Reading FC: 'Something has to change quickly' - Royals fan Ethan Stacey has his say

Saturday’s visit of Hull City saw Paul McShane, Sone Aluko and Vito Mannone come up against their former teammates. None put on a performance to show their ex-employers what they’re missing, and the same goes for the rest of the Reading side.

The game was neither entertaining nor quality-filled. Fans are clearly frustrated with a poor start to the season and Jaap Stam was evidently feeling the pressure.

A large section of supporters made their feelings known and Stam did not take this booing with a pinch of salt.

His post-match comments did nothing to reassure us that he was aware of the poor performances. In tact, he probably made the situation worse.

Effectively, Stam stopped short of telling booing fans not to turn up at the next match. An outburst like his was clear evidence of a man under pressure.

In my opinion, it is far too soon to be calling for Stam’s head. However, he will need to turn things around or it won’t be just the fans feeling the need to voice their frustrations.

Garath McCleary sums up the mood after Reading's 2-1 defeat at Millwall on Tuesday. Picture: Jason Dawson/jasonpix.

Saturday’s performance wasn’t spectacularly, dire but neither was it particularly good. The first half was completely mind-numbing, 45 minutes of sheer monotony.

Stam also made a strange substitution in the second half. Midfielder Liam Kelly was taken off after an uninspiring performance, but replacinjg him with centre-back Tiago Illori incensed the home fans.

With just nine points from nine games, Reading are 18th in the table. If our poor form continues it will undoubtedly end in Stam’s sacking.

The lack of recognised strikers is also clearly evident.

The performance at Millwall on Tuesday night also left a lot to be desired and smacked of a team short on confidence. To be leading in the 73rd minute only to lose 2-1 says a lot about a side without a win in five games.

Something needs to change – and quickly.