To say it’s been a forgetful for years for Reading supporters to endure would be one of the biggest understatements in English football for a considerable amount of time. They’ve had far too many poor performances on the pitch, and with the off-field uncertainty heading into each match, there isn’t too much to look forward to if you’re a Reading supporter.
The Berkshire-based side’s issues stem from owner, Dai Yongge, whose overspending has cost the club dearly, and they’ve had more points deducted over the last three years than any other team in the English football pyramid. Unpaid tax bills, and unpaid wages for some of the club’s staff have been just some of the problems that have arisen in this season in particular, and with performances on the pitch not getting any better, the fans’ frustrations seem to have boiled over in recent months, and who can blame them?
The Royals now find themselves playing their football in League One, but that hasn’t stopped their appalling run of results. They’re second bottom in the third-tier standings, and even if they were to get their deducted points back, they wouldn’t move anywhere in the table, which speaks volumes. It’s been almost a year since Reading won an away league game, which certainly doesn’t make for good viewing at all, and any hope of them getting a positive result on their travels has well and truly gone from the club’s supporters.
Reading’s home form had previously been somewhat of a saving grace for them, but when results at the Select Car Leasing Stadium start to falter like they have been recently, then it’s understandable as to why fans are calling for the manager to depart. When Ruben Selles first joined Reading, many weren’t overly convinced by his lack of managerial experience, but they were willing to give him the benefit of the doubt given the large-scale problems off-field before his appointment was made.
Selles had a tough hand to deal with as well, as they couldn’t sign any players for transfer fees, and had to have each transfer authorised. They’ve built a young, but talented squad for the 2023/24 campaign, and many would have thought that they could consolidate themselves in League One relatively comfortably. However, that hasn’t been the case, and this young Reading team look like a team playing with no confidence at all, which has seen some below-par performances.
It’s been made known to us by experts at MyBettingSites that Reading are priced at 1/1 on Paddy Power to be relegated from League One this season. Below, you’ll see the rest of the betting odds for the teams expected to be fighting for survival.
- Cheltenham Town @ 1/8
- Carlisle United @ 1/1
- Fleetwood Town @ 5/4
- Shrewsbury Town @ 6/5
- Cambridge United @ 13/5
- Wigan Athletic @ 16/5
One of the main reasons as to why the club should be potentially looking elsewhere for a new manager is Selles’ reluctance to change his 4-2-2-2 formation, which is one that the players are clearly struggling to adjust to. You would give the players the benefit of the doubt if we were early into the season, but we’re over a quarter of the season through now, and results are only getting worse each coming week. Under-performing players are continuing to feature in the starting XI, whilst the likes of Caylan Vickers and Ben Elliott remain either out of the squad or occupying a spot on the substitutes bench, when they’re arguably Reading’s most creative players.
The obvious problem with any potential managerial change is whether Reading can even afford to relieve Selles of his duties in charge of the club when they can’t even afford to pay the monthly tax bill. If the Spaniard’s stubbornness is to continue though, then it seems as though it’s only going to get worse and worse moving forwards, which would seem almost unthinkable based on how the last few months have gone. It’s set to be an interesting few months ahead at Reading, and the ownership problems need sorting as soon as possible, as then we can potentially see some movement on the managerial front
