Reading vice captain Tom Holmes still believes the club should be aiming for the top six despite mixed form in recent months.

Picking up their first win of 2023 last week against Rotherham United, the team is without a win of the road since November.

Sitting in 16th, the club are only eight points outside the play-offs with 14 matches remaining.

Speaking on the Midas Sports Management podcast, the central defender is hoping to push further than Paul Ince's ambition of Championship safety.

"The manager will say safety. That is our first aim," the academy graduate said. "For most of the teams in the Championship it is to reach the elusive play-off spots. That would be the aim. For myself, personally, it is just to try and be available for every game and work on the things that I set myself targets on at the start of the season."

Reading Chronicle:

Celebrating 12 months in the role this week, Ince has had quite the impact on the squad- including the 22-year-old.

"If you look at the first year and a half under Pauno, there was a lot of learning and playing a lot of football in different positions. I probably hadn’t found my role within the team, especially in the second season under Pauno. With the manager coming in, he’s instilled a lot of confidence into my game. He’s seen me as someone senior within the team and gave me the vice-captaincy, which is a massive moment for me. That instilled a lot of confidence in me to go on and become a mainstay at centre-back. He’s a man-manager, he’s brought a lot of discipline and professionalism to the training ground compared to the previous gaffer, which by the end of it wasn’t as it is now. There’s a lot of respect amongst the players for the manager and what he’s done in the game. You can’t underestimate that."