Reading game | Vital Football

Reading game

king_dezeeuw06

king_dezeeuw06

Vital Champions League
Seems a bit of apathy about our remaining games judging by the lack of threads for the last few weeks. Seems like there isn't much excitment that we can pull off the great escape despite the form improving of late.

Certainly understandable, but Reading are probably not far off already being on the beach mentally, one of the weaker home teams in the division, low scoring and not in the best of form (although to be fair they have had a toughish run of fixtures). If we are going to pull off a Hudini act then this is a game we need to probably win.

We are 4 points off safety due to goal difference and if we lose today and Stoke and Boro win that will make it 7 points adrift of them and if Charlton win it would be 10 points to overhaul them. Heading into West Brom away in the next next could see us further adrift before we play Luton at home. Alternatively if they all lost and we could pick up the win then we go level on points with 20th and then potentially another win away from jumping to 18th (if fixtures go our way). If we could manage to get ahead of at least 1 of the sides above us at some point , even if we didn't stay there longer than a day or something due to fixtures or whatever it would be a massive boost mentally.

At this stage of the season with so few games left getting cut adrift by those type of points would be the final nail, so it's a huge game tonight to keep ourselves in with a shout - if we can't get a win tonight against Reading who are pretty much playing for nothing while we should be fighting for our lives it's hard to see us able to pull off upsets in harder games or the 6 pointers - physchologically we need this to inject some momentum and belief as much as we need the points. We need to be brave and go for it - i would say it's vital we don't play the 3 passengers of Jacobs, Massey and Lowe. Yet i bet at least 2 of them start if not all 3 and we drop Pilkington knowing Cook. I'd love to be proven wrong and see Geldhart, Garner, Pearce, Dobre in the mix and Naismith in midfield at their expense but i think that's just wishful thinking. Would be nice to see us maximise our chances by picking a starting 11 that isn't like playing men down due to the lack of impact some of them have.
 
Pilkington and Gelhardt injured according to Cook. Looks like we’ll have the dream team of Jacobs, Lowe and Massey out there tonight. Or he might go more defensive and have 3 holding midfielders. Like I said on another thread, from one of Cooks recent interviews it sounds like he’s written off some of the away games.
 
We defo need 3 points tonight , they don`t score many and we don`t so watch a 4.3 happen ..results were not good for us last night so we need to hang in there ..
 
Th10 said:
Pilkington and Gelhardt injured according to Cook. Looks like we’ll have the dream team of Jacobs, Lowe and Massey out there tonight. Or he might go more defensive and have 3 holding midfielders. Like I said on another thread, from one of Cooks recent interviews it sounds like he’s written off some of the away games.
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If those 3 start then we're screwed.

For me Pearce in at left back. Naismith left wing, Dobre right wing and put Gary Roberts in no10 (desperate times and all that) if we are not willing to go 4-4-2 with Garner up top with Moore.

Who'd have thought letting Windass out on loan would leave us short in decent attacking mids?!

Happy for the Cook favourites club to start score 1 each and win 3-0 and be proven wrong, but think that is a long shot.
 
READING MATCH REPORT FOR TONIGHT.

Reading v Wigan match report. Reading. The chances of a good win on a cold sleeting night at Elm Road aka Madjeski are high. In defence we have our exchange from Brighton for Dan Byrne or is it Nathan Burn, Baluga the friendly killer whale who gets in the way of everything and blocks even the most determined Japanese whaling ship. We were lucky not to lose at Cardiff. Our once own Boggle wasn’t there to make every attack offside. The Blue Baluga Whale is never fearful of surging forward to attack and retaliate the attacking hunters and poachers. And why not if Keiffer more prefers to go into the full back line get into the action having felt lonely with little to do up front. If it confuses me, it’ll confuse the oppo. Bill Bryson in ‘The Body’ tells me that one of the reasons we have fingerprints, valleys and ridges on our hands is to improve our grip. Marshall has spent the last few days at the manicurist. Grip tomorrow like was like Sellotape when you’re trying to wrap a last-minute Christmas present. But I digress. Nathan surged forward creating wave after tsunami of attacks, knocking across pinpoint passes to Keiffers head. Lowe, who everyone hates at the moment tirelessly ran around the pitch following every long ball from the last scape goat, Kal, who played a blinder. Lowe crossed the ball to Jacobs, the last scapegoat who side stepped it to Pilkington who smashed it into the net, so hard in fact that the ball made a hole in the net. Goal disallowed; if Ali had been between the sticks no one would have got near the ball. Ali still hates Bolton. Therapy hasn’t worked. Reading did have an attack. Cedric was back in a flash, clearing off the line saving a near certain goal, and NO he didn’t hand ball it. He told me so. The 93rd minute came and went. Wigan, through a Jacobs bit of jinking and twisting slips in a last kick of the game goal. Reading, whose reading, 0 Wigan 1. Will Grigg could be on fire if he was given the chance.
 
Stormin' Norman said:
https://www.wigantoday.net/sport/fo...an-athletic-squad-ahead-reading-clash-1995050

“I just hope that when people see the team before the game, they don’t think I’ve gone mad again!”

Make your own minds up on that! Getting the excuses in early for me.
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If he picks the rubbish teams he does when everyone is fit then how bad is it going to be tonight that even he thinks it's not very good team?! He must be planning to put out a very dodgy side.

With comments like that it wouldn't shock me if we go ultra defensive with a back 5 and bring Dunkley back in.
 
He can't win, can he.

Play the players regardless of having a slight knock ....... he's an idiot.
Don't play them cos of the knock ........... shit team .........bloody rubbish Cook.

Sorry KDZ, I don't buy this "playing for nothing" logic. Hell, how much stick did the Manager - and players - get the other season when after winning the league, we went and lost our last home game.

If a title winning team aren't expected to switch off, then why should we expect a team in mid table to do that?. I'll bet their supporters would be well chuffed if we go and beat them ......"ah well, we're mid table, we're safe, no worries, it doesn't really matter" !

Actually, I agree re the likelihood of the 3 centre backs ............. and I too hope he doesn't ............ unless he's going to push the full backs much higher more often.

I just hope the players play with some belief.
 
As good as Pilkington is he's as injury prone as I've known. We are running out of matches to escape the drop so we simply have to win this evening and I think we will. 2-1 Tics.
 
The league this season is relatively poor. The fact we are in the brown stuff is due to managerial incompetence. It’s unrealistic therefore to expect the person responsible for this mess to get us out of it. The team finishing 4th bottom this year will get in excess of 50 points and being objective we won’t reach that tally.

In regards tonight it does sound like he’s getting his excuses in early. I’ve little doubt therefore the invisible man Jamal will once again be in the starting 11, alongside that other wing wonder Massey. Then again he may try something left field and drop the pair and play an extra striker, though we all know there is fa chance of that.
 
We have the squad to survive. Even with the injuries, we're better than our league position.

Getting excuses in before a ball has been kicked is what this sounds like to me.

What is absolutely damning is that the players who are injured, with the exception of Robinson, have been bit part players all season. Cook has persisted with the same team all year, which is far from the best team we can put out. No point moaning that Joffy is injured when he's rarely played when he has been fit.

It's just words. If we had pretty much any other manager and the squad we have, I'd be confident of survival, but with Cook, relegation is nailed on. It'd take a miracle to save us.
 
As many mistakes as Cook has made (or we think he's made) people also need to take a reality check & realise that our squad isn't much kop either.
Its a mix of league 1 standard players, journeymen & crocks with the odd half decent player in there
All this "We should be comfortably mid-table or mid to play off places" is a load of rubbish (in my humble opinion)
 
Strange lineup, more concerned on the persistent injuries we seem to get. Though I understand Pilkington. Hopefully Roberts can do the job offensively, he will atleast work his socks off. Pearce should of never been dropped for Naismith either. Hopefully 3 points, really need them. West Brom is a free hit Saturday but we really need to keep up the momentum as the teams below and around us are doing the same. It shows how bad the standard of this league is this season, that's for sure.
 
Hopefully this “knock” is just Gelhardt being rested for Friday. If it isn’t we’re fucked and so are the kids.

Yes I’m well aware how disturbing that sounds..
 
The clown is so predictable. He hides his inadequate selections behind suspect injuries. Pilkington again. If he really is injured he must go down as one of Cooks worst of many signings. Lowe walks into the team to saunter around near the halfway line with his socks halfway down his legs who is another of clowns worst ever signings. Massey very predictable to swap with Jacobs. As for Roberts FFS he couldn't get in the side two years ago. Yes in the odd game he plays he gives his all which is average third tier level. A match tonight should qualify him for another years contract.
An ideal opportunity lost tonight to give Garner and Moore a run out together.
 
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