Late drama gives new Derby boss Frank Lampard the perfect start

A powerful Jon Dadi Bodvarsson header had earned Reading a well-deserved lead before Mason Mount, the on-loan Chelsea teenager, found an unlikely equaliser, on a night when not everything went exactly to plan.

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It must have been a proud occasion for Lampard’s father, perched alongside Harry Redknapp – his uncle – in the stands. After a warm embrace with Paul Clement, his assistant manager at Chelsea for two years under Carlo Ancelotti, a familiar throng of photographers welcomed him on to unfamiliar ground. Parked in his technical area throughout, Lampard cut an awkward figure hands in pockets, though the echoes of “you’re just a shit Steven Gerrard” courtesy of a section of home supporters midway through a difficult first half may have brought a smile. He acknowledged how he may be afforded a “tiny honeymoon period” with the Derby job his first but Reading refused to give his side an inch.

Lampard handed debuts to two exciting youngsters, Harry Wilson and Mount, on loan from Liverpool and Chelsea respectively, but it was Reading who made a bigger first-half dent. There were only five survivors from the Derby team that started the play-off semi-final defeat by Fulham in May but four of the back five remained, and a defensive fragility blighted them here, with Richard Keogh’s hospital pass playing his team into trouble inside six minutes, but Bodvarsson’s tame toe-poked effort was kept out by the legs of Scott Carson.

For Derby there remained a stale air of predictability about their play, with Reading second-guessing the striker David Nugent’s movement, while their full-backs, Andre Wisdom and Max Lowe, were left exposed. The unpredictability of Mo Barrow did not help, with the speeding winger toiling with Wisdom, who was eventually booked. On the opposite flank the quick feet of Sone Aluko exposed just how pedestrian Derby had been, leading to chants of “boring, boring Derby” emanating around the stadium.

Fortunately for Derby, Reading were wasteful, excruciating in possession; time and again failing to make the ball stick, though still had chances, with Carson saving John Swift’s free header from Aluko’s in-swinging corner after Liam Kelly’s stinging shot from an acute angle. In truth the interval provided respite.

It also appeared to stir the attacking juices, with Vito Mannone’s net bulging three minutes into the second half, only for the linesman to flag Nugent offside after good work by Lawrence. But Derby’s promising start was short-lived. Reading gladly shifted the ball from right to left before Barrow strode forward, delivering a beautiful bending cross into the box, inviting Bodvarsson to rise above Curtis Davies to send a thumping header beyond Carson. Lampard urged cool in an attempt to rouse his side, and, with courtesy of a helping hand from Mannone they pulled level. Mount took aim from 25 yards, powering home from outside the box, the ball trickling through the Reading goalkeeper’s fingers as it went in.

Lampard coolly clenched his fist as Derby attempted to turn on the style, with Wilson playing a cute pass in search of an unmarked Mount at the back post. Outclassed for an hour in a game in which many were expecting a masterclass, they had established parity. The equaliser startled the hosts, with Clement introducing his recruit, Sam Baldock.

Lampard also tweaked personnel, with the academy graduate Mason Bennett replacing Nugent. Mount was suddenly at the heart of everything, driving at Paul McShane and Tiago Ilori, while a half-chance evaded Wisdom after meeting a swirling corner. With five minutes left Mannone made up for his earlier error with an instinctive point-blank save from Wilson. By the end Lampard was kicking every ball and there was just time for a fairytale ending.