Paul Clement said he was confident a win was just around the corner after Reading grabbed their first victory of the season with victory over Birmingham in the Carabao Cup.
Yakou Meite and John Swift netted for the Royals as they saw off their Championship opponents 2-0 to book a spot in round two.
Here is what Clement said after the victory –
On getting a first win of the season…
It’s not a relief. I didn’t think it was far away because of our performances in the last two games. Two very difficult games and anybody that saw the Derby game would say we were arguably the better side. Against Forest, a decent away performance but we didn’t get anything from that. But the performances were not bad so if you keep putting in the performances it’s just a matter of time before the result comes and it did tonight.
On the goals…
I thought by half-time we should’ve been further ahead if we’d had been a bit more clinical, more ruthless. When the score-line is 1-0 you always think there is going to be a chance coming and they did have a couple of good chances. But the set play put us in a really good position. I think both goals were fantastic for different reasons.
On the McNulty and Baldock partnership…
I was interested to see how it would work. They’re both talented but normally at this level you’ll see managers if they go two up front that one is more a target player and one has got more mobility. But I wouldn’t like to be a centre-half I wouldn’t like to play against two players who are like that, clever and so mobile so I’ve seen some good potential there.
On playing at home again at the weekend…
I think the fans can start to see the identity of the team and I get the impression that they quite like it, which is good.
On Yakou Meite…
I liked him as soon as I saw him. I like his personality, his desire, his physicality, his ability to listen, learn and want to improve. He’s got a lot to improve still but we saw tonight the ability that he has, both athletically and the threat that he gives going forward. He took the goal well with his weaker foot. He can head the ball, he can run with the ball, he can run without the ball, he’s got a cracking left-foot shot on him. He’s still a young player but an exciting prospect.
On the injuries…
Meite has got a knock on the ribs, I don’t think that’s anything. Barrow felt tight in the groin. I don’t know if that’s just tightness or an injury, we’ll have to see. Aluko picked up an injury before the game against Nottingham Forest. He did travel and we hoped overnight it would settle down but it didn’t. He’s had a scan, it’s a small injury in the adductor, it won’t keep him out for long but he won’t be available this weekend.
On Liam Moore coming back into the team…
A good performance, strong and the fans responded well to him. It’s like having a new signing.
On the impact of John O’Shea…
John O’Shea is a bit of a cult hero. I had to ask John O’Shea, did you play here in the past? It was unbelievable. He’s got a song and cheering every time he touched the ball.
