Burnley v Reading - Player Ratings

[BigJay]

Muric 7 Steady
Roberts 6
Harwood-Bellis 6 Gave ball away cheaply 2-3 times in first half
Beyer 7
Maatsen 7
Bastien 6
Brownhill 7
Gudmundsson 6
Tella 6
Zaroury 8
Rodriguez 6

Benson 8*
Vitinho 6

[jedi_master]

Muric 7
Roberts 6
THB 5 - His only poor game for us today, I felt.
Beyer 8
Maatsen 6
Bastien 7 - Surprised at the negatives, thought he was absolutely fine personally.
Brownhill 6
Gudmundsson 6
Tella 7
Zaroury 9 - What a player he is
Rodriguez 5

Benson 9 - MOM - This guy gets better and better. An unbelievable impact sub. Great finish for his goal and the dribble and cross for his assist we’re absolutely fantastic. He should be starting games, but then we’d lose the impact of his introductions - that’s the only question around him.
Vitinho 6

[Luppy]

Muric - 6

Roberts - 6
THB - 6
Beyer - 7
Maatsen - 7

Bastien - 6
Brownhill - 6
JBG - 6

Tella - 7
Jay - 6
Zaroury - 8

Benson &*
Vitinho - 7

[Claretswift]

Muric 7
Roberts 5
Harwood-Bellis 5
Beyer 7
Maatsen 6
Bastien 6
Brownhill 6
Gudmundsson 6
Tella 7
Zaroury 8
Rodriguez 6

Benson 8
Vitinho 7

[Duffer_]

Muric 6
Roberts 7
THB 6
Beyer 7
Maatsen 6
JBG 6
Bastien 6
Brownhill 7
Tella 7
Rodriguez 6
Zaroury 8

Benson 9
Vitinho 6

[jdrobbo]

Muric 5
Roberts 5
Harwood-Bellis 5
Beyer 8
Maatsen 6
Bastien 6
Brownhill 5
Gudmundsson 5
Tella 7
Zaroury 7
Rodriguez 5
Benson 8*
Vitinho 6

[Stalbansclaret]

Muric 6..not a great deal to do but plucked a few crosses out of the air nicely and excellent distribution
Roberts 6.. steady enough
THB 7...one or two misplaced passes but saw an awful lot of the ball and was always composed
Beyer 8..getting better and better. Looked a bit of a Rolls Royce at times today
Maatsen 5 ..played a couple of absolutely fantastic balls inside the full back for Zaroury and worked hard BUT prone to giving the ball away in dangerous areas and compounded this with a ridiculous challenge that could/shoud have cost us the game
JBG 6....steady though unspectacular
Bastien 7...I like him. Calm and an able midfield deputy, though is behind Cork and Cullen
Brownhill 7...dynamic throughout
Zaroury 8...love him. Very exciting and great to see him get the winner at the end of a game when he had been a constant threat
Tella 7...pace to burn and deserved an assist for the first half set -up for Jay. Always a threat.
Jay 5...docked him a mark for rushing his shot when he had time to take a touch after Tella's pull back in the first half. Not his best game but some decent link-up work at times

Benson 9.....that's the fourth game he's won us off the bench now (Millwall, Sunderland, Norwich, Reading). Fantastic goal and an absolutely genius run and assist
Vitinho 7...bit more dynamic then Roberts
Egan-Riley 6..not on the long but I thought he looked decent for what it's worth

[MDWat]

Sorry MD but I’d like to understand why Muric was under par?

Hi roperclaret,

I’m yet to see it back but I thought he was really poor on the goal. He didn’t do a lot of anything from my one viewing - didn’t come and back himself big, nor did he stay and narrow angles.

If I see it back and it shows that I’m being harsh, I’ll amend it to a 6.

[MDWat]

Glad the rest of the Claret’s fans aren’t like you,giving a guy 5 against 1 of the better teams,& has hardly played this season,

I thought Reading were good and thought they stifled us and made a number of our good players look under par. I thought they battled really well and came out with an excellent result. I’m really enjoying the season, really enjoying the football under Kompany, just didn’t think we played especially well today.

[Jakubs Tash]

Muric 6

Roberts 6
THB 6
Beyer 7
Maatsen 6

Bastien 6
Brownhill 7

JBG 5
Tella 6
Zaroury 8

Rodriguez 6

Vitinho 6
Benson 8

[JohnDearyMe]

Muric 6

Roberts 5
THB 6
Beyer 7
Maatsen 6

Bastien 6
Brownhill 6

JBG 5
Tella 6
Zaroury 8

Rodriguez 5

Vitinho 6
Benson 9

[IanMcL]

Muric 6
Roberts 5
Harwood-Bellis 5
Beyer 7
Maatsen 6
Bastien 6
Brownhill 6
Gudmundsson 6
Tella 8
Zaroury 8
Rodriguez 6

Benson 9
Vitinho 6

[Clive 1960]

Muric 7
Roberts 6
Maatsen 6
THB 5
Beyer 7
Bastien 6
Brownhill 7
Gudmonson 6
Tella 8
Jay 5
Zaroury 7
Benson 8
Vitinho 6

Mom Benson

[Marty Dobson]

Muric 7
Roberts 6
Harwood-Bellis 7
Beyer 8
Maatsen 7
Bastien 6
Brownhill 6
Gudmundsson 6
Tella 8
Zaroury 8
Rodriguez 6

Benson 9
Vitinho 6

[hoskinsgoalatswansea]

Muric 6
Roberts 6
THB 6
Beyer 8
Maatsen 6
JBG 5
Bastien 7
Brownhill 7
Tella 7
Rodriguez 7
Zaroury 8

Benson 8
Vitinho 6

[Commy]

To make a statement like that then you have to quantify why you think that?

What did he do, for you, to warrant more than a 5?

Didn't he win the ball for the equaliser? That must be worth a few points

[beeholeclaret]

Zuric - 7 Good solid game - no dramas today

Roberts - 7 His best game for a while

Maatsen - 7 Lively performance though loses a mark for giving. away possession and nearly conceding a penalty

THB - 8 Superb range of passing and prompting from the back - solid as a defender also

Beyer - 8 See THB ditto

JBG - 6 I like him and he is good in this side who enjoy passing but he didn’t do enough for me today in his role as an attacker

Brownhill - 6 Energetic performance with a few good efforts and passes but something missing for me today. As with JBG I love him being an enthusiastic player in this side.

Bastien - 7 Good game especially considering he’s had little game time this season

Zaroury - 9 My MOM today. Had a superb game and was always a threat. The winning goal late on edged it over the other lads who scored an 8.

Jay 6 - Played well and battled hard but quieter than previous games. Tbf he was closely marked and dropped deep which allowed space behind their tight back four for our fast wingers to run into. More than happy with his efforts today.

Tella - 7 Similar to Jay really and not at the same levels as previous games although he made a few pacy runs but couldn’t find a team mate fast enough to be there to finish off is crosses. Think he got a few kicks from his tight markers. Battled hard for his team.

Sub

Benson - 8 He won the game for us really.

[claretandy]

Hi roperclaret,

I’m yet to see it back but I thought he was really poor on the goal. He didn’t do a lot of anything from my one viewing - didn’t come and back himself big, nor did he stay and narrow angles.

If I see it back and it shows that I’m being harsh, I’ll amend it to a 6.

He gets his angles wrong, he rushes too far out to the right giving Ince the only place to score.

[thelifeofbrian]

Muric 7 - good distribution
Roberts 6- did ok
Harwood-Bellis 6- few sloppy passes and ball watching for Readings goal
Beyer 6- always in the wars is this lad
Maatsen 6-got away with one for the pen
Bastien 6- gave the ball away to much
Brownhill 6- trys passes that he dosent need to.
Gudmundsson 5- not really an outlet as he just gets the ball and plays it back and we build again.
Tella 6- couldnt get going today
Zaroury 8- looked lively
Rodriguez 6- not really in the game

Benson 9-* won us the game
Vitinho 6- did ok.

[roperclaret]

He gets his angles wrong, he rushes too far out to the right giving Ince the only place to score.

That’s very harsh especially when you see it from behind

[Im_not_Robbie_Blake]

Muric 8
Roberts 7
Harwood-Bellis 8
Beyer 7
Maatsen 7
Gudmundsson 7
Bastien 6
Brownhill 7
Zaroury 8
Tella 7
Rodriguez 7

Benson 9
Vitinho 7

[taio]

Muric 6
Roberts 6
Harwood-Bellis 6
Beyer 7
Maatsen 6
Bastien 6
Brownhill 6
Gudmundsson 6
Zaroury 8*
Tella 7
Rodriguez 6

Benson 8
Vitinho 6

[ClaretLoup]

Muric 6 - was efficient and not much chance with the goal, Ince took it well
Roberts 6 - OK, got forward for his header but otherwise not much threat
Harwood-Bellis 6 - some good distribution, some not so good, didn't look too good on the goal
Beyer 7 - steady
Maatsen 6 - a couple of sublime balls for Zaroury but gave away a pen. which only the ref and one eyed Clarets fans thought wasn't
Bastien 7- his job was to shield the back four and pick up the ball and move it on, thought he did this quite well
Brownhill 6- covered the ground, worked hard, but didn't really positively affect the game too much
Gudmundsson 6 - as above was waiting for that killer bendy cross from Johan but it never came
Zaroury 9- a real threat throughout, scored the winner and also took a kicking
Tella 7 - set up Jayrod, buzzed around a lot and gave the reading defence plenty to think about without looking like scoring himself
Rodriguez 6 - he'll be wondering how he missed that set up

Benson 9 - game changer and match winner again
Vitinho 7 - looked a bit more lively than Roberts and teams up with Benson well.

Quite a few folk belittling Reading, however of the five other teams I have seen this season I thought they were one of the better ones.
Reading restricted Burnley's chances, apart from the goal, Burnley only had a couple of others. They created a few for themselves but they were tame or wayward efforts. The stats show that they carved out nearly as many chances as Burnley (11 vs 14) and had more shots on target (4 s 3 )with only one third of possession. Of course the difference was the quality of those shots, and that of the players in our front line and this is where Burnley have an advantage over most opponents in this division.

[claretandy]

That’s very harsh especially when you see it from behind

I have seen it from behind, he runs too far to the right, if he doesn't do this Ince can't put the ball where he did.

[NoFixedAbode_Claret]

Thought Reading did well. Rode our luck with their pen at that point in the match, but otherwise a very good comeback for 3 more important points.

Muric 6
Roberts 6
THB 5
Beyer 8
Maatsen 5
JBG 6
Bastien 7
Brownhill 7
Tella 7
Rodriguez 7
Zaroury 8

Benson 9
Vitinho 6

[Hipper]

From Claret+

Muric 7 - Solid. Distribution and handling excellent, little chance with the goal.
Roberts 6 - OK. Not comfortable with him though as he seems a touch slow and not to the standard of skill as the new players. Early header on goal may well have been disallowed as he was climbing all over defender.
Harwood-Bellis - 6 Not his usual high standards. Distribution OK but sloppy at times. Beaten in the air more than I would like. Should have got a penalty when held at corner (these are rarely given for some reason).
Beyer 7 - Steady. Good distribution and defending.
Maatsen 7 - Defended well and worked neatly with Zaroury.
Bastien 6 - OK. A difficult task to fill the experienced Cork's boots but made a worthy effort.
Brownhill 6 - OK but not at his best.
Gudmundsson 5 - Hardly noticed him. I can't help thinking he's better in the middle front with Tella more on the wing.
Tella 6 - Disappointing. Was well handled by Reading (perhaps a bit too much but Tella does like to 'overplay his injuries')
Zaroury 9 - Excellent. A real threat both creating and scoring. Exciting!
Rodriguez 6 - OK. Good movement but a bit pedestrian. As we don't create too many heading opportunities I would think someone more mobile would be better.
Benson 9 - MoM - Excellent. Changed and won us the game. He seems to be getting more confident. Also exciting. Really well taken goal.
Vitinho 7 - Good. Maybe Reading were tiring but he looked really neat when winning the ball.

I thought Reading were well set up to deal with us and it was a challenging game. They were a threat at times and continued to try to win the game at 1-1. They can be well pleased with their performance away to the top team who are unbeaten in etc. etc., and can consider themselves very unlucky not to have got something let alone a win after the Ince penalty incident.

So we got lucky. On Tuesday we needed a penalty to win despite a dominating performance. Yesterday we were not so hot but played almost well enough, got that bit of luck, and won again. As our previous manager used to say, there are different ways to win. We are finding them! Fun isn't it!

[strayclaret]

Muric 6
Roberts 6
Matsen 6
THB 5
Beyer 7
JBG 6
Zaroury 8
Brownhill 6
Bastien 7
Jay 5
Tella 6

Benson 8
Vitinhio 6

[ksrclaret]

Muric 7 - good distribution all game, and some good claims from their crosses. Seemed to be caught between ideas for their goal - he neither came far enough to narrow the angle, nor put himself in a position to make a save. Not sure if he could have done better there or not.

Roberts 6 - fine, but was guilty of slowing the game down too much.

Harwood-Bellis 6 - there were a few loose passes and was caught flat-footed and ball-watching for their goal, but made a lot of other important interceptions and clearances.

Beyer 8 - a really good game full of excellent distribution and reading of the game to shut down their counter attacks. One slip in the second half when Ince got past him far too easily.

Maatsen 5 - a decent game until that daft and rash decision to challenge Ince from behind in the box should have cost us the game (and this was seconds after he'd lost the ball in our third trying to over-play). Needs to learn that side of the game and fast because he and us were extremely lucky to get away with that one.

Bastien 6 - did fine once he'd settled, but we did suffer from a lack of height in there.

Brownhill 6 - average game. Not sure about the half CM and half left winger role he's currently occupying.

Gudmundsson 6 - fine, but another guilty of slowing the game down too much. I can see why he starts over Benson - his off-the-ball work is far superior - but he should be aiming to make more of a contribution to the attacking phase in this league.

Rodriguez 6 - not really able to impose himself in the game due to Reading's defensive shape. Looked tired.

Zaroury 8 - amazing in the first 20 mins again until he was doubled and tripled up on. Stayed at it though and still had some influence on the game, and then a fantastic far post run to get his goal. He's got everything.

Tella 6 - some shift pressing and chasing, and was unlucky not to have claimed at least one assist after he'd won the ball back. Not his day.



Benson 9 - almost single-handedly won us the game with a sublime volley and then a stoppage time run and cross that Champions League players would have been proud of. Simply sensational. The only reason it's not a 10 is because his defensive work is still not good enough and was too easily brushed off the ball.

Vitinho 6 - not that impressed with his cameo. Was beaten too easily.


Reading were the ultimate spoilers intent on time-wasting and slowing the game down, which they're entitled to do of course, but they should have been stopped by the referee long before they could have had any complaints about not getting their own decisions. They were set up very well defensively though and had some real strength and power in their side, on the counter attack as well. They gave us a tough game.

We probably ought to have lost the game when Maatsen took leave of his senses (not for the first time), but the quality we have in our team meant we were able to get the result we deserved overall.

I'm just in awe of how we play. What a job VK is doing.

[the_magic_rat]

Muric 6

Roberts 7
Harwood-Bellis 7
Beyer 8
Maatsen 6

JBG 6
Brownhill 7
Bastien 8
Zaroury 7

Rodriguez 6
Tella 8

Benson 8 mom
Vitinho 6

[roperclaret]

I have seen it from behind, he runs too far to the right, if he doesn't do this Ince can't put the ball where he did.

And instead can easily just pass it in the bottom left hand corner.

[Nonayforever]

Good game to watch. Exactly the type of game I was expecting to see at the start of the season, skill, movement, great passes with an odd mistake.

Muric 7
Roberts 7
HB 6
Beyer 7
Maatsen 6
JBG 6
Brownhill 7
Bastien 7
Zaroury 8
Tella 7
Jay 7

Benson 9 undoubtedly changed the game
Vitinho 6

[claretspice]

Reading's goal is a bad goal defensively for various reasons but I struggle with the idea Muric was at fault. The way the ball ran allowed Ince to take it early, before Muric was set, and he executed it well. Of course I'm sure there are things Muric might learn from in his positioning, but fundamentally once an attacker is in 1v1 like that it's a bonus if the keeper makes the save, not an expectation.

The obvious culprit for the goal is THB who gets done by the bounce of the ball when he should deal with the flick on but I suspect Kompany will be unhappy with the whole defensive set up. Meite and Ince were the only 2 Reading players in the game and we had at least 4 to deal with them and the back 4 is not tight enough. That said, the goal also came from the fact Bastien was competing for the ball in the air - Cork would usually do that job and i suspect had he been on the pitch the chances are he'd have stopped Meite winning it so easily. It was noticeable that when Egan Riley came on he won or disruputed 3 or 4 similar challenges and the back 4 looked better protected as a result. That may be something Kompany reflects on next time he's without Cork.

[Nipples]

Must say I really like the look of Dervisoglu. Makes you wonder how Barnes has been getting minutes over him, looks a very tidy player.

[Scott Arfield's Swag]

Muric 6
Roberts 6
Harwood-Bellis 6
Beyer 7
Maatsen 6
Bastien 6
Brownhill 6
Gudmundsson 6
Tella 7
Zaroury 7
Rodriguez 6

Benson 8*
Vitinho 6

[IanMcL]

Didn't he win the ball for the equaliser? That must be worth a few points

That is why he made it back to 6 for me!

Poor positioning, as usual, for their goal and did not close the space or anything else. Easy to score. MD and others correct.

It seems Muric cannot be criticised despite not being a very good goalkeeper.

[Lancasterclaret]

That is why he made it back to 6 for me!

Poor positioning, as usual, for their goal and did not close the space or anything else. Easy to score. MD and others correct.

It seems Muric cannot be criticised despite not being a very good goalkeeper.

Have a day off mate eh?

[CaptJohn]

Glad to see Egan-Riley getting some game time. I've only seen him the pre-season at Shrewsbury but he looks very composed on the ball and certainly a right sided option if VK were to go with a back three, which I think was the idea late on yesterday.

[JohnMac]

Muric 7
Roberts 6
THB 6
Beyer 6
Maatsen 6
JBG 6
Bastien 6
Brownhill 6
Zaroury 8
Tella 7
Rodriguez 6

Benson 8* Game changer
Vitinho 7

[boatshed bill]

I have seen it from behind, he runs too far to the right, if he doesn't do this Ince can't put the ball where he did.

1 v 1 should be a goal.

[MDWat]

I don’t think Muric is as culpable as I thought on seeing it back but neither do I think he covers himself in glory.

I’m a fan, he’s a good keeper, decent shot stopper but gives me the odd heart attack.

His distribution was decent enough but thought he played a part in the goal and he was booked so I’m comfortable enough with a 5.

[superdimitri]

Reading's goal is a bad goal defensively for various reasons but I struggle with the idea Muric was at fault. The way the ball ran allowed Ince to take it early, before Muric was set, and he executed it well. Of course I'm sure there are things Muric might learn from in his positioning, but fundamentally once an attacker is in 1v1 like that it's a bonus if the keeper makes the save, not an expectation.

The obvious culprit for the goal is THB who gets done by the bounce of the ball when he should deal with the flick on but I suspect Kompany will be unhappy with the whole defensive set up. Meite and Ince were the only 2 Reading players in the game and we had at least 4 to deal with them and the back 4 is not tight enough. That said, the goal also came from the fact Bastien was competing for the ball in the air - Cork would usually do that job and i suspect had he been on the pitch the chances are he'd have stopped Meite winning it so easily. It was noticeable that when Egan Riley came on he won or disruputed 3 or 4 similar challenges and the back 4 looked better protected as a result. That may be something Kompany reflects on next time he's without Cork.

I thought the same thing. There's no way Bastien is going to win a header against a target man. I suppose playing two defensive midfielders let's you usually pick one that's good in the air. Usually that's Cork compared to Cullen but today neither defensive midfielder was good in the air.

Equally Harwood-Bellis still needs to work on his decision making and reading of the game. He reminds me of a young Michael Keane but sadly he doesn't have the pace Keane has to get himself out of trouble when he makes mistakes. It's normal for his age.

Muric 6
Roberts 6
Harwood-Bellis 6
Beyer 6
Maatsen 6
Gudmundsson 6
Bastien 6
Brownhill 6
Zaroury 8
Tella 7
Rodriguez 6
Benson 9
Vitinho 5

[claretandy]

Reading's goal is a bad goal defensively for various reasons but I struggle with the idea Muric was at fault. The way the ball ran allowed Ince to take it early, before Muric was set, and he executed it well. Of course I'm sure there are things Muric might learn from in his positioning, but fundamentally once an attacker is in 1v1 like that it's a bonus if the keeper makes the save, not an expectation.

The obvious culprit for the goal is THB who gets done by the bounce of the ball when he should deal with the flick on but I suspect Kompany will be unhappy with the whole defensive set up. Meite and Ince were the only 2 Reading players in the game and we had at least 4 to deal with them and the back 4 is not tight enough. That said, the goal also came from the fact Bastien was competing for the ball in the air - Cork would usually do that job and i suspect had he been on the pitch the chances are he'd have stopped Meite winning it so easily. It was noticeable that when Egan Riley came on he won or disruputed 3 or 4 similar challenges and the back 4 looked better protected as a result. That may be something Kompany reflects on next time he's without Cork.

He stood his ground against Pukki, thus making Pukki make the decision, by charging at Ince, he made the decision easy for Ince.

[Hipper]

One thing I should add.

I thought that Cork and Cullen were essential to our style of play. Well, we were without Cullen for the Norwich game (where we were exceptionally dominant) and without both against Reading. Yet we won both. I'm still more impressed with the strength and quality of our squad.

And to think I thought Long might be useful this season. I think he's got no chance of playing in this side unless there is a real emergency. Maybe the same applies to Lowton and even Westwood.

[claretspice]

He stood his ground against Pukki, thus making Pukki make the decision, by charging at Ince, he made the decision easy for Ince.

He came out quickly to narrow the angle, didn't he. Obviously very different to Pukki who doesn't have Ince's pace and was also being pursued by 3 defenders, is right footed not left, and where also there wasn't the pace on the ball that Ince had to help him. But the fact he pulled off a great save from Pukki also doesn't mean you can expect him to save every one v one. His record in that department is generally pretty good, but the forward is favourite and Ince finished early and well. No shame in that.

As I say. If he saves it it is a bonus. It's not the expectation.

[IanMcL]

Muric 6
Roberts 5
Harwood-Bellis 6
Beyer 7
Maatsen 6
Bastien 6
Brownhill 6
Gudmundsson 6
Tella 8
Zaroury 8
Rodriguez 6

Benson 9
Vitinho 6

I upgrade THB to 6, after watching a TV replay.

[SimonSays]

Muric 7- Good distribution. I like the speed with which he gets things moving again

Roberts 7 - Steady, looks like he's enjoying it.

Harwood-Bellis 9 - Just brilliant. So lucky to have him. Some fantastic cross-field balls

Beyer 8 - Class act. So comfortable bringing the ball out

Maatsen 7 - His pace and positivity cause all sorts of problems. Just downgraded him a point for that reckless challenge that should have been a penalty. It was so obvious it was going to happen. Hopefully learns from that

Gudmundsson 4 - Apologies for a 4 but just seems too negative which probably comes from a lack of pace

Bastien 9* - Man Of Match. I thought he was brilliant. Fitted in seamlessly. Broke play-up continuously. Played some nice intricate balls to keep things moving. All off the back of not playing regularly. Superb performance

Brownhill 7 - Tenacious

Zaroury 9 - Classy performance. Heard on the radio Grey saying he was the best championship footballer he has seen in the last 5 years. I tend to agree

Tella 7 - Steady

Rodriguez 6 - A bit quiet but important to the way this team plays

Benson 9 - Superb. Direct with an end product. I dot like the way I am hearing he's a sub/impact player. He's better than that

Vitinho 6 - Steady