The kids are alright for Ruben Selles as Reading shock Millwall

Posted Wednesday, August 09, 2023 by PA

Ruben Selles saluted his red-hot Reading young guns after a stunning 4-0 Carabao Cup win over Millwall at The Den.

Kelvin Ehibhatiomhan’s double and late strikes from Charlie Savage and Mamadi Camara fired the League One side to a shock victory against their misfiring Championship opponents in the competition’s opening round.

Former Southampton boss Selles picked a youthful side with an average age of just 21 and hailed his players’ dynamism after a memorable night in south London.

“The boys did an amazing job from the first minute until the end of the game,” he said.

“Our recruitment has been good, and [the young players] have been trying to adjust themselves to the system.

“The way we play suits a lot of them – the dynamic football, aggressive on the pressure and very good in transitions.

“Today for us, everything came together – we have an identity, we know what we want and it doesn’t matter who plays for us: we want to try and put our stamp on the game.

“It’s good to see the young players are able to make that performance today.”

The Royals grabbed the lead in the very first minute when Ehibhatiomhan poked home over Bartosz Bialkowski.

And they seized their second at the start of the second half when the Nigerian striker rifled in from close range.

Former Manchester United star Savage grabbed his first goal for the club with a fine free-kick into the top corner before Camara’s late tap-in inflicted more misery on a near full-strength Millwall.

Lions Boss Gary Rowett, whose team had beaten fellow Championship promotion-chasers Middlesbrough 1-0 in their season opener at the weekend, said: “It was more disappointing than frustrating.

“We went quite strong after the result at the weekend and off the back of that, we wanted to win another game and roll it forward.

“I thought it might be better to try and get a bit of momentum but that didn’t go well.

“I thought Reading thoroughly deserved the win – they were far better than us, they ran with more intensity and looked like they wanted to fight and play for each other more than we did.

“We got what we deserved and they got what they deserved, which is a cracking win for them.”