Club captain Liam Moore seems like a completely different man in this campaign.
After a magnificent first season at the club the Royals were just a few spot kicks away from the Premier League, the former Leicester City centre-half became part of a side who loomed dangerously close to the relegation zone for three consecutive campaigns.
Although everyone had to take their fair share of the responsibility for this decline, Moore would have been especially disappointed after putting in such a good shift during the playoff season.
But there are two things we could never doubt about him.
Firstly, the guy is a leader. Even before he became captain, you could tell he had all the qualities needed to be a great skipper. One of my friends who was lucky enough to go to the home game against Nottingham Forest, earlier on in the season, even pointed out how vocal Moore was throughout that match.
Secondly, those of us who have listened to his interviews in the past and his podcast with Ady Williams not so long ago know how impressive he is when he speaks.
Right from the start until the very end of the BBC Sounds podcast, his passion for football and Reading Football Club specifically was blindingly obvious.
Even when he was asked a difficult question about submitting a transfer request back in August 2018, the captain spoke candidly and provided an impressive amount of transparency about the situation.
So, the following is clear: Moore can talk the talk – but could he walk the walk?
In his first season at the club, he certainly did. But in the second half of last season, something was clearly bothering him behind the scenes. It has now emerged the club were ready to sell him around
that time and he was therefore preparing himself for a move.
And I guess that makes his performances at the back more impressive this season. Under Veljko Paunović, the 28-year-old has been given a new lease of life and helped the Royals concede just one goal in their first seven league games of this season. Despite picking up a couple of frustrating injuries after that, Moore has had a similar impact recently.
With Tom McIntyre impressing alongside Michael Morrison at the back, the captain had to wait to get back into the starting 11 – and finally made his first start after his most recent injury against Wycombe Wanderers.
The less said about that game, the better.
However, he still started the following three games and in that time, the Royals have managed to turn things around.
In those four games, just one goal has been conceded in over 360 minutes of Championship football, the team has kept three clean sheets and despite the absence of Morrison, Reading have been solid.
Let us not underestimate the task Moore had in rallying his troops after that defeat at Adams Park to Wycombe. There were even reports players were crying in the changing room after the game – but Moore has seemingly been able to overcome that adversity and lead by example.
The Berkshire side have won three games on the bounce since that awful defeat and it just shows the mental strength this side has in this campaign.
To be fair to him, the captain has inevitably played a huge role in that and overcome many challenges during his time at the club to step it up massively this season. Long may it continue, because he could play a key part for the remainder of the 2020/21 campaign.
By Adam Jones
