Paul Ince’s honeymoon period at Reading was the equivalent of booking a week’s stay at Butlin’s before getting food poisoning four days in.
Hiring him in the first place was probably a bad idea and any early enjoyment came to an abrupt end. The ‘new manager bounce’, and it really feels a stretch to call it that, lasted exactly one game – a 2-1 triumph over a poor Birmingham side.
Reading were then humbled by Ince’s old club Blackpool and beaten by Millwall courtesy of former Royal Jake Cooper’s header. A week that proved you can never be friends with your exes.
One of the headlines when Ince was appointed was that he hadn’t managed in over eight years and despite his claim that “you don’t forget how to ride a bike”, his lack of recent dugout experience has shown.
I saw a few comments after the defeat to Millwall that it felt like a very Veljko Paunovic performance and I’d certainly agree, particularly in regard to game management.
Reading trailed from the 37th minute but Ince did not make a substitution until the 79th. Yakou Meite, arguably Reading’s second biggest goal threat behind Lucas Joao, did not come off the bench until the 85th minute.
Scott Dann came on as a stoppage time substitute to play upfront, as Tom Ince was finally taken off after a disappointing afternoon. If Ince Sr wanted to avoid any claims of nepotism, he didn’t help himself last weekend.
It also didn’t sit quite right that Ince didn’t front up after the loss, instead sending out Michael Gilkes to appease the masses in post-match interviews. Ince might only be interim manager, but by all accounts he is here until at least the end of the season so the so-called ‘Guvnor’ should take more responsibility.
The worry is that things may get worse before they get better. Reading now face one of the toughest weeks of Championship football they could have asked for as they travel to Nottingham Forest on Saturday and then Bournemouth next Tuesday, before hosting Blackburn Rovers the weekend after.
There seems a very real possibility that we will get zero points out of those games and by the time the international break rolls around at the end of the month, we could be right in the thick of the relegation battle again if Barnsley, Derby or Peterborough can take advantage.
A huge game then awaits at the start of April as we travel to Oakwell, which kicks off a period which will ultimately define our Championship status – five games in three weeks against sides currently in the bottom 10. It’s in Reading’s hands, but Ince needs to get a grip. Quickly.
By Olly Allen
