'We twisted' Reading boss on red card response and need for 'small inches'

Reading boss Ruben Selles delved into his tactical shift after dropping down to 10 men at Rotherham United on Saturday, calling for his players to work on the 'small inches' to get over the line.

Going ahead in the first half through Lewis Wing's free-kick, Sam Nombe and Hakeem Odoffin found the net within 10 minutes of the restart to turn the game on its head.

The Royals' chances of recovery were diminished further with 20 minutes remaining when Kelvin Ehibhatiomhan was sent off for an off-the-ball confrontation with Joe Rafferty.

Shifting the side around, Reading ended with a 432 formation, with Jayden Wareham pushing up front alongside Sam Smith.

Appearing to work well, the Millers were clinging on toward the end but did miss a good opportunity to kill the game on the counter-attack due to the Royals' openness at the back.

(Image: ©Jason Dawson)

Speaking specifically on the response to falling down to 10 men, Selles said: "We tried that formula, 432, when we were with 10 players and used it last season at Derby. It gave us those two working higher with deep runners and the second action from the eights and occasionally the fullbacks can join in.

"At the end, we twisted a little bit and put Harlee [Dean] down and making Adrian [Akande], as a wide player, getting one versus one. We tried to get something from the game and thought the best option was 432- and I think it was.

"At the end, we needed X-Factor from Adrian and Harlee from set pieces to try and get the action. We tried to maximise our squad, and I think it was a pretty even game, but we need to learn how to get those small inches in our side."

Reading return to League One action in under a fortnight's time with the international break giving the side a much-needed rest period.