Reading 2-3 Bristol City: Player Ratings

Rafael - 6

Not particularly to blame for any of the goals, and not particularly good or bad with his distribution. At least stopped it from being 4-2 as the defence fell asleep in front of him.

Andy Yiadom - 6

Athletic and smart in his movement forward, particularly when chasing the game. Alas, the game’s tide was not the sort that a right-back can do much to turn.

Michael Morrison - 4

Gifting the opposition two goals in the first 15 minutes from set-plays is a bad look. Not only were Morrison & Co. all at sea in terms of marking individuals, they were terribly disorganised and unresponsive as a unit.

Liam Moore - 5

Even a 25-yard run and finish from the centre-back could not give Reading the impetus to save this game. While it was a true goal of the season contender from Moore, he was no help for the three goals and it has been a torrid start for the Royals’ defence.

Tom McIntyre - 4

Not a left-back. Not particularly good as a left-sided centre-back. Maybe he’s best suited to sitting in defensive midfield as part of a diamond with Puscas and Azeez up top. With the 3-4-2-1 an expired temporary fix, it’s surely worth a go.

Ethan Bristow - 4

One day Bristow will be ready for Championship action. I hope that day comes soon, but it was not Tuesday night. There is no reason not to give him time as a squad player, but Reading desperately need a new senior left-back who can play week in, week out.

Andy Rinomhota - 5

Both central midfielders looked good on the ball, controlling possession and moving it into attacking positions ably. But Bristol City found a soft underbelly that the duo should have quashed far easier.

Josh Laurent - 5

Laurent has improved significantly in his ball-carrying abilities over the summer, as shown by his run for the first Reading goal. At the other end, he was also guilty of failing to get on top of some pretty standard City attacks.

John Swift - 5

There needed to be more spark from Reading when chasing the game, chiefly in the second-half, and Swift continually coming deep to get the ball limited the chances of that. Perhaps we expect a lot of him but this performance lacked that urgency to get into the box that Reading desperately needed.

Femi Azeez - 6

Two in two for the winger who is nicely finding his feet at this level. There wasn’t the space that he could enjoy versus Preston but his goal was well taken and he certainly did not look out of his depth.

George Puscas - 4

It’s a bit of a chicken and egg story with Puscas: is he bad because of poor service or because he’s just bad at football? Whichever way you answer that question, the fact is the £8million international forward was taken off when Reading desperately needed a goal, for a teenager who had never played in the Championship.

Substitutes

Tom Dele-Bashiru - 6

There is something there. The control, the drive towards goal, the comfort on the ball. With a bit more game time, he could be hard to keep out of the team. It’s a shame he launched an 88th-minute volley over the bar, instead of recycling the ball back into the box after a corner.

Jahmari Clarke - 6

Credit to Jahmari for becoming the latest Royals academy graduate to play in the Championship. Lucas Joao’s absence has given him a chance and let’s hope he takes it. Tonight, he was very loose in his control but is clearly a great athlete and put himself about.

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