A good run of form for Reading came to an abrupt end on Saturday as the Royals finished on the wrong end of a 1-0 defeat at Brentford.
Reading boss Mark Bowen, who has been in the hot seat at the Madejski Stadium since mid-October when he replaced Jose Gomes, had little time to dwell on his first defeat as Reading manager.
After the game, he spoke to Reading's official website about what he was expecting from the game against Leeds United.
He said: “If it had been a win, loss or draw against Brentford, we knew that we’d be able to go into the Leeds game saying, ‘look how far we’ve come’.
“I know that we have come a fair way. So we need to make sure we put in a performance on Tuesday night. My boys will be up for it, no doubt.
“We had a fantastic atmosphere at Brentford with the fans packed in behind that goal, trying to make it like a home game for us. So we’ll be expecting another good atmosphere at Madejski Stadium on Tuesday night.
The former Tottenham and Norwich City player isn't too concerned about the quick turnaround between matches.
“We will be prepared for it, no doubt about that," he said.
"We will have a game-plan going into it, and we will make sure that we rest and recover.
“You don’t want to look too far ahead, but even before the Brentford game I thought that the Leeds game would be a good barometer for me and the team and the squad.
“I know that if we get the desire, work-rate and aggression, which we have to have in our play, then we will win more games than we lose.”
When Bowen was appointed last month, Reading were in the relegation zone and he has steered the team into 18th in the Championship. In the five games since Bowen took charge, Reading have won three times, drawn once and fell to their first defeat under his stewardship against Brentford on Saturday.
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