The first of this season's league match ratings. WARNING: Post may contain opening day optimism.
Paul Smith – 8 – a show-stopping save to seal a worthy point and a strong overall performance.
Luke Chambers – 5.5 – by no means a horror show, but occasionally his positioning let him down as Reading players moved in behind him.
Kelvin Wilson [C] – 7.5 – a comfortable return to Championship football; Wilson’s composure could be absolutely crucial in sustaining respectable status at this level.
Wes Morgan – 7.5 – as above, a remarkably dependable performance.
Julian Bennett – 7.5 – all of his benefits and none of his flaws; got forward well and was typically savage in the tackle.
James Perch – 6 – careless in possession on more than one occasion, but he spared his overall performance with a series of important tackles. I’m not convinced by Perch as a midfielder at this level (or really the one below), but as part of a conventional five he has a role to play.
Guy Moussi – 9 – Man of the Match – frankly there must be a catch! On today’s evidence the Frenchman could very well become the centrepiece of our entire squad. He is a picture of composure, and he sprays the ball around with delectable and seemingly effortless side-footers that we simply haven’t seen at the City Ground for years. Though he is essentially a deep midfielder he finds plenty of time to roam forward, and compared with Sammy ‘The Crab’ Clingan he seems, well, perfect!
Arron Davies – 7 – busy and efficient, after his fashion, but probably not likely to have enough impact to keep his place. He looks a lot more confident this time out, but he’s a lightweight.
Lewis McGugan – 7.5 – probably tried a little bit too hard at times, but he was still fantastic. When he keeps things simple he seeps class from every pore and I think he will be quite at home in the Championship
Chris Cohen – 7 – worked hard and did his job, out of position, without rocking the boat.
Robert Earnshaw – 7 – bullied out of the game in periods, partly through his lack of strike partner and partly due to the siege marking of Reading’s centre halves. For what it’s worth, I was impressed. This is a striker of genuine quality who can take players on, finish with real aptitude and generally be a constant nuisance. This is the kind of player that we can now get used to watching again.
Subs:
Emile Sinclair – 6 – out of position and introduced at a time when we were eager to take the point and retire.
Garath McCleary – n/a
