Cheltenham boss Darrell Clarke said he would have “snapped your hand off” to be on 20 points at the halfway stage of the League One campaign after their 2-2 home draw with Reading.
The Robins led 2-0 before a quickfire double from the Royals just before half-time levelled things up and Cheltenham had to settle for a point against the team directly above them in the table.
But when Clarke took over at the end of September, Cheltenham looked to be in a hopeless position, with no goals and just one point on the board.
“We are disappointed we haven’t won the game because we had a mad five-minute spell at the end of the first half,” he said.
“In the first half we were in full control and their keeper pulled off two or three great saves.
“But I am a realist at the same time and seven points out of the three Christmas games so far and to be on 20 points at the halfway mark of the season after only getting one from the first 11 has given us a decent building block to try and attack the second half of the season.
“I am going to give my players lots of credit, sitting here on 20 points after having one from 11, I’d have snapped your hand off for that.
“We now have to keep working hard and improving what we are doing but we look like a side now, which is pleasing. We didn’t look like a side when I first came into the building.”
An inspired David Button denied Liam Sercombe, George Lloyd and Lewis Freestone as Reading were forced to withstand considerable pressure in the opening 25 minutes at a packed Completely-Suzuki Stadium.
But the opener arrived in the 29th minute with Sercombe sliding to touch Sean Long’s low ball in from the right.
The lead was doubled in the 37th minute when Button blocked an effort from Freestone only for a clearance from Amadou Mbengue to hit his own goalkeeper and fly into the net.
The overworked Button denied Ben Williams in the 42nd minute but the game then turned with Lewis Wing’s corner headed in at the back post by Jeriel Dorsett in the 45th minute.
Then, two minutes into time added on at the end of the first half, Wing’s cross was glanced into the net by Paul Mukairu.
Wing’s free-kick was pushed away by a diving Luke Southwood in the 69th minute and Nathan Butler-Oyedeji curled one just wide for Cheltenham deep into stoppage time as it finished all square.
Reading boss Ruben Selles was pleased with the way his team fought their way back into the game.
He said: “They were the best team in the first 45 minutes but after it was 2-0 we realised we could compete in the game.
“The good thing is the boys went through some difficult moments together but fought back. We changed the momentum after 40 minutes.
“I’m very proud of the effort and togetherness they showed. We now just want to play more games and get more points. You always want more but the team looks solid.”
Postecoglou: Spurs have a confidence problem to overcome
Ange Postecoglou says that Tottenham need to "overcome" their low confidence after suffering a 4-2 defeat to Liverpool on Sunday.
Spurs slipped to their fourth consecutive Premier League defeat, being left to bemoan their slow start as they found themselves 4-0 down by the hour mark thanks to goals from Mohamed Salah, Andrew Robertson, Cody Gakpo and Harvey Elliott.
Richarlison came off the bench to salvage some pride for Spurs, scoring one before setting up Son Heung-min for a goal on his 300th Premier League appearance.
Spurs had the opportunity to cut the gap to the top four after Aston Villa’s defeat to Brighton, but they remain seven points off a Champions League spot.
Postecoglou’s side still have a game in hand over the Villans, though he was sure that Spurs would be able to put their recent poor run behind them.
Asked if Spurs had a confidence problem, Postecoglou told Sky Sports: "Maybe in the front third there is.
"It probably is a bit of a lack of confidence, but again, that's something the guys have to work through.
"You have to find a way to overcome that because, ultimately, if you don't put pressure on the opposition in the front third after you've worked your way up there, they're going to get comfortable with their position."
Spurs have won just one of their last nine Premier League away games, failing to win any of the last five.
Despite that run extending at Anfield, Postecoglou highlighted what he thought was an improvement on their recent performances.
He continued: "Obviously a hugely disappointing outcome for us but at least we were more like ourselves today in terms of our football.
"Our last two away games at Newcastle and Chelsea, apart from the results which weren't great either, we just didn't try and play our football.
"I thought today, even in the first half, some of our football, our pressing was back to where it should be."
Roma 1-1 Juventus: Juve miss chance to close gap to second after draw with Roma
Juventus were held to a 1-1 draw at Roma on Sunday, missing the chance to close in on Milan in second place in Serie A.
Roma took the lead after 15 minutes when Romelu Lukaku found himself in the perfect position to tap in the rebound from a Bryan Cristante shot.
Bremer levelled with a header for Juventus just after the half-hour mark when Federico Chiesa picked him out inside the box from a corner.
Both sides had chances to find a winner in the final minutes, with Roma keeper Mile Svilar making a fingertip save to push Manuel Locatelli's volley over the bar.
Third-placed Juventus have 66 points, five fewer than Milan, who drew 3-3 with Genoa earlier on Sunday. Roma are fifth with 60 points.
Data Debrief: Leading from the back
Since scoring his first Serie A goal in the 2019-20 season, Bremer is the defender with the most headed goals in the Big-5 European leagues, netting 13 in total. Each of his last seven goals have been headers.
His goal was enough to earn Juventus a point today, but it means that they have drawn each of their last four in the competition - a first since February-March 2012 under Antonio Conte.
Chelsea 8-0 Bristol City: Blues rout hands Hayes perfect home send off
Guro Reiten starred as Chelsea thrashed already-relegated Bristol City 8-0 to keep their title hopes alive in the Women's Super League on Sunday.
The Norwegian scored four goals, netting the opener from the penalty spot to get Emma Hayes' last home game in charge off to the best start.
She scored the other three in the second half in just over 20 minutes, while teeing up Agnes Beever-Jones for the seventh goal with just two minutes left.
Beever-Jones got two, with Sjoeke Nusken and Niamh Charles also adding to the scoreline to eradicate the goal-difference advantage that Manchester City, who lost to Arsenal earlier on Sunday, had over them.
Chelsea move to within three points of the Citizens, with a game in hand over them, remaining in the fight to lift their fifth-consecutive league title.
Data Debrief:
Chelsea have scored eight goals in a game for the first time since December 2022 against Leicester City, a match they also won 8-0.
The Blues have scored in their last six games in the WSL, though it does not come close to their longest run of games with a goal in the competition - a run of 20 from April 2023 to February 2024.
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