Is It Time Noel Hunt Freshened Up Reading's Midfield?
03/20/2025 06:12 AM
Alex reckons the Royals could do with re-energising the middle of the park.
Normally, I dread the international breaks. We seem to have 500 of them during the course of a season and they interrupt the flow of football that people (that is to say, I) care about. However, quite possibly for the first time ever, I am relieved to see an international break arrive.
We have a thin squad carrying a number of injuries, making an already stretched playing squad worryingly short on cover. And, frankly, it is beginning the show in the performances. The term "lethargic" has been bandied about a lot recently, and it's somewhat understandable, most notably when you look at our midfield three of Lewis Wing, Charlie Savage and Harvey Knibbs.
They are essentially running on fumes. Knibbs and Savage are supreme athletes and Wing is no couch potato himself, but these guys have played pretty much every minute of every game in 2025, without a break, given that Ben Elliott and Michael Craig have picked up injuries. They've earned a break to put their feet up and catch up on Love Island, or whatever people are watching on Netflix these days.
There are two other things that have been noted in recent times regarding how Reading are playing: we struggle to create many chances to score goals (16 in the League during 2025 and the fourth-lowest 'goals for' in the top 12 of the League One table), and when Wing is marked out of a game, we are a lot less effective as a team. I can't help but feel that perhaps the two are not entirely incidental?
We are not entirely without options, however. Tom Carroll has been brought in as a rotation option for midfield; he brings a wealth of experience and is most adept as playing in the number six, deep-lying midfielder role that Wing is accustomed to picking up.
As well as this, we have the likes of Shay Spencer and Jay Senga in the academy, who could give us options to fill this deep midfield position. I personally have always been impressed with Senga whenever I've seen him play for Reading, whether it is in the first team or at academy level. I'd love to see more of him.
Why would I vouch the idea of bringing cover in for the deep-lying midfielder role? Because I think it's time to push Wing further up the pitch again.
First and foremost, we need to get him in a position where he can affect the game more and the further up the pitch he is, the more difficult opposing players will find it to play against him and the better opportunities he will be able to provide for the many willing runners we possess in this team. We've lacked a truly creative presence in the centre of the park since Elliott picked up his injury.
I also suggest this idea because I feel that, due to the squad limitations, we have been become far too predictable for teams to play against. With the same midfield three on repeat, teams know exactly what to expect.
Knibbs and Savage will run A LOT. Knibbs will press the defence to win turnovers to play in the attacking three. Savage will provide a physical presence and will be a willing runner down the left, as well as a willing shooter from distance. Wing will quarterback the game, looking to receive the ball from the defence - often Tyler Bindon - to play defence/midfield-splitting passes.
Bringing a new face into the deeper-lying role will change the dynamic of the midfield, as well as affording us the opportunity to rest some of our over-worked players. We will give teams something different to think about and catch them by surprise.
Imagine what Kelvin Ehibhatiomhan and Chem Campbell could do with a few well-worked moves, or what Jayden Wareham could provide receiving the ball with his back to goal with an option like Wing to pass the ball quickly to. It's exciting, it's more unpredictable and it's got to be worth a try.
