Six games into their first season in the Championship and still no points on the board, life at this level is proving even more difficult for Wycombe than was predicted.
At this rate, it will not be long before they are overtaken by the bottom club Sheffield Wednesday, who began the campaign on minus 12 points.
That would be cruel on Wanderers, who have shown signs of improvement in almost every game and arguably deserved something from Tuesday night’s visit to local rivals Reading.
The Royals went into the game on the back of an unbeaten start with four wins and a draw and only one goal conceded, but the Chairboys made them fight every inch of the way for their 1-0 win.
Gareth Ainsworth made two changes from the team that started against Millwall on Saturday, bringing in Matt Bloomfield and Daryl Horgan for David Wheeler and Fred Onyedinma.
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Wycombe were much the brighter side in the opening stages, but they failed to test home goalkeeper Rafael and it was Reading who came closest to scoring just before half time.
Former Arsenal and Liverpool midfielder Ovie Ejaria – the best player on the pitch – sent in a perfect cross that should have ended up in the Wycombe net but was somehow headed wide by Yakou Meite.
It was the introduction of two substitutes early in the second half that swung the match in Reading’s favour. Tomas Esteves, a Portuguese Under 21 international on loan from Porto, and new signing Alfa Semedo made an immediate impact.
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Wycombe struggled to cope with the home team’s renewed energy, and just after the hour mark, they were undone by a simple long ball down the middle.
Giant striker Lucas Joao used his strength to hold off the challenge of Wycombe’s central defenders before expertly firing home into the bottom corner of Ryan Allsop’s net.
As Wanderers piled men forward in search of an equaliser, substitute Onyedinma had two great chances to score. He blazed his first effort wide and the second effort was pushed round the post by home ‘keeper Rafael.
So, Wycombe slumped to another defeat and with games coming up against Norwich City and Watford, who were both playing in the Premier League last season, it is hard to see where the first point is coming from.
It is difficult to criticise an honest group of players who have given their all in every game, but the gap in quality is proving hard to bridge.
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