Adkins accepted Royals cannot continue shipping goals at an alarming rate having conceded three times in three of their last four matches.

The Reading manager has now suggested the only way to solve the problem will be to change his personnel at the back or sign new players on emergency loan.

Reading have not won in six matches in all competitions and have picked up a mere two points from a possible 15 to drop to 16th in the Championship table.

Under-pressure Adkins admitted: “It’s a bad result isn’t it? Conceding three goals at home is a poor result.

“We’ve got to address the defending and I cannot go on saying ‘we’ve done okay’ when we’ve conceded three goals.

“The lads’ attitude is top drawer but we can’t carry on conceding three. Something has to happen, whether it’s personnel or the emergency loan market, it’s something we’ve got to look at.

“I thought we were doing alright in the first half, against a good side. We got plenty of crosses in and there were ‘oohs and aahs’ around the penalty area.

"Glenn Murray also hit the crossbar with a header and we were on the front foot.

“But we go in 2-0 down after Derby had two attempts at goal in the first half. Obviously it makes it more challenging for us and underlines what we’ve got to go and improve on.”

Chris Martin put in-form Derby ahead at the Madejski Stadium on Saturday with a 19th minute header.

Royals’ on-loan Crystal Palace striker Murray almost equalised in the 33rd minute when his header from an Oliver Norwood corner crashed against the crossbar.

But Steve McClaren’s Rams doubled their lead four minutes later through Jordan Ibe after more poor defending from the home side.

Any hope Reading had of salvaging something from the game ended in the 74th minute when Pavel Pogrebnyak missed an open goal from five yards out after Rams keeper Lee Grant had saved from substitute Nick Blackman.

And Martin wrapped up the victory for title-chasing Derby when he raced onto Johnny Russell’s pass and slipped the ball past Adam Federici with 11 minutes to go.

Adkins added: “In the second half we are doing everything we could to win a game of football. We made three changes, we worked their keeper hard and we are getting crosses in the box, but we’ve got to go and score.

“Pav had a big opportunity which he put the wrong side of the post. The third Derby goal then goes in and it’s a real kick between the legs.

“You can’t hide away from a poor, disappointing scoreline. Derby punished us in a big way, it’s as simple as that.”

Royals have not won a match since a 3-2 home victory over Millwall in the league more than a month ago.

Adkins’ men now face a tough trip to AFC Bournemouth tomorrow night (7.45pm ko) before they host rock-bottom Blackpool at Madejski Stadium this Saturday (3pm ko).

“The league is relentless,” he conceded. “That’s the Championship, that’s the beauty of it.

“We’ve got a game away on Tuesday then Blackpool here on Saturday. So again, you can go on a run of back-to-back victories that catapults you up the league.

“Likewise, results going the other way can send you the wrong way down the table so you have to believe in what you’re doing, keep the consistency, keep the continuity.

“As we all know it’s about winning games of football and Saturday was a bad result.”