Summary
City slipped to a narrow defeat at the Madejski Stadium, Ingimarsson’s header from a free kick midway through the first half being the difference. City had their chances but Reading’s Hahnemann was in the right place when called upon, while Nick Weaver was outstanding once more. There was controversy late on when Dabo was dismissed after catching Sidwell with an arm, but the challenge looked innocuous and without much malice.
Team news
Claudio Reyna replaced Darius Vassell in the only change to City’s starting lineup from the Arsenal game.
Two of our summer signings. Didi Hamann and Hatem Trabelsi, were on the bench for the first time.
The Match
The home side had more of the play in the opening 10 minutes, but it was City who forced the first chance after just three minutes when following some neat interplay around the corner of the area, Claudio Reyna drilled a left-footed shot straight at Hahnemann.
12 minutes were on the clock when Hahnemann was forced to work harder. Micah Richards slipped his man on the right flank to slide the ball into the area, where Paul Dickov struck his first time shot straight at the Royals’ stopper.
The hosts had their first opportunity shortly after when Lita eluded Dunne to bear down on Weaver, but City’s skipper made his ground to block the striker’s way, and the defence cleared the danger.
But after a promising start, City went behind after 22 minutes. Reading won a free kick on the right after Sylvain Distin was adjudged to have made a fould worthy of a booking. Convey whipped the ball in and Ingimarsson headed the ball home from eight yards out.
City went back at Reading, and Sinclair had a great chance on 28 minutes. Weaver’s long clearance caught a Reading head and fell into Sinclair’s path inside the area, but he shot with his left and the ball flew a long way wide of the right hand post.
Reading’s goalscorer pulled a great save out of Nick Weaver with 10 minutes to go to the break, the keeper diving high to his left to parry the shot from the right of the area over the bar.
Reading won a corner after Dunne blocked a Harper shot on 42 minutes, from which Seol Ki-Hyeon powered a\ free header well over the bar.
City earned their own corner a minute before the break which Richards headed down towards the goal, but a throng of Reading defenders got in the way before clearing downfield.
10 minutes had gone in the second half before the new period’s first real incident. Trevor Sinclair was booked for a challenge on Convey from behind, but the City midfielder had clearly felt aggrieved when the two had tussled off the ball a few minutes earlier.
Samaras came on for Dickov on the hour and nearly made an impact straight away. He nodded Barton’s clever chip back to Corradi, but the Italian’s powerful shot went straight at Hahnemann. Hatem Trabelsi also came on at the same time as Samaras to replace Richards.
Ousmane Dabo drilled a free kick straight into the Reading defence on 66 minutes, and barely a minute later a shot from Samaras was just fingertipped round the post by Hahnemann.
Kevin Doyle latched onto a deflection off Distin that took an age to come down, but his shot on the turn flew a long way over Weaver’s bar.
Reading tried to make the man advantage count, and Nick Weaver made two great saves in the dying minutes to keep it at 1-0. First he blocked with his feet from Doyle, then he flew to his left to turn the ball round the post from Gunnarsson.
Corradi looked to have a great chance as injury time ticked away, but as he shot he was flagged offside, the ball going straight at the keeper.
There was still time for Doyle to round Weaver but Distin’s despairing lunge blocked his effort to concede a corner, which was the last action of the game.
