Tom Kuszczak (6)
It was almost a debut to forget for Tom Kuszczak, luckily the giant Polish keeper managed to redeem himself with that late penalty save after what was a disappointing display from the ex Champions League winner. Kuszczak was at fault for the Reading goal after flapping at a shot from long range, his distribution was poor and he didn’t look comfortable in between the sticks. As mentioned previously, luckily he was able to redeem himself with the match saving stop.
Paul Caddis (6)
The Scottish full back who after bizarrely being stripped of his vice captaincy role, was barely troubled by the Reading wingers and supported his attacking counterparts in a minimal amount of attacks. A quiet but solid display from Caddis did help contribute to a opening day win.
Michael Morrison (7)
Morrison was outstanding in defence and headed everything which came towards him. Himself and fellow centre back Jonathan Spector looked to be very comfortable as a pair and were let down by the goalkeeper in gaining an opening day clean sheet.
Jon Spector (8) MAN OF THE MATCH
Blues`s American defender was simply outstanding and put in a brilliant performance for his deserved MOM award. Earlier on in the week I wrote an article picking my starting eleven for todays game, Spector wasn’t in it. Now i completely eat my words, without Spector today, we would have undoubtedly lost. Was Spector you MOM? Let me know in the comments below?
Jonathan Grounds (6)
Like Caddis, Grounds was fairly quiet and managed to fulfil most tasks which were thrown at him. Like all of the starting eleven, Grounds helped massively towards a solid win which will hopefully put to bed any pre season doubts.
David Cotterill (7)
Cotterill put in a solid performance in which he opened his goalscoring account for the season with a deflected fre-kick in the first half. He looked a threat along the right hand side and also did some valuable defensive work. Another solid performance from another Blues player.
Mikeal Kieftenbeld (7)
The Dutch midfielder marked his Blues debut with a solid performance in the centre of the park. He showed his great tackling abilities with a solid display alongside Stephan Gleeson and I get a sense that theres a lot more to come from our new midfielder.
Steve Gleeson (6)
Gleeson failed to inject any impetus into Blues`s play but did keep the ball ticking around in the middle of the park, this allowing Toral to work his magic further up the field.
Dimi Gray (5)
After a lot of speculation regarding Gray`s future was surrounding throughout the summer, perhaps that hindered his efforts today. The academy graduate failed to live up to his star performance in the same fixture last year as Gray failed to make an impact.
Jon Toral (7)
The Spanish midfielder was a surprise inclusion in todays starting line up ahead of Andy Shinnie. His selection was justified as he all but sealed the Blues victory with a header from inside the box. Physically he was very lightweight but luckily he’s technical skills will undoubtedly outweigh this and Toral could be a key player this season.
Clayton Donaldson (7)
Maybe not the most effective of games for Donaldson but his tireless work was inevitable on again. He helped set up Toral`s goal with a lovely piece of skill to beat the defender. Hopully he can carry on from last season with his goalscoring, but once again, you cant fault his effort.
Subs: Davis (4), Shinnie (5), Robinson (5).
Why not give me your player ratings in the comment section below?
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