At the SCL Stadium on Saturday, the Royals secured a fantastic 0-0 draw with league leaders Birmingham City.
With the point, we are now three points clear of the playoffs in ninth place and undefeated in five. The way his team performed impressed manager Noel Hunt. His words to the Reading Chronicle are as follows.
Examine the outcome.
“Unless we made a mistake and Amadou had to clear it off the line, I thought we had the better chances. I believed we had two or three excellent opportunities in open play.
“They are a solid team with a competent management and excellent players everywhere on the field.” They have done so well to get to where they are, so I will not be disrespectful. I felt we were huge for our boys.
We applied pressure, won the ball back high, and prevented them from kicking for very long. We made an effort to ignore them, and today’s strategy for the game was entirely focused on us. In terms of performance, I am happy.
Look for tactical adjustments.
When goal kicks were played, we made minor adjustments to the press. We have a couple, but we only wanted to make a few adjustments because the guys have been excellent at what they do and we do not want to stop.
“It is not our way to sit off Burnley and let them have the ball when they got here. I would like to Go be aggressive and get in people’s faces, and when we can relax and play, we do it. In terms of the game, the pressure remained constant, and I felt it was effective.
“They opened us up a few times, but they are a strong team and will do that. After that, it is about our comebacks and how we handle the crosses. With the exception of one or two instances in the first half, I felt we handled it effectively.
Investigate the position change of Kelvin Ehibhatiomhan
Mamadi provides you with a ton of energy, which is exactly what we needed on the wings. He understands the role and has a fantastic engine. He knows just where to be and when we are under pressure. Compared to Jayden, I assumed Kelvin would extend the game a bit further.
“Jayden has been outstanding over the past four or five games, and he demonstrated his abilities and created one or two chances when he entered the game. We believed Kelvin could stretch them into the pockets behind, which would make it simpler for us to interchange plays. It was merely a tactical move.
Investigate Kelvin’s injury
“It is a large gash, but it is not a concussion. He requires some attention, therefore we must be careful to look after him. Next week, we will check on him.
