Fans of relegation threatened Reading will hope new boss Paul Clement can restore the club's fortunes after an uncharacteristically tumultuous campaign. The Royals have been perennial playoff contenders in recent years, but they have struggled defensively this season and it has left them just three points above the drop zone. Manager Jaap Stam has fallen on his sword and Clement has been parachuted in to rescue them from relegation fears with just eight games of the season remaining. Clement has a strong track record in this area as he took over an ailing Swansea towards the tail end of last season and dragged them to Premiership survival. If he can work further magic at the Madejski Stadium, Reading could have a proper crack at promotion next time around.
“I'm delighted to have secured the services of a hugely experienced forward-thinking manager like Paul, who I've personally worked alongside during our time spent at Chelsea,” said Reading chief executive Ron Gourlay after announcing the club's fifth permanent managerial appointment in five years. “He has a rich understanding of English football having managed in both the Championship and the Premier League in recent years.”
Before becoming a manager, Clement worked under the likes of Carlo Ancelotti and Jose Mourinho at Chelsea, Real Madrid and PSG, and he has an intriguing CV. He did a decent job in his first managerial role at Derby County and it was strange to see the club sack him when they were just five points behind Championship leaders Hull in February 2016. He left with a record of 14 wins, 12 draws, and seven losses, and Derby have regressed since then. He has Premiership experience under his belt with Swansea, although he was sacked earlier this season, with the club languishing at the foot of the table.
But he is clearly an astute coach and it will be interesting to see if he can spark some self-belief among Reading's beleaguered troops at this critical juncture. Check
BetOnline and find the best odds available, and you will see that Reading are priced at around 6/1 to go down. That is encouraging for fans, as Sunderland and Burton are both 1/10, Birmingham are 4/5 and Barnsley are 6/5. If it all goes as forecast, Reading will remain in 20th place at the end of the campaign and can then rebuild for next season.
To get out of trouble, they will have to negotiate home games against QPR, Preston, Sunderland and Ipswich, plus trips to Aston Villa, Fulham, Cardiff and Sheff Wed. Those away games are fiendishly difficult as Cardiff, Villa and Fulham are at the top of the table and in great form. But fortunately for Reading the home games look kind and they could take plenty of points from those contests. There is plenty of talent in this Reading squad and it is strange to even see them so low in the table, particularly when they were being discussed as dark horses to win the Championship last season.
They finished third last season and came within a whisker of returning to the Premiership, only to be denied via a penalty shootout against Huddersfield in the playoff final. They had enjoyed great momentum towards the end of the previous campaign, winning eight of their final 10 games and beating Reading over two legs in the playoff semi-finals, but that shootout defeat against Huddersfield clearly knocked the stuffing out of them. It has been a torrid season this time around, but Clement still has a strong squad of players at his disposal and he can lead them back to the Premiership in the not too distant future if he is given time to turn things around.
