Royals boss Veljko Paunovic was left beaming with pride after his side picked up a third consecutive league win away at Cardiff City.

Goals from Michael Morrison and Lucas Joao secured the three points for Reading, who now sit two points clear at the top of the Championship table with three games played.

Speaking after the win, the manager said: "It was a great performance. The identity of the team is still forming, but it's growing with the results."

"We're very happy with the win and what the guys showed.

"I think the game was very even in the first half, both teams tried to find a way to the opponents goal, unsuccessfully. 

"But, in the second half we started with the set piece which was very well prepared and it was a great execution from the team. That changed the game and we had another very good play when we increased our advantage. 

"In the moments when they came back and scored, what I'm proud of is we didn't lose our composure. We had to fight and we showed the warrior spirit that was required at the end of the game. 

"I'm very proud of the performances of everyone who played today.

"I wish I could show you the locker room after the game and the excitement that was there. Three wins in a row is fantastic, but I also want to let everyone know we haven't done anything yet.

"We'll continue to have the same approach, doing the things that work for us."

The result came at a price for Reading today, with Lucas Joao, Felipe Araruna and Yakou Meite all going off injured.

Paunovic has confirmed Meite suffered cramp, and not a serious injury, but both Araruna and Joao are set for a spell on the sidelines.

"Unfortunately, there is a flip side of this great triumph today which are the injuries. We're still looking to see how long the time of the recovery will be.

"It doesn't look well. We'll always wait for the doctors. We'll see how everything progresses. This is a never-ending story, everyone wants to know as soon as possible but when we're ready we'll let you know.

"It's unfortunate, but nobody is going to get depressed because of it. That's the game, nobody likes to see sad faces on our players, especially when these sort of injuries happen."

Asked whether the injuries would influence the transfer activity in the remainder of the window, Paunovic said: "With the injuries, [our plans] are not going to change drastically, but depth is very important."

The manager also confirmed that John Swift sustained a hamstring injury in training this week. The manager described the injury as 'medium term'.