Derby fail to get Royal seal of approval from own Head Coach

Derby County fans will have vivid memories of last season’s home fixture against Reading. It was the Berkshire side which put the final blows into the miserable end to Steve McClaren’s tenure at the iPro Stadium racing to a 3-0 win in a match which the Rams only required a point to earn a play-off spot which was lost out to Brentford.

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Article by Fred Gough

Derby County [1] Reading [1] - Attendance: 28,175

The East Midlands outfit had beaten Reading in September as their form took rise under head coach Paul Clement who for this game reshuffled back to a somewhat familiar set up after the FA Cup third round victory at Hartlepool and awaiting the glamour tie in the next against Manchester United.

Championship experienced Lee Grant, Cyrus Christie, Richard Keogh, Jason Shackell, Bradley Johnson, Tom Ince and Chris Martin all rested for the trip to the League Two side came straight back in, alongside some who had featured in the 2-1 win.

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The head coach decided in using the 4-2-3-1 formation he had employed when Bristol City visited in mid December and gave a full home debut to recently signed from Reading – Nick Blackman.

In the opening stages, both sides struggled to earn vast differences in possession but it was the home side which took the lead from their first corner of the night earned by Blackman’s shot being saved at his near post by Oman international Ali Al Habsi and defender Shackell getting his first league goal since returning from Burnley in the summer and his second in all competitions after heading home in the League Cup fixture at Portsmouth in August.

After the goal, the home side teased their possession football which had got them the plaudits from those scouting on the performances. However another wasted opportunity falling to top scorer Chris Martin gave the visitors a boost to try and inflict their style of play upon the hosts.

The German born midfielder Danny Williams proved to be a handful in the gaping middle of the park left alone by Johnson and Jacob Butterfield and the former Hoffenheim playmaker got his name on the goal sheet in the latter stages of the first half.

Williams took the incentive to try and get a brace but narrowly hit wide as the Royals looked far more threatening as the half time whistle blew.

Half Time: Derby County 1 Reading 1

Reading in their African Violet away strip continued their zest but the home side had to thank goalkeeper Grant for pulling off further saves from former Nottingham Forest tricky winger Gareth McCleary and again from Williams.

A rare neat exchange between Blackman and Martin nearly caught the Reading defence napping however the former Bolton Wanderers and Wigan Athletic ‘keeper Al Habsi was alert enough like his opposite number who prevented Welshman Hal Robson-Kanu and young defender Jake Cooper in the dying minutes in what was a poor second half showing from the home side providing little and few moments for the fans to get excited about however they held on to take their unbeaten home form into double figures, ten games since their previous defeat at the iPro Stadium against Leeds United on August bank holiday weekend prior to the first international break of the campaign.

Full Time: Derby County 1 Reading 1

The little spark of desire and attitude from his players riled Paul Clement in his post match interviews with the press after this fixture, he felt that the performance was awful and certainly wanted a reaction in the next game against Birmingham City.

The head coach had been disappointed by the way his players heads had dropped since the Boxing Day victory over Fulham where the form had seen Derby salvage a draw at Elland Road and in this match and lost in a cold and brutal fashion at Middlesbrough.

Derby’s form took a nose dive at this stage of the season last year, hoping that the game against Birmingham sees an improvement or certainly fans confidence will start to evaporate and valuations of big summer signings like Bradley Johnson & Tom Ince, both who have held the title of record transfer fee paid by the club, will start to be questioned.

Teams:

DCFC [4-3-3] – Grant, Christie (y/c – 84), Keogh, Shackell, Warnock, Butterfield, Johnson (Hendrick – 65 (y/c - 75)), Russell (Camara – 76), Blackman, Martin (capt (y/c - 66)) & Ince; Substitutes –Hendrick, Bent, Baird, Camara, Weimann, Shotton & Mitchell.

Reading – Al Habsi, Gunter (y/c -65 ), Ferdinand, Cooper, Taylor, Williams, Norwood, McCleary, Piazon, Robson-Kanu (y/c - 83) & Vydra; Substitutes – Bond, Sa, Hurtado, John, Quinn, Cox & Keown.

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