Reading boss Paul Ince had a heated exchange with BBC reporter Tim Dellor following the team's 1-0 defeat to Cardiff City on Friday.
Conceding in stoppage time to make it no away win in over three months, the Royals failed to record a shot on target as the turgid away form continues.
Conducting his regular post-match interviews with Dellor on BBC Radio Berkshire, the journalist pressed the former England captain on his side's tactics, something the manager did not agree with.
Read the transcript of the discussion below.
PI: Do you see Luton playing any football? No, you don’t. You don’t see Huddersfield playing any football…
TD: That doesn’t mean that Reading shouldn’t play any football.
PI: Of course, it does, because if you want to play football and get beat 4-0 by Stoke, then we’ll play football. This is the problem with you guys, you keep saying we need to play football. No, we ain’t good enough to play football. We haven’t got the money or the quality to do that. If you want us to play out from the back you’ll get beat all the time.
TD: Not necessarily out from the back, but everything went to Andy Carroll.
PI: And we won the balls?
TD: It didn’t create anything did it?
PI: As I said, this is where we’re at. I think we need to understand, as a club, this is where we’re at. I’d love to get the ball down and play football, too right I would, but you’ve seen over this season that we can’t keep the ball.
TD: Earlier on in the season you absolutely dismantled Blackburn.
PI: Blackburn was different because we just pressed high and got chances from there. Our possession all season has been 39-40 per cent, that’s the way we’ve been. You’re asking the same players to play week-in and week-out. These teams have had four players coming in, Huddersfield have brought three or four, we haven’t brought anyone in. We’re asking the same players to play four separate times three games in six days. I’d like to see anyone else do that. Yes, ideally we’d love to play football and a point would have been good, would have taken us to 42, but this is where we are.
TD: It's quite unusual to hear a manager come out and say his players aren’t good enough to do something, because usually managers are busy trying to build the players up and be confident.
PI: I’m not saying they’re not good enough. Don’t put words in my mouth, Tim. Don’t put words into my mouth son, alright. I didn’t say they’re not good enough.
That Paul Ince chat, in full…@BBCLN #SAFC #notimewasters #sunderlandpressconference pic.twitter.com/2Llrj82GEZ
— Jeff Brown (@JeffAB61) February 13, 2023
This comes just one week after Ince had another confrontation with another reporter after the 1-0 defeat to Sunderland.
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