Paul Ince said Reading have a ‘great chance’ of surviving relegation in the Championship after he made a winning start to life as interim manager.
Goals from Lucas Joao and John Swift gave the Royals their first home win since October with victory over Birmingham City.
“I never envisioned seeing myself back in the dugout,” said Ince.
“It’s been a few years since I’ve managed but I’m 54, not 84. I know how to manage. My CV is as good as any person’s.
“They (Birmingham) are a side playing with no pressure, we’re a side playing under pressure. But there’s a lot of work to do.
“It’s a tough challenge but it’s a challenge I’m used to.
“If we keep picking up results and showing the mental toughness that we showed tonight then we’ve got a great chance of staying up.”
Ince was quick to admit that the team are still in a relegation battle, but believes they have what it takes to maintain their Championship status.
He continued: “When you look at last year, seventh in the table, Paunovic did a fantastic job but somewhere down the line, something’s gone wrong.
“These are good players but the problem is we’re always going to score goals, but we’ve got a -22 goal difference.
“We are going to be under pressure but the fact that we won’t concede as many goals and that gives us a great chance of staying up.
“When you win games, the belief grows.
“The fans are so important because we’re not going to win every game. It’s going to go to the wire.
“We’re building confidence with two wins on the bounce.
“Sometimes at this time of the season it’s not about how you play, but it’s about picking up points.
“I watch football religiously. They (Reading) called me to help them, so that’s what I’ll do.”
