Everton suffer a desperately disappointing 2-1 defeat to Reading at the Majestic Stadium.
Match Updates:
14:57: It´s a big one today – a chance to restart our form away from home and a chance to extend our good start to the season and stake a further claim for fourth place.
15:00: We´re off at the Madejski Stadium – COYB!
15:01: Heitinga sends a dangerous, direct ball in, Shorey gets his head to it but it´s an early corner for the Blues.
15:02: Two big chances from that corner. Ball is nodded on by Heitinga, Jag goes for it, saved, partially cleared, sent back in, Jelavic with the volley, hits it into the ground and it´s off target. Could have and maybe should have scored.
15:05: Everton comfortably having the better of the first five minutes with the home side happy to sit and look to counter. It´s as you´d expect thus far – 0-0.
15:07: “Hitzlsperger has started well, played a few decent forward passes for Fellaini and Baines.” – TheBlueGibbon on GrandOldTeam.
15:09: GOAL: Steven Naismith! Fellaini takes charge of confused defending from Reading, miscontrol but Naismith sets in and stabs it in.
Reading 0 Everton (Naismith 9) 1.
15:11: Howard with a bad error, poor judgement coming for a long ball, Le Fondre gets in first but he´s missed a sitter. Reading should be level, Everton get lucky.
15:14: A very exciting start to the game! Both defenses are wide open, but Reading´s back line are almost non-existent. The commentator´s curse here, but there should be goals this afternoon.
15:16: “This is gonna end up with about 9 goals if the defending (on both sides) keeps up like this!” – BirkenheadBlue on the GOT forums.
15:18: Big penalty shout for Everton – looked blatant but the players didn´t complain about it and not much from the stands either. Would be worth seeing a replay of that incident.
15:21: Great work from Steven Pienaar as he dazzles the Reading defence with his direct running on the ball. However, he´s took the wrong option with a weak shot when he had men in support.
15:22: Jason Roberts “does a Suarez” and earns a free kick off Leighton Baines.
15:23: Revenge! Baines goes through the gears, Roberts with a cynical challenge, yellow card for the Reading veteran.
15:25: Reading coming into the game now and earn a corner which the dangerous Shorey delivers with his left foot – this time it comes to nothing, but the hosts are showing that they can be a danger going forward.
15:27: Hitzlsperger really has fitted into this system perfectly. Looks completely at home so far.
15:28: Pienaar sends in a ball for Naismith who turns his man, great movement but a tame shot. Everton are still the better side in this battle but Reading aren´t entirely toothless going forward.
15:30: Coleman has received a bit of a nasty knock there. Extended treatment for the Irishman and he looks in a bad way.
15:35: Excellent football again. Jelavic charges in, picks out a cross for Fellaini, it´s just behind the Belgian and misses the oncoming Naismith. Unfortunate but Everton are flowing as a unit in attack.
Hitzlsperger smashes in a shot, ´keeper saves it but it´s too hot to handle, Jelavic follows in, but he´s offside.
15:37: Ooooff… Osman comes in to the area, wonderful run, and it takes a fantastic save from Federici to prevent the cheeky lob and an Everton second.
Should be two or three, but as per usual, our dominance isn´t reflected in the scoreline. Still 1-0 Everton.
15:41: Everton once again with a great chance – Baines sends it in, Federici does brilliantly to get it away, Jelavic smashes in another effort, Everton claim handball, again it looked blatant but the players don´t complain enough and we come away with a corner.
15:43: Tabb clears a ball off the line as Reading get away with it again.
Amazingly, it´s still Reading 0 Everton 1…
15:47: Two blatant pens denied, five clear cut chances missed, but at least it´s still a 1-0 half time lead for Everton at the Madejski thanks to Steven Naismith on nine minutes.
15:50: “Hitz has impressed me considering he is still not fully fit. His passing has been really good. Looks good along side osman, And seems to be getting stuck in.” – AaronTheBlue on the GOT forums.
Get involved! http://www.grandoldteam.com/forum/threads/50454-Reading-v-Everton-Sat-17th-Sep-15-00/
16:02: We´re back underway at the Madejski.
16:05: Worryingly, Everton have started this half slowly. Reading coming forward and earning set pieces.
16:09: GOAL: Adam LE FONDRE: That was coming. Everton completely asleep at the start of the second half, free kick flighted in, awful marking, Le Fondre capitalises with a free header.
Dreadful from Everton. We should be four up, instead it´s 1-1. So, so frustrating Everton…
Reading (Le Fondre 52) 1 Everton (Naismith 9) 1.
16:11: Baines gives away a free kick whilst trying to shepherd the ball out of play. Dangerous position for Reading.
16:12: Everton clear comfortably, but the referee fails to spot a cynical foul on Jelavic during the clearance. The ref is amazingly bad…
16:14: Seamus Coleman trying to inject some life into Everton and does some brilliantly direct work to earn a corner. Hitzlsperger with the corner, header from Jagielka but it´s over the bar. Better from Everton, but why oh why do we switch off so regularly after dominating sides…
16:15: Pienaar and Jelavic almost unlock the Reading defence, but some last ditch defending denies the Croatian from charging clear.
16:17: Everton come again, Pienaar with the run, lays in Hitzlsperger arriving late, shot blocked away for a corner.
16:17: The corner is cleared away, the travelling contingent groan in frustration but Everton are now looking up to the job again. Another rescue mission is underway…
16:19: Osman takes a pop but he´s leaning back and it flies over.
16:21: We are so shaky in defence. Reading have time and space on the edge to take a shot on goal, just wide. Poor.
16:23: Hitzlsperger is one of our better players. Ball in, miscontrol again from Fellaini, drops to Hitzlsperger who takes the shot but no doing, Reading survive yet again and Everton remain frustrated.
16:25: This ref is gash. It´s not even an excuse here, it´s actually amazing. Martin Atkinson is doing a Clattenburg here.
16:29: The easiest, easiest break you´ll ever see. Everton have a corner, it´s terrible, Reading break at pace, Everton just trot back, and it´s last gasp defending to stop this situation getting even worse!
16:30: Ohhhhh… So very close… Everton counter back, Osman gets the ball in a fantastic position, gets caught in two minds between a shot and feeding in Naismith, the ball gets stuck in between his feet and the chance is wasted.
Complete end to end football here at the Madejski.
16:33: Moyes looking at his bench, and not seeing much there in all honesty. Perhaps it´s Vellios time shortly, because although the ref has been terrible, our finishing has been worse.
16:34: Penalty for Reading, Le Fondre taken out from behind by Coleman…
16:36: GOAL: Adam LE FONDRE – We´re behind, and Moyes will be going absolute ape sh*t about now.
Reading 2 Everton 1.
16:37: Fellaini has hit the post and the ball deflects back to the ´keeper. Unbelievable.
16:38: Noel HUNT (ON), Adam LE FONDRE (OFF). Apocalypse VELLIOS (ON), Thomas HITZLSPERGER (OFF). Bryan OVIEDO (ON), Steven NAISMITH (OFF).
16:42: Reading are now having the better of things and it´s still hard to believe that with this game drawing to a close we´re battling for an equaliser. Moyes will be absolutely furious with our “work” in the second half, as we have been poor.
16:46: With injury time fast approaching, it looks like we´ve gifted a win to a side yet to win in this division. Desperately disappointing.
16:48: Three minutes added on as Everton earn a corner. In it goes, Vellios heads it wide, chance wasted.
16:50: Everton resort to pumping long balls into the box as we completely run out of ideas. Moyes looks like he´s ready to explode.
16:50: Full time here at the Madejski – Everton lose at Reading.