Paul Ince has revealed why he swapped goalkeepers during Reading FC's 3-1 FA Cup defeat at Manchester United on Saturday night.
Royals' boss brought on Dean Bouzanis in place of Joe Lumley for the final 15 minutes of the match at Old Trafford as part of a triple substitution.
The decision prompted plenty of puzzled looks among supporters but Ince felt Australian shotstopper Bouzanis, who is the no.2 keeper at the club and who played in the third-round win over Watford earlier in the month, deserved his opportunity on the big stage.
READ MORE: Paul Ince on Reading's loss at Manchester United, Andy Carroll's red card and the Dean Bouzanis sub
"I found it a difficult decision - when you look at the bigger clubs, they have cup goalkeepers - and Bouzanis played well against Watford [in the third round] so it was a tough decision whether to play him or Lumley," he said post match.
"The quality we had [up against us] tonight was much better than Watford so I felt sorry for not playing him. You can imagine everyone this week was running around a lot more, trying to get into the starting line-up which is only natural.
"I felt sorry for Deano and I always felt once the game had gone behind us I had an idea to bring him on for 10 or 15 minutes so I am pleased about that."
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