Reading 2-0 Wrexham: Player Ratings
There were superb showings all round as Reading got a deserved victory against Wrexham on Tuesday night.
Joel Pereira: 7
A testament to how good the players in front of him were that we didn’t really see much of him until we went down to 10 men. But, as we’ve become so used to, when we did need him, he popped up with some really important saves.
Kelvin Abrefa: 7
Thanks to how solid Michael Craig has been at right-back, Abrefa probably hasn’t got the game time he’s deserved as of yet, but tonight he was superb. Defensively very impressive and he showed glimpses of what he can do going forward, too.
In the return fixture we got absolutely battered by Wrexham’s wing-backs, but tonight they hardly had a sniff thanks to the work of Abrefa and Garcia.
Michael Stickland: 7
Of course we’d all rather have Amadou Mbengue fit and starting, but Stickland showed tonight he’s more than capable of filling in at this level. Saw a lot of the ball throughout the game, and was also more than happy to get involved in the rough and tumble that Wrexham were always going to bring.
I’m not going to take the red card into account at all, by the way. It was the most egotistical bit of refereeing I’ve seen in a long time.
Tyler Bindon: 8
He’s just the best centre-back we’ve had since the Ivar Ingimarsson and Ibrahima Sonko era, isn’t he? He had Sam Smith and Jay Rodriguez exactly where he wanted them all game: placed nice and neatly inside his back pocket. And he did it without even breaking a sweat.
Andre Garcia: 7
The fact a 17-year-old has started every game so far this year is crazy and shows the position we’re in as a squad, and I’m always fearing the next game is going to be one too far for him.
But in my opinion he’s just put in his best defensive performance to date. We know he’s got the quality on the ball, but the question for Garcia - understandably - has always been whether he’s got the physicality to match it. Tonight he certainly did.
Lewis Wing: 7
It’s no secret that Wing has been off the boil a little bit recently, but tonight he looked a lot more like his usual self. The first half was a bit of a bore fest, but he saw a lot of the ball in spite of Wrexham’s efforts. And the more Wing has the ball, the more likely he is, and therefore we are as a team, to hurt you.
The second goal was a thing of beauty and Wing finished it with aplomb. He always battled through those pesky tired legs to put in some hard yards when we went down to 10 as well.
Harvey Knibbs: 8
He’s the man in this team, he really is. There’s a swagger, a confidence, an aura about him when he’s fit and firing that almost makes him untouchable at this level. He always seems to be there when it matters and that’s no coincidence. Tonight it was another cutely despatched penalty and a lovely assist for Wing’s goal.
Oh, and of course he absolutely ran himself into the ground as well - because that’s just what he does.
Charlie Savage: 8
I would love to know how many kilometres Savage has covered over the last 10 games, the guy just never stops. Every time a Wrexham player turned on the ball, it seemed Savage was there to greet them - I’m sure they wouldn’t be surprised if they looked out the window of the coach on the way home and saw him running alongside them on the M4.
In all seriousness, as far as hustling and bustling, cover-every-inch-of-grass kinda performances go, that was as good as it gets from Savage tonight.
Chem Campbell: 6
He didn't stamp his mark on the game as much as some of his other team mates, but still a decent enough showing from Chem. He keeps the ball really well and he’s turned into a nicely well-rounded player at this level, after a really tricky start to the season.
Jayden Wareham: 7
I thought this was Wareham’s best performance in a Reading shirt. His hold-up play in particular, against centre-backs almost a foot taller than him, was very impressive. He put himself about really well, generally just being a bit of a nuisance and pain in the backside.
Didn’t manage to grab his goal, but he won the penalty, and showed that he can mix it at this level.
Kelvin Ehibathiomhan: 6
Something’s just not quite clicking for Kelvin since he came back from injury. At this best he runs his man every time, can go either way, and is a bag of tricks. At the moment though he seems to be doing the first 80% really well, but losing his footing, or playing the wrong pass. It’ll come back though, because he’s too good for it not too.
Subs
Harlee Dean: 6
Replaced Ehibhatiomhan after Stickland’s farce of a red card, and helped us see out the game with that old experienced head of his.
Andy Yiadom and Mamadi Camara: N/A
Both came on in the latter stages to replace some tired-looking legs. Yiadom did pop up with a crucial bit of defending at the back stick, before Bindon cleared off the line from Smith.
Average: 7/10
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