Reading manager Brian McDermott has insisted that he regrets his side's performance in the defeat to Tottenham Hotspur.

The Royals were beaten 3-1 by Spurs at the Madejski and remain in the relegation zone, albeit having played a game fewer than the majority of Premier League teams.

Having not played in the league in nearly a month, McDermott feels that his side were off the pace, especially in the first half.

"In the first half we weren't ourselves for whatever reason. We can talk about the fact that we haven't played for three weeks but the good thing is we've got that game under our belts," McDermott told talkSPORT. "We haven't played for such a long time in this league so it took us 45 minutes to really get going and we were 1-0 down, still in the game.

"We were much better for 20-25 minutes in the second-half and could have got something but couldn't score and then they scored a goal. Then it was a real difficult situation for us.

"My regret – and I hate having regrets in football – is that we didn't really give them the game we know we can do."

Reading are still in search of their first Premier League win this season.