Reading FC boss praises 'character, togetherness and competitiveness'

Taking a two-goal lead at St James Park, the Royals had to rally amid a second-half barrage from the in-form hosts, with the Grecians halving the deficit midway through the period and bombarding the penalty box in the closing stages.

Clinging on in Devon, and even missing a big chance in stoppage time to wrap the game up, Reading picked up a second win in four days and a first win on the road since April.

Giving his verdict on the pitch after the final whistle, Selles said: "We came here to try and put in a good performance. We spoke about it after the last game, we thought coming here with any other attitude would be a mistake, so we came here front-footed and applied pressure from the very beginning.

"I think we completely dominated the first half, were 2-0 up and had some situations to close the game in the first half. In the second half, they came alive with a good coach, good players and a good system so when they scored, we felt a little bit under pressure, but I think the substitutions gave us the legs we needed to finish the game.

"You’re not going to come here against a team like Exeter and get the three points easily, so we needed to suffer at the end, but the team showed character, togetherness and competitiveness so I’m very happy."

Reading were yet to earn a win on their travels this season, losing heavily to the likes of Bolton Wanderers and Wrexham, but the monkey was well and truly shaken off their backs in Exeter.

Despite some external noise, however, the Spaniard admits he was never concerned about the form away from Berkshire.

"We were not worried about it," he said. "We had some performances, like the Birmingham game, where we needed to just be a little more robust. The important thing is that we get points and the sooner we get our target of points, the better. The good thing is we are now looking forward to playing and competing in any scenario at home or away."