showing signs of life lately. I'd be watching that pair closely.

Anyone Chelsea fans are concerned about from the Reading team?

I think Pavel Pogrebnyak would be the obvious choice here, as most Chelsea fans are familiar with him from his time at Fulham.

Tips for travelling Royals?

I don't have much to offer in the way of travel tips for Reading fans traveling to London, but it's a lot easier and less expensive to get there than covering the 3300 miles (5300 KM) from my place.

Score prediction?

I'm feeling pretty good after the start Chelsea had over the weekend, so I'm going to say 3-0 for Chelsea.I'm generally pretty terrible at predicting the score though.

Thanks again to Stephen and you can follow We Ain't Got No History on Twitter at @WAGNH_CFC

2012/13 Reading FC Bookie Watch - August 17

Wimb — Fri, 17 Aug 2012 13:51:03 -0000

So the big kick-off is around 24 hours away, we've all got our own beliefs on how the season is going to go but how do the men that make a living off making predictions and backing the winners see our campaign going?

Below the jump we'll have our first bookie watch of the season, our regular look at how the bookmakers see Reading FC and the rest of the Premier League.

The first aim of any promoted club is to survive, so let's check on the favourites for relegation.

Premier League Survival Odds

Southampton       11/8
Reading           6/4
Norwich           13/8
Wigan             9/5
Swansea           2/1
West Ham          11/4
West Brom         4/1

Odds taken from Oddschecker.com on August 17

Generally the bookies have us as one of the favourites for the drop at 6/4 with fine margins separating ourselves from Southampton, Norwich and Wigan. There's then a bit more of a jump to Swansea and West Ham before West Brom start the 'outsiders' rankings at about 4/1.

The bookmakers seem to fancy our chances of beating the drop a lot more than Norwich and Swansea after they were promoted in 2011. Swansea were 4/9 and Norwich 4/7 to make a Championship return, with Champions QPR at the same odds we are now at 6/4.

This year and I'd say that that 'leading' group looks fair as those are the six teams with the most question marks. Reading and Southampton were both unexpected promotions and while both have strengthened, neither contains a great deal of Premier League experience. Norwich have had a summer of transition following the departure of Paul Lambert while Wigan had to put together a miracle run to survive relegation last season. Swansea, like Norwich, have had a managerial change and have lost Joe Allen, while West Ham are also newly promoted.

If you want a flutter outside of that group than Aston Villa's odds of 7/1 look a bit juicy as do Sunderland at 12/1.

If you want to be positive and back that Reading will stay up, you can get a best price of 8/11 on the Royals to be in the Premier League for the 2013/14 season.

Bigger & Better Things?

The last time we were promoted Reading managed to finish 8th in the Premier League, and if you think they can match that achievement with a top 8 finish this season then you can get a best price of 12/1 with the bookies. If you fancy top half finish, those odds dip down to 8/1.

If you're feeling amazingly bold then the club are 66/1 to finish inside the top 6, 400/1 to earn a Champions League space and 8000/1 to win the title. 66/1 may seem like a long shot but at late as December last year we were over 200/1 to win the Championship, showing you just how wrong the bookies can get things. I'm not suggesting it'll happen but stranger things have happened!

Top Goalscorer

The market for this is headed by Sergio Aguero and Wayne Rooney at 8/1, with Reading's interest first popping up with Pavel Pogrebnyak who has best odds of 125/1, the same as a group that also includes Peter Crouch, Steven Gerrard and Peter Odemwingie. Jason Roberts is 150/1 while Adam Le Fondre is out at 200/1 the same price as Noel Hunt.

In terms of who the bookies think will be our top league goalscorer, Pog is the clear favourite at 6/4, with Le Fondre at 6/1, Roberts at 8/1 and Hunt at 10/1. Of the rest and Jimmy Kebe might be worth a punt at 33/1.

The Manager

The last two managers to have won the Championship, Chris Hughton and Neil Warnock haven't survived the season and if you think Brian McDermott will make that a hat-trick Stan James have odds of 9/2 that Brian won't be in charge at the end of the season. Conversely you can get 1/8 that Brian will still be in his office at the end of the campaign.

If you think Brian will be the first manager to leave his job he's 20/1.

So those are just a few of the odds you can get on Reading this season, with the general view at the moment that we'll be struggling to stay up. Still if you're confident of survival there's plenty of value to be had as mentioned, we certainly proved the bookies wrong last year and here's hoping we can again this campaign.

But what do you think? Do you think the bookies have got it right or are they wide of the mark? Let us know your thoughts below.

Will Dempsey feature? Game preview - Norwich (h)

Kristian Balkin — Fri, 17 Aug 2012 09:43:35 -0000

New official website. New look stadium. New screens. New players. New season.

And how I've longed for it. We've had a summer full of football - from the European Championships to the Olympics, there's been plenty to savour, but nothing can quite top a fresh Premier League campaign, full of hope, expectation and, as always, that little bit of dread.

With Fulham, the dread has been somewhat exaggerated by the lack of activity at Motspur Park or, to be more specific, the lack of inward activity. We've lost plenty of players - Danny Murphy, Pavel Pogrebnyak, Dickson Etuhu, Andrew Johnson, Marcel Gecov and Orlando Sa(in order of significance) - but have yet to spend a penny on their replacements. Of course, time is on our side, but that hasn't taken the edge off the concern.

You have to feel, however, that we have enough about us to see off he threat of Norwich City. They have a new manager, in the form of Chris Hughton, yet there are major questions lingering over his head as to whether he can replicate, or even go close to replicating, last season's heroics under Paul Lambert. The away fans at the Cottage on Sunday will certainly be hoping so but the bookies don't look at them quite so favourably. With SkyBet, they are 6/4 to get relegated, level with Wigan Athletic.

Matches aren't played on paper though, and the Canaries have had a respectable pre-season, beating Celtic away and taking a draw against Ajax. Fulham perhaps had the better summer, with the highlight being a hammering of OGC Nice away in France. Mladen Petric has been particularly potent.

In the same fixture last season, we defeated Norwich 2-1 with all the work done within 13 minutes, Damien Duff and Clint Dempsey the scorers. Whether Dempsey will feature on Saturday is a question many are afraid to answer, with a potential move away from the club still playing on everyone's mind. Sa scored a sumptuous volley in the reverse fixture, helping claim a 1-1 draw at Carrow Road.

New Norwich signings Steven Whittaker and Jacob Butterfield won't play a part while Javier Garrido is thought to still be awaiting international clearance after his loan move from Lazio was confirmed.

Fulham team news has yet to be released, but there are thought to be no major injury concerns.

Potential line-up: Schwarzer; Riise, Hangeland, Hughes, Riether; Duff, Diarra, Dembele, Kacaniklic; Ruiz; Rodallega

Score prediction: Fulham 3-0 Norwich