Reading FC may have concern in key area after Colchester United display: View | OneFootball

Coniah Boyce-Clarke's performance against Colchester may leave some fans concerned about a key area of the team.

Coniah Boyce-Clarke started between the sticks for Reading in Tuesday's Carabao Cup game against Colchester United.

He was part of a very inexperienced starting lineup at the JobServe Community Stadium, with youngsters Kelvin Abrefa, Abraham Kanu and Emmanuel Osho starting in front of him, along with 33-year-old Harlee Dean.

They had a fairly experienced midfield, but they have three young players up top and with all of this inexperience in mind, it was always going to be a difficult task for the Royals to book their place in round two.

Colchester fielded a fairly talented side - and they made a great start to the game - with Tom Hopper heading in a corner to put the hosts 1-0 up.

Jack Payne doubled their lead from the penalty spot, before excellent goals from Charlie Savage and Lewis Wing allowed the Royals to take the game to penalties.

Unfortunately for them, the home side came out on top in the shootout, with Colchester scoring all of their penalties and Kelvin Ehibhatiomhan and Amadou Mbengue missing theirs.

The Berkshire side may not be too gutted to be knocked out, considering their lack of squad depth, but some of their youngsters struggled and that isn't a major surprise.

With many youngsters being thrown into the lineup, something the Royals had to do with their lack of depth, it took them a while to get settled with the away side all at sea in the first half.

They improved after the break, but the game will still be a major learning curve for some of their youngsters.

Coniah Boyce-Clarke's performance may have highlighted Reading FC issue

Boyce-Clarke, who is 21 now, is currently the Royals' backup option in the absence of David Button.

However, the Jamaican has only managed to get a very limited amount of senior experience under his belt during his career.

He may have had loan spells at St Albans City and Welling United, but these temporary moves were only short and he hasn't had the chance to establish himself as the number-one stopper at the Select Car Leasing Stadium.

That's unsurprising, considering his lack of experience, but he hasn't had any opportunities to impress out on loan in the National League or League Two.

If Boyce-Clarke is to become an important first-team stopper in Berkshire for the long term, that's the level he needs to be playing at, but the fact he hasn't had many loan spells means he hasn't had a big chance to develop into a much better keeper.

This was evident in his performance on Tuesday, with the Jamaican looking shaky at times.

His distribution was an issue - and he wasn't able to make a difference during the penalty shootout - with the 21-year-old the subject of criticism on social media both during and after the game.

When he has been given the chance to impress in the first team, he hasn't been able to shine, and that's frustrating.

Just a few years ago, he was a highly-rated player who was expected to become a starter sooner rather than later.

The 21-year-old could still be a real star in the future, but he needs to develop rapidly this season, with his contract expiring in 2025. A loan should help his cause, but the Royals won't want to leave themselves short of keeper options.

Fellow keeper Button, on the other hand, has plenty of senior experience under his belt.

But he endured some poor moments last season too - and some fans may be wondering whether it would be a good idea to bring in another keeper to compete with Joel Pereira.

Stevenage addition Dean Bouzanis and Jokull Andresson were rightly loaned out this summer, but another option between the sticks could be ideal if they can offload Button, something that looks unlikely at this point.

Unfortunately, other areas will probably need to be looked at first, if/when a takeover is sealed.

The experienced Dean (pictured above) can play in central defence along with Kanu, but another option in this area is needed.

An addition at left-back will also be required before the window closes - and at least one winger will be needed if the Royals are to be threatening enough out wide during the 2024/25 season.

Bringing in a striker could also be extremely valuable for the Royals, with Sam Smith and Jayden Wareham needing more competition in this department.

If these areas are fully addressed, they may be able to look at another keeper.

But considering there will only be a limited amount of time left to go until the window closes when a takeover is finally sealed, it would be difficult to see them bringing in another shot-stopper, especially with the club already having three at their disposal.