Championship strugglers Reading suffered yet another defeat last night as they fell to a disappointing 2-1 defeat to Bristol City, dragging them further into relegation danger.

This latest defeat stretches their winless run to ten games - and the pressure on Veljko Paunovic will only increase going into this weekend's tie against Coventry City at the Select Car Leasing Stadium.

Peterborough United and Barnsley may have lost their midweek ties - but Derby County's convincing victory against Hull City on Tuesday evening has only gone on to consign the Berkshire outfit to more misery in their quest to stay afloat in the Championship.

 

 

Wayne Rooney's men are now just four points adrift of Paunovic's side as things stand and although the latter have a game in hand over the former, the Rams are in much better form at this stage and currently look like the favourites to pull away from the relegation zone in the coming months.

For the hosts, in the absence of Nigel Pearson, their performance wasn't exactly sparkling but they did enough to get the job done on the night, striking when it mattered and defending for their lives at the end as they secured a morale-boosting victory.

We take you through what you need to know if you missed the action at Ashton Gate in what was a low-quality tie for the most part.

What happened?

In a game deserted of quality, it was the away side that had the first real chance of the game, with Tom Dele-Bashiru being played through but seeing his shot deflect just wide of the left-hand post.

The Royals were made to pay for their inability to take this chance just before the interval, with Andi Weimann laying the ball off to Antoine Semenyo to tuck home and this left the visitors with a mountain to climb.

Things got even worse for them in the 47th minute, with Michael Morrison inadvertently turning the ball into his own net from Cameron Pring's low cross.

Looking out of ideas and inspiration, Paunovic's side were somehow able to get themselves back into the game when Tom Ince went down under the challenge of Timm Klose in the box, giving John Swift the opportunity to half the deficit.

He converted the penalty with no worries and this was the catalyst for a sustained spell of late Reading pressure from the 74th minute but they were unable to make it pay, consigning them to yet another defeat following a miserable January.

Who stood out?

Semenyo was an obvious candidate for man of the match considering how much of a threat he was, strong in challenges and providing a touch of class in a game that was of a particularly poor standard.

His tap-in for the first goal may not have been spectacular - but he deserved to get himself on the scoresheet for his efforts and he continued to be a nuisance to the Royals throughout the game - causing Tom Holmes to be booked in the opening 45.

Alex Scott and Joe Williams also showed their class in midfield, with the latter doing especially well as he was forced to come on early for Han-Noah Massengo. Williams was particularly impressive late on in the game in a defensive sense - and was a clear leader in the middle of the park.

In terms of the visitors, there were very few standout performers - but Ince did show good flashes on his debut along with some poor moments.

Winning the penalty alone gets him a mention and though he has received quite a bit of criticism in recent weeks, Danny Drinkwater sprayed the ball around nicely during the latter stages of the game and goalscorer Swift also played his part in getting his side back in the match.

What's the mood?

There was a huge sense of relief from the home supporters post-match - and though many weren't exactly satisfied with the performance - claiming three points was the most important thing.

The last 15 minutes were particularly nervy for many of their fans and some of them took to social media following the game to detail the effect that period of the game had on their health as the Robins were forced to hang on for dear life!

The mood couldn't be any different in the opposition side's camp - and calls for Paunovic to be sacked have only grown louder with his support in the Royals' fanbase dwindling.

Whilst some still support him, it's clear others have turned and ahead of the club's 150th anniversary celebrations on Saturday, many are certainly not in the mood to party.

There are also real concerns about the prospect of relegation, something that is looking more likely as the weeks go by with Derby thriving and the Berkshire side stalling.