West Bromwich Albion 1-0 Reading: Player Ratings

Joe Lumley: 7

Lumley was pretty much the only reason we weren't two or three down in the first 20 minutes. He made one superb stop in particular from point-blank range. A couple of hairy moments in the second half, but without him we wouldn't have been in the game.

Junior Hoilett: 6

Hoilett was by no means the worst player on the pitch, but he still had a gilt-edged chance to put us 1-0 up in the first half. He also got booked for a rash challenge in the second half and was hooked shortly after.

Andy Yiadom: 6

Similar to Hoilett really - there were a few bad performances out there but I don’t think Yids was one. Every player was poor in the opening 20 minutes but I can’t recall any notable errors from the skipper.

Scott Dann: 5

A really tough return to first-team football for Scott Dann. His afternoon didn’t start well when Jed Wallace left him on the floor, and from then on the eventual match-winner Daryl Dike had the better of him. i thought Dann could have done better for the goal too as he found himself the wrong side of Dike.

I’m sure Dann will play a big part going forward, he’s Paul Ince’s kind of player, but today was an off day for him.

Tom McIntyre: 7

As mentioned before, the whole team were poor in the opening exchanges. But again, I can't remember a notable mistake made by TMc. In fact, what I do remember is a couple of key blocks which prevented the hosts from going ahead early on.

He had a more difficult second half but, similar to Lumley, it would’ve been a lot worse without McIntyre today.

Nesta Guinness-Walker: 5

The Reading fans got their wish with NGW starting from the off, but although he is probably our best attacking wing-back, he’s arguably one of the weakest defensively. The hosts had plenty of joy down their right-hand side in the first half. Guinness-Walker should’ve also done better to stop the cross coming in for the goal. A bad day at the office for the youngster.

Jeff Hendrick: 5

There has to be a clause in Hendrick’s contract which means he must play a certain amount of minutes or games. There just has to be. It seems that every single match passes him by.

He looks bereft of confidence and it’s surely getting to the point where there's a few players more deserving of a chance in midfield.

Mamadou Loum: 7

I thought this was one of his better games in a Reading shirt. He's largely failed to live up to the standards he set against Blackburn Rovers earlier in the season, but today I thought he was just about the only Reading player who showed a bit of composure and calmness on the ball.

Tom Ince: 5

A bit of an off-day for Ince Jr. As much as he huffed and puffed, it just didn't quite fall for him. What few chances he did have to show his quality (more often than not via a set piece) he failed to deliver, too. Ultimately he was part of an attacking unit that just didn't click.

Yakou Meite: 5

Like I just said, the attacking department just didn't work today. In the first half in particular, we offered nothing going forward and Meite was part of that. Both members of the strike partnership looked leggy. Had half a sniff when Andy Carroll played him through in the second half, but other than that it was a day to forget for Yaks.

Andy Carroll: 5

Ditto from above, really. Showed a glimpses of quality and had a tame header saved in the first 45, but whatever Ince was trying with his forward line today just didn't work. When it works, the direct route to Carroll is an effective tool. But when it doesn’t work, it’s not really a great watch.

Subs

Amadou Mbengue: 5

Came on for Hoilett early in the second half, I think to deal with the pace of Grady Diangana, who not long before entered the fray. Did that job well enough, but like the rest of his team mates he just didn't show enough going forwards.

Lucas Joao: 6

I actually thought he looked really sharp when he came on. Showed little signs of the Joao we all know and love - some silky footwork and good link-up play. Really should be seeing more of him as the season goes on.

Shane Long: 5

Long wasn’t quite as in the game as Joao when he entered the fray, but it wasn't a coincidence that when the changes were made, we looked more threatening (which is probably more frustrating than it is encouraging).

Baba Rahman: 5

Had a chance to level the scoring from a corner, but it came at him quickly and he just couldn't climb enough to get over the ball - more of a case of the wrong man in the right position rather than a glaring, gilt-edged miss in my opinion.

Femi Azeez: N/A

Came on after the 80th minute and rules are rules so he gets an N/A. However, I thought it was a decent little cameo from him.

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Average: 5.6/10

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