READING FC loanee Lewis Grabban insisted he is happy to play wherever Royals’ boss Jaap Stam asks him to after being deployed as a makeshift midfielder in the stalemate against Barnsley.

The striker, who joined the Royals in a deadline day switch from Premier League outfit Bournemouth, was named on the bench at Madejski Stadium yesterday but came on at half-time to replace in-form Liam Kelly.

While the majority of Royals’ fans expected to see a change in formation from Stam’s men to allow Grabban to partner Yann Kermorgant upfront, they were left surprised when he took up an unnatural midfield role.

It was an end-to-end game with both sides squandering chances as the Royals struggled to play their favoured possession-based game on a threadbare pitch.

Fans had been calling out for a striker prior to Grabban’s arrival on January 31, but the 29-year-old declared: “If need be then I can play in midfield.

“The manager thought it would be beneficial if I played in midfield so that’s what happened against Barnsley.

“I’ve settled in great, everything has been really smooth and everyone has welcomed me. It’s been a good transition.”

It was Grabban’s second 45 minutes in a Reading shirt as he works to force his way into Jaap Stam’s starting XI.

The forward has spent the last two seasons playing in the Premier League with Norwich and Bournemouth respectively, and he conceded the Barnsley clash was an end-to-end Championship affair.

The draw - the Royals’ second in as many games - also allowed Huddersfield to leapfrog Reading into third place after they managed a 2-0 victory over Queens Park Rangers.

“It was a bit of a yo-yo,” continued Grabban.

“It could have been better but if you look at it overall hopefully the point will be good for us at the end of the season.

“It’s a bit of two points dropped and a bit of a point gained. It’s difficult to play the way we want to play on the pitch. It’s a point gained defensively but maybe we’ve lost two by not taking the chances that we created.

“We had chances but we didn’t take them. On another day those chances go in.”

Reading entertain Brentford FC on Tuesday night (8pm ko) after the Bees suffered a heavy defeat against Simon Greyson’s Preston North End yesterday afternoon.

“I’ve played them a few times in the past,” concluded Grabban.

“Obviously it’s going to be another tough test for us but hopefully we can get the win.”