It would appear I have another challenge ahead of me.

On Saturday I was left out of Reading's starting line-up for the game at Sunderland, despite the fact I had fully recovered from the illness that laid me low and led to me missing the Carling Cup win at Oxford in midweek.

That was a disappointment to me.

Kevin Dillon, the caretaker manager following Alan Pardew's departure, was good enough to come and tell me before the game that I would be on the bench. I was pleased with that because there are some managers that don't tell you at all - they just do it and that's it.

He said that last season Reading had employed a successful 4-5-1 formation in away games, a formation designed to frustrate the opposition and catch them on the break. It was his hope that it would be 0-0 with around 60 to 70 minutes gone and then he would perhaps bring me on with the aim of pinching a goal.

But I have been in the game long enough to know if I am not in the starting 11 then no matter what the manager says to me I know what they are really saying is that they don't fancy me.

I know that when you are on top of your game or they like you you are the first name down on the teamsheet.

Football is not about systems, it's about individuals.

If you are an individual who, in the manager's eyes, can perform you are there at 3 p.m. every Saturday. That's the bottom line.

As it turns out the match didn't go to plan, though, because we were 1-0 down after 28 minutes and then 2-0 four minutes later. I was brought in at the start of the second half but was unable to help turn things around.

What this all tells me is that I have one of the biggest challenges of my career ahead of me. I have to show the manager what I am capable of doing.

I have considered my own performances recently. I have watched videos and so forth and I can say I am happy with certain parts of it - holding the ball up, bringing players in etc. But what I am disappointed with is the lack of opportunities I am getting.

There are several reasons why.

One, we are not playing games where the crosses flow and, two, we haven't got players who look to put their team-mates through on goal in one-on-one situations. Apart from trying to capitalise on a defensive error, those are the two main ways in which I score goals.

Then there is the fact that I am finding my strike partner Nick Forster, at this moment in time, difficult to work with. That is only because of the style of his game.

In England you work with two strikers. The first will get the ball and he will lay it off. The second times his run in conjunction with that ball.

Nick, however, is the sort of player that when the ball gets played into him he tends to run with it. That makes it difficult for me because although you run in support he is not a person who is going to link up with you. He is very direct, runs down the right channel and he is not crossing to you, he is shooting.

As a result I am having to adjust and learn how to get the best out of my game while playing with him.

I haven't really been able to address my concerns because I am not the sort of person that walks into a manager's office and says ‘I think this is the problem and this is what we should do'. I look at myself first and say ‘What is it I am not doing?', ‘Why is it I am not getting opportunities?'.

I hope I can come up with an answer because in the last four games I have had two opportunities. That is very little for someone who is supposed to have been brought in to help with the goal ratio.

We play Norwich tonight and although it's not definite that I'll be out there for the kick-off I do expect to start.

I say that because of the way the Sunderland game went and because of the past four games we have lost three of them.

The tactics that the manager used at the Stadium of Light - patience and hoping the crowd gets on the home side's back - I don't think can be used at Carrow Road. It's a situation where, while we are not desperate for a win, we certainly don't want to lose.

If we don't win tonight then we are into a must-win home game which puts more pressure on us because we will be in front of our fans. That would play into the hands of the away side.

The club has said it will be announcing who our new manager is later this week and as far as I am concerned the sooner the better. He will be the captain of the ship and we can then get on with what we do best.

At the moment there is a lot of uncertainty.

As players, you like to know that this is the boss and though there will be certain things he says that you don't like, he is in charge of the ship and you get on with it. You get to understand what he is about, what he wants and the direction he wants to take us in in an effort to get us promoted.

We are in the middle of a cluster of games this month and if we are not careful they can just pass us by.

I am certain that if Alan Pardew had still been here we would have had a few more points on the board than we currently have.

He was a big presence in the whole structure of Reading Football Club, on and off the field.

He was a big influence and it's only now, in the past week or so, that it's sunk in to the players that he is not coming back.There is a need for some stability and knowing who our manager is will help to achieve that.