JOSE Gomes suggested Reading FC were good value for a point in their 0-0 draw with play-off chasing Aston Villa.

Royals kept a dangerous Villa attack led by Tammy Abraham at bay during a full-blooded clash that saw on-loan striker Nelson Oliveira taken to hospital with a suspected broken nose.

Gomes hailed his team’s spirit and fight during the clash which Royals co-owner Dai Yongge was present for.

Here is a full transcript of tonight’s press conference with Gomes.

Should you have been awarded a penalty in the first half for a foul on Ovie Ejaria by Alan Hutton?

“Maybe, but this battle I cannot win, I cannot control this.

“Our focus must be on what our players can do better and to help them for the future.

“I can help them improve on their mistakes, but I can do nothing at training to get better decisions from the referee.

Reading Chronicle:

Ovie Ejaria appeals for a penalty.

“I cannot lose time on these things. Sometimes it is difficult, but it’s football.”

Nelson Oliveira was taken to hospital with a nasty facial injury after an apparent accidental stamp by Tyrone Mings, for which the on-loan Bournemouth defender has apologised for.

“I didn’t see him after the game. It was a very strange decision also from the referee.”


Gomes on snow-affected preparations on the game:

“I want to give special word for the people working at our training centre. We couldn’t train yesterday because the pitches were full of snow. Everyone from the office and the youth department came outside to take the snow off the pitch so we had a space to train. Even the chief executive was there to help.

“This is what I want, we are working like a family, there’s an amazing spirit at the club. With this spirit we will achieve what we want.”

Reading FC co-owner Dai Yongee was present for today’s game.

“I want to say a special word today for club owner Mr Dai who was in the stadium. I invited him into the changing room after the game to let him feel the atmosphere among the players and the way we are living.

“He got a chance to see how his players are fighting to achieve their target. He liked what he saw, the way that we fight, we were really dominant. We wanted to give him three points and we tried.”

Lack of goals from Reading:

“We created three or four clear goal situations today. We must create more. In the second half we started playing more direct football, it was a second-balls game. When we start playing like that we are out of our process and it is not easy to create goal situations.

“We put a lot of balls into the box, but it is not our football. However, we showed we can stop these teams who play this football.”

Enough goals in the Reading team?

“We should score more, definitely. But it would be worse if the players don’t produce any danger for our opponents. We are creating goal situations but the finishing is missing at the moment.

“We had three very good situations in the first half and one very good shot from Nelson Oliveira in the second that ended in a great save.

“Martinez also made a very good save for us. It was an interesting game and very emotional right to the end.”

Support from the fans:

“I think they felt the same as we did, that the players are fighting and tried against a very strong Aston Villa. Tammy Abraham is a very good striker, their wingers are very good, but we stopped them and didn’t conceded.”

Tough day for the referee:

“Both teams fought to win and there were difficult decisions for the referee. It was a typical Championship game full of emotion with fans liking what they saw.”

How close was Yakou Meite to leaving the club in January?

“He received some offers which were refused and he is happy to play. He’s training very well and he showed he wanted it today. It doesn’t matter how close he was to leaving, but the important things is he is with us and happy.”

Happy with his business in the January transfer window?

“It was difficult to do what the club did, to bring in five loan players. We didn’t spend any money, we sold some players. We have a Financial Fair Play issue but we have improved the quality of the squad.”

Sum up your team’s performance:

“It was a fantastic first half considering the level of our opponent. We were the better side and created goal situations. We cannot forget Aston Villa are very dangerous in attack, they are the third highest scorers in the division, so we were happy to get a clean sheet.

“In the second half we played a little out of our process, it was more direct football. But even then our players did very well. They were brave, they fought and they stopped a very strong attacking side.”

Are Reading improving as a team?

“I feel daily the players give everything. The spirit we showed today gives us big hope for the future. We are definitely improving because it is not easy to keep a clean sheet against Aston Villa.”