Reading midfielder Tom Ince insists the squad are eager to prove people wrong after losing to Blackpool on the opening day of the Championship season.

Many pundits have tipped the Royals for a tough season in the second tier as the club battles through a transfer embargo and survived by just four points last season.

Despite losing 1-0 to the Tangerines on Saturday, the second half saw a strong performance and many felt hard done by to not take something away from Bloomfield Road.

Talking to the media after the defeat, midfielder Ince's disappointment at defeat was there to see, but the wide-man insists there's nothing to worry about.

"We dominated the second half," the 30-year-old started. "There was only one team in it, but we make a mistake in the first half and get punished for it- that’s football. It’s the first game of the season, we’ve got some key players missing, we all know the situation at the club, so this is what we’ve got. I thought the lads put a tremendous shift in to try and get the goal and we deserved a lot more than we got."

Failing to score in their last four matches, including the back end of last campaign, the bookies have Reading among the favourites for relegation this season- something the club have not experienced for a decade.

However, the former Blackpool star made sure to underline his belief in his teammates ahead of the long second tier season.

"All we care about is the four walls of our changing room," he exclaimed. "At times Blackpool couldn’t get near us but we lacked that cutting edge. There’s a lot of character and belief in that changing room and all we need is that extra quality and experience. Everyone knows the situation at the club, we haven’t got the luxury of buying players left, right and centre. We don’t lack quality, we lack bodies. Nine times out of ten if you perform like that, you’ll pick up wins."