It is rare to play so poorly and still manage to win. The Royals started brightly with Pogrebnyak and Sharp going past Charlton defenders with ease. Sharp scored what proved to be the winner after fourteen minutes but from that point on there was very little to get excited about. No doubt the three points will keep everyone happy but the performance was cause for concern.

Tactically it was shambles. Reading were obsessed with feeding the ball to Guthrie who had one of his poorer games. He is good on the ball (although he did get caught in possession once or twice) but he had little impact with his distribution. He was not helped by a remarkable lack of width and movement generally. McCleary constantly went inside and seemed reluctant to shoot in the first half, and with Kelly rarely getting forward, there little attacking threat on the right. On the other wing McAnuff was unable to get past his marker and ended up also being forced into the crowded area through the middle. Sharp was able to spin and go past defenders but did not receive particularly good service. Pogrebynak also had a poor game after a very good start. He won nothing in the air and resorted to stumbling around in the vain hope of winning free kicks. Reading might have conceded just before half time when ex Royal Simon Church broke through on the right and, with clear sight of goal, demonstrated why Reading were right to release him. McCarthy saved with relative ease.

Reading’s performance deteriorated as the second half progressed. It seemed only a matter of time before the visitors would equalise as Reading repeatedly squandered possession inviting constant pressure from a Charlton side eager to get players forward but incapable of either creating or taking chances. Robson-Kanu came on and looked good going forward, but with nobody bothering to get forward to support him, apart from one strike at goal which was straight at the ‘keeper, his promising forays in the Charlton half came to nothing. Akpan’s introduction when injury forced Williams off added energy to the midfield, but his distribution was woeful. Charlton did put the ball in the net but Sordell was clearly offside when he deflected the ball past McCarthy. McAnuff capped a disappointing return near the final whistle when he dragged a shot wide when given time and space with only the ‘keeper to beat. Gorkss and Pearce stood firm at the centre of the defence as Reading hung for the three points which takes them into fourth place.

Injuries and suspension severely weakened the team but even so, the performance was well below the standard required to achieve promotion. A win on Saturday is expected but they will need to improve against a Bournemouth side more capable of scoring than this evening’s opponents.
John Wells

Well we just about hung on but you couldn't have argued if Charlton got an equaliser. Their subs made a huge difference & it was all them. Best players were Pog, Sharp, Williams & Cummings. Pog did some superb work at the end to set Jobi up & he fluffed his shot.

Much as I'm a Jobi fan, he really didn't do himself any favours tonight. Poor performance I thought. And Akpan..........well I best not comment! Still it's 3 points but if we play like that on Sat we'll lose.
MmmMonsterMunch

Three points; a clean sheet - what's not to like? Well - plenty really. In the second half we were the worst I've seen us so far this season. Simple passes going astray; no energy; too timid to shoot when in a position to; still crap at throw-ins! Very frustrating particularly after such a good result at Forest.

Williams did well (he made the first goal with his persistence to win the ball back after we lost it) until he was subbed but, as has already been said, two 90-minute games in a few days coming off an injury was asking too much. Cummings was MOTM for me. He was solid defensively and showed some skill in attack too. Sharp took his goal well but didn't do much else (a la AF). Pog was OK but he falls far too easily so when he is genuinely fouled the ref doesn't give it. Guthrie had an off-game and was responsible for some dire passing at times. We missed Gunter. Yes - really - we did! He is a better attacking option on the right than Kelly imho.

I wouldn't have complained if Charlton had got a draw. They didn't really deserve it but we didn't deserve to win! We have to make allowances for the fact that we have been beset by injuries and so have not been able to keep a settled team but the fare served up in second half particularly was very poor.
marlowuk

Reading maintained their unbeaten home record this season with a win over relegation-threatened Charlton at the Madejski. They had to survive a few anxious moments in the closing stages as Charlton launched a late rally but the visitors slipped to within two points of the drop zone.

Reading’s winner came on 13 minutes when Billy Sharp, making his full debut for the club, drilled a fine effort past goalkeeper Ben Alnwick. Danny Williams had gained possession in midfield and fed the on-loan Southampton striker...

Reading lost control of the midfield and were forced to backtrack furiously as Charlton drove forward with purpose but they could not make their superiority count with Sordell having a goal disallowed for offside and Jackson and Cameron Stewart wasting efforts.
Daily Mail