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Bolton Fans Verdict: Last Minute Equaliser Denies The Royals

In probably the biggest game of the season so far, Reading looked like they were heading to victory until Jack Hobbs scored late on.

After a prolonged break since our last game away at Derby due to the FA Cup Fourth Round, the Royals were back in action on Tuesday night and travelled to Bolton. It was yet another strong performance from Reading as they continue to develop under Gomes, dominating the ball and creating the best of the chances - especially in the first half.

Emiliano Martinez, Matt Miazga and Nelson Oliveira all made their first starts for the club and it was the latter who cooly slotted home from 12 yards, 20 minutes from time, to send Reading into the lead. However, it was another frustrating end to a positive performance as Jack Hobbs headed in an equaliser deep into injury time, denying the Royals a deserved three points.

There were many key talking points to come out of the game which certainly got the fans talking after the game on Twitter...

The debutants

All eyes were on Twitter at 7pm on Tuesday to find out who of the new loan signings would be make their way into the starting eleven. Predictably, Miazga started next to Moore after the departure of Tiago Ilori to Sporting Lisbon. Nelson Oliveira and Martinez also made their debuts.

Oliveira grabbed his first goal, while Martinez and Miazga were desperately close to getting a clean sheet also. It is also clear to see just from the Bolton game how well all three suit Gomes’ style of play. Both Miazga and Martinez looked shaky at times but are certainly an upgrade on what we had before, and will surely continue to improve themselves and the team.

The fans had a lot to say about the new boys after the game on social media, and are eager to see what else they can offer in the coming weeks...

No cutting edge... again

It was another strong performance on Tuesday night. Gomes really has got this team playing some beautiful football at times. A team sitting 22nd in the Championship don’t usually have the confidence to play out from the back the way we are at the moment, and I’m positive it’ll bring results soon enough.

However, the final ball or shot let us down time and time again. It’s been the same for pretty much the whole season. Both Swift and Aluko missed massive chances in the first half that would’ve put Reading in such a comfortable position in such an important game.

It’s certainly frustrating the fans, and understandably so as it’s getting to that point in the season where we need to be getting results, and missing guilt-edged chances will not help that...

Conceding last minute

It happened at Rotherham, Preston, Brentford and now Bolton and it can’t keep happening. We were cruising through that game, Bolton hardly threatened at all after we scored. It would’ve been a massive three points, the biggest of the season so far. It would’ve been such a confidence boost going into Villa, now it feels like we’re going into that game off the back of a defeat.

Of course, it left the fans feeling a mix of emotions when Hobbs headed home unmarked. Anger, frustration and disbelief were probably the top 3 but it really was a massive kick in the teeth, as you can see from the following tweets...

Conclusion

Let’s just hope Gomes’ team take the positives from this game into Saturday afternoon, as we dominated the game from start to finish really. It’s a big chance missed, and it was a massive game but if we keep playing the way we are I’m still confident we’ll beat the drop.

URZ