Wigan Athletic boss pinpoints dual negative after Reading setback

Latics suffered their second loss of the season thanks to Tom Ince's brilliant free-kick just after the hour mark.

Ince and substitute Yakou Meite squandered big chances to make the scoreline even more emphatic.

But at the other end, Latics will point to Will Keane heading against a post, before Callum Lang raced clean through only to blaze a glorious chance high over the bar.

The result leaves Latics in 12th place - with a game in hand over most of the division - with Richardson left to reflect on what might have been.

"It's disappointing, I thought it was a game we could have won," he said.

"We had the possession, we had the momentum, without really turning it into penetration and sharp work inside the final third, especially in the first half.

"I thought we finished the game with a quite strong impetus, but you'd expect that anyway as the home team.

"This league is unforgiving and, if you're not at it, people will ask you questions.

"Reading have a quality of player, you can see that throughout the team, as have most Championship clubs.

"We have to be at a certain level most weeks, and I thought we dipped a little bit below that today.

"I thought there were two negatives today - the result, obviously, and also the competitive nature and the impetus we normally play with."

The stats show Latics failed to muster a single effort on goal, but the returning Ben Amos was hardly overworked at the other end.

"To lose a game to set-piece is always disappointing, and we know we can be better in certain areas," added the Latics boss.

"You never want to manage with emotion, you never want to manage with disappointment or elation.

"I think you should always manage as constructively as you can, educating where you can, and we're all still learning.

"We're still a new group to the division, a lot of the lads are still finding their feet in the Championship.

"But we set out to be competitive in every game and, although we controlled the game for large parts, our competitive nature and our competitive edge has to come out more.

"We always strive to be a better version of ourselves in the next game...how can we be better, how can we take control of the game in our half further up the pitch?"

After a pretty uneventful opening quarter, the game got going with Lucas Joao firing over for Reading and Josh Magennis heading wide for Latics.

Ince eventually broke the deadlock on 63 minutes with a curling free-kick from 20 yards that flew over the wall and past Amos.

Latics responded well with Keane heading against a post midway through the second period, with the ball rolling along the goalline before being cleared.

Ince sent a free header over from bag in front of goal before Lang blazed over when clean through for Latics.

Amos made a brilliant save to deny Meite and keep Latics in it.

But substitute Charlie Wyke couldn’t keep his header, from Max Power’s inviting delivery, under the bar in the sixth of eight added minutes.