Match Report
| Reading | Reading |  |  | Blackburn Rovers | Blackburn Rovers | ||||||||||||||||
| Aleksandar Nikolov | Aleksandar Nikolov | Dimitri Bocharov | Dimitri Bocharov | ||||||||||||||||||
| Patrick Matthews | P. Matthews |  | 66 | G |  | 1 | | G | 66 | | Darius Palmer | D. Palmer | |||||||||
| Dietmar Götz | D. Götz |  | 62 | D |  | 2 |  | D | 60 |  | Marcello Di Biagio | M. Di Biagio | |||||||||
| David Soares | D. Soares |  | 60 | D | | 3 | | D | 80 | | Kevin Carrick | K. Carrick | |||||||||
| Neil Etherington | N. Etherington | | 72 | D | | 4 | | D | 70 | | Diogo Fernandes | D. Fernandes | |||||||||
| Patricio Guerrero | P. Guerrero |  | 70 | M | | 5 | | D | 64 | | Simon Mcgovern | S. Mcgovern | |||||||||
| Roberto Lima | R. Lima | | 56 | M | | 6 | | M | 61 | | Jonathan George | J. George | |||||||||
| Marc Bartsch | M. Bartsch | | 56 | M | | 7 | | M | 73 | | Florian Bierhoff | F. Bierhoff | |||||||||
| Ian Murray | I. Murray | | 58 | M | | 8 | | M | 57 | | Giordano Ruotolo | G. Ruotolo | |||||||||
| Luciano Colle | L. Colle | | 67 | A | | 9 | | A | 68 | | Tim Hapgood | T. Hapgood | |||||||||
| Nuno Sousa | N. Sousa | | 74 | A |  | | 10 | | | A | 66 | | Ben Finney | B. Finney | |||||||
| Omer Byrne | O. Byrne | | 59 | A | | 11 | | A | 63 | | Marvin Monk | M. Monk | |||||||||
| Stephen Souness | S. Souness |  | 57 | D | | 12 | | M | 58 | | Phil Rufus | P. Rufus | |||||||||
| Gavin Gower | G. Gower | | 53 | M | | 13 | | A | 47 | | Leon Keegan | L. Keegan | |||||||||
| Martin Armstrong | M. Armstrong | | 54 | A | | 14 | | D | 57 | | Jamie Walker | J. Walker | |||||||||
 today's match is sponsored by AGI |
Match Report
It's a sunny day here at Madejski Stadium where Reading play host to Blackburn Rovers. A crowd of 20,686 fill this 21,000 capacity stadium.
The pitch is in poor condition.
Reading are playing in a 3-4-3 formation while Blackburn Rovers appear to be shaped for 4-3-3.
Today's match is refereed by Jody Carter.
The pitch is in poor condition.
Reading are playing in a 3-4-3 formation while Blackburn Rovers appear to be shaped for 4-3-3.
Today's match is refereed by Jody Carter.
0.00
0-0The whistle blows and Blackburn Rovers kick off!
3.38
0-0Giordano Ruotolo sees Ben Finney in space ahead and quickly passes the ball. Ben Finney whips in a cross ball towards Florian Bierhoff. Florian Bierhoff is perfectly placed and heads the ball at goal but is denied by Patrick Matthews. Excellent save.
4.47
0-0Kevin Carrick breaks forward. Kevin Carrick passes the ball forward to Ben Finney. Ben Finney tries a spectacular long range effort but connects badly and the ball goes wide!
6.09
0-0Diogo Fernandes comes in with a late challenge on Nuno Sousa. The referee brings Diogo Fernandes to one side and gives him a warning! Nuno Sousa runs off the knock.
8.05
Marc Bartsch makes a simple pass to Patricio Guerrero. Patricio Guerrero controls the ball well before passing to his team mate, Luciano Colle. Luciano Colle whips in a cross ball towards Omer Byrne. Omer Byrne whips the ball goalwards with his head but it goes wide for a goal kick.
10.18
Marc Bartsch hits a low pass to Luciano Colle. Luciano Colle sees the keeper off his line and tries a speculative shot on goal but it goes wide for a goal kick.
20.18
Marc Bartsch kicks a strong pass forward to Luciano Colle. Luciano Colle shoots from distance. It curls slightly but Darius Palmer manages to gather it.
21.46
Neil Etherington flicks a high pass forward. Omer Byrne controls it well on his chest. Omer Byrne hits a low pass to Ian Murray. Ian Murray advances inside the box! Ian Murray comes in from the left and smashes a shot from 10 yards out. Magnificent save by Darius Palmer!
22.41
David Soares makes a probing pass to Marc Bartsch. Marc Bartsch flicks a high pass forward. Ian Murray controls it well on his chest. Ian Murray cuts inside the box! Ian Murray muscles his way past his marker and unleashes a shot at goal. The ball comes in low, but Darius Palmer smothers it!
26.39
David Soares takes a long throw-in. Dietmar Götz sees space and advances. Dietmar Götz flicks the ball to his team mate, Omer Byrne. Omer Byrne tries a spectacular long range effort but couldn't keep it down. It goes high into the crowd!
36.07
Dietmar Götz makes a probing pass to Luciano Colle. Luciano Colle knocks in a cross ball towards Nuno Sousa. Nuno Sousa connects with the ball, driving a powerful header at goal but Darius Palmer reads it well. Great keeping!
38.33
Jonathan George knocks the ball to his team mate, Florian Bierhoff. Florian Bierhoff whips in a cross ball towards Marvin Monk. Marvin Monk outjumps his marker and heads the ball goalward his aim is horrendously poor!
42.51
0-0With imagination, Diogo Fernandes plays the ball forward to Jonathan George. With some swift thinking, Jonathan George plays the ball forward to Ben Finney. Ben Finney knocks in a cross ball which is cleared easily by the defence.
45.00
The whistle indicates the end of the first half!
Both teams emerge for the second half. Reading appear unchanged since the first half. Blackburn Rovers also appear unchanged since the first half. Both teams look fired up and appear much more hungry than they were previously.
45.00
The whistle blows and Reading kick off!
47.05
Roberto Lima passes the ball forward to Luciano Colle. Luciano Colle lofts in a cross ball towards Nuno Sousa. Nuno Sousa gets a glancing touch on the cross ball. Magnificent save by Darius Palmer!
49.11
0-1Jonathan George knocks the ball to his team mate, Giordano Ruotolo. Giordano Ruotolo whips in a cross ball towards Marvin Monk. Marvin Monk is unmarked! He powers a header at goal. The ball flies into the top corner - goal!!
57.36
Marcello Di Biagio deftly passes the ball to his team mate, Ben Finney. Ben Finney tries a spectacular long range effort but it flies just wide!
60.27
0-1Reading have made 2 substitutions with Stephen Souness replacing David Soares and Gavin Gower replacing Roberto Lima .
61.36
Florian Bierhoff sees Jonathan George in space ahead and quickly passes the ball. Jonathan George hits a low pass to Tim Hapgood. Tim Hapgood shoots from long range. The ball clips the outside of the post and goes out!
63.46
Jonathan George laces a through ball forward to Tim Hapgood. Tim Hapgood knocks in a cross ball towards Florian Bierhoff. Florian Bierhoff finds space and glances the ball goalwards with his head. Magnificent save by Patrick Matthews!
69.33
Stephen Souness kicks a strong pass forward to Marc Bartsch. Marc Bartsch threads a neat ball through to Gavin Gower. Gavin Gower sees the keeper off his line and tries a speculative shot on goal. The ball clips the outside of the post and goes out!
71.03
With imagination, Nuno Sousa plays the ball forward to Patricio Guerrero. Patricio Guerrero tries a spectacular long range effort. The ball takes a deflection leaving Darius Palmer with no chance!! Goal for Reading!
75.27
1-1Jonathan George catches Neil Etherington on the ankles. The referee calls over Jonathan George and shows him a yellow card! Neil Etherington runs off the knock.
77.32
Reading have made a substitution with Martin Armstrong replacing Omer Byrne .
79.19
Marc Bartsch knocks the ball to his team mate, Ian Murray. Ian Murray plays a scrappy one-two with Luciano Colle and stumbles forward towards the goal... Some good footwork from Ian Murray provides some space. He shoots at goal but connects badly and the ball goes wide!
81.20
Jonathan George flicks a high pass forward. Marvin Monk collects the pass. Marvin Monk whips in a cross ball towards Giordano Ruotolo. Giordano Ruotolo makes a looping header on goal. It slams into the side netting. So close!!
83.33
Ben Finney flicks a high pass forward to Tim Hapgood who brings the ball under control. Tim Hapgood knocks in a cross ball but it is headed clear by Dietmar Götz.
84.27
Marcello Di Biagio flicks the ball to his team mate, Giordano Ruotolo. Giordano Ruotolo makes a probing pass to Tim Hapgood. Tim Hapgood knocks in a poor cross ball which is cleared easily by Stephen Souness.
89.15
With a delightful solo run, Tim Hapgood stretches the opposition's defence. Tim Hapgood whips in a cross ball towards Giordano Ruotolo. Giordano Ruotolo rises majestically and gets a header on goal. The ball rattles the crossbar bouncing back into play. The loose ball is cleared by the defence.
90.00
The referee blows the final whistle
Match Statistics
Goals
1
1
Shots on Target
6
3
Shots off Target
5
6
Offsides
1
1
Fouls
0
2
Yellow Cards
0
1
Red Cards
0
0
Possession
48.9%
51.1%
Play Area
26.1%
46.6%
27.3%
Scorers
Man of the Match
| The man of the match was awarded to Patricio Guerrero of Reading |
Match Ratings
| 1. | Patrick Matthews (GK) | 7 | |
| 2. | Dietmar Götz (DEF) | 7 | |
| 3. | David Soares (DEF) | 6 | |
| 4. | Neil Etherington (DEF) | 6 | |
| 5. | Patricio Guerrero (MID) |  | 9 |
| 6. | Roberto Lima (MID) | 6 | |
| 7. | Marc Bartsch (MID) | 7 | |
| 8. | Ian Murray (MID) | 8 | |
| 9. | Luciano Colle (ATT) | 7 | |
| 10. | Nuno Sousa (ATT) | 7 | |
| 11. | Omer Byrne (ATT) | 6 | |
| 12. | Stephen Souness (DEF) | 6 | |
| 13. | Gavin Gower (MID) | 6 | |
| 14. | Martin Armstrong (ATT) | 6 | |
| 1. | Darius Palmer (GK) | 9 | |
| 2. | Marcello Di Biagio (DEF) | 6 | |
| 3. | Kevin Carrick (DEF) | 6 | |
| 4. | Diogo Fernandes (DEF) | 6 | |
| 5. | Simon Mcgovern (DEF) | 6 | |
| 6. | Jonathan George (MID) |  | 7 |
| 7. | Florian Bierhoff (MID) | 7 | |
| 8. | Giordano Ruotolo (MID) | 7 | |
| 9. | Tim Hapgood (ATT) | 7 | |
| 10. | Ben Finney (ATT) | 6 | |
| 11. | Marvin Monk (ATT) | | 9 |
| 12. | Phil Rufus (MID) | 0 | |
| 13. | Leon Keegan (ATT) | 0 | |
| 14. | Jamie Walker (DEF) | 0 | |