Reading manager Kelly Chambers believes that the Christmas period provides a mental break for players but also causes issues in building momentum for smaller clubs in the Barclays Women’s Super League.
The Royals take on Everton at Walton Hall Park this afternoon in their first Barclays Women’s Super League match of 2023. Prior to the Christmas break, Reading collected an important three points with a 1-0 victory over Tottenham Hotspur and came close to taking a point off Chelsea in their last league match of 2022.
When speaking in the pre-match press conference, Reading boss Chambers said that the Christmas break was good for her players but it can also bring negatives.
“Everyone’s excited to get out on the pitch and actually play a competitive game,” Chambers said. “It’s been nearly a month from our last game, a long time, so you’ve got to try and get into the swing of things again.
“Before Christmas, we had good momentum, we were picking up good results and as much as we didn’t pick up a result against Chelsea, I thought our performance was outstanding; minus a refereeing decision, we could’ve potentially taken a point.
“We could’ve done without Christmas, especially on a momentum side of things.”
Chambers went on to say that the break did bring a vital rest for the players and that they go into this afternoon’s fixture against Everton well-rested. The Reading boss expects that Brian Sørensen’s side will be tough opponents but her own team’s performances before Christmas gives them the belief that they can pick up points on Merseyside.
She said “I think the players have come back in a really good state and a really good frame of mind. They’ve had that mental relaxation and now they’re ready to go and battle on to the end of the season.
“Everton’s not an easy place to go. For us, we want to try and pick up from where we left off before Christmas and that is, first and foremost, to continue the performances that we were putting in before the break.”
Reading’s Barclays Women’s Super League fixture at Everton kicks-off at 1pm.