JAAP Stam admitted Reading FC are in a ‘difficult position’ after defeat to Birmingham City left them four points above the Championship relegation zone.

Goals from Jacques Maghoma and Sam Gallagher in each half earned rock-bottom Blues their first away win of the season.

Reading have now failed to win in their last six games and have lost four of the last five after a nightmare run over the festive period.

And under-pressure boss Stam accepted Royals must quickly put points on the board to pull away from the bottom teams in the division.

“If you are not picking up points you find yourself in a certain situation,” confessed Stam. “We’re in a difficult position.

“There are still a lot of games to go but we need to be careful, we don’t want to end up down there and we are very close, everybody knows it.

“Maybe that’s a danger for certain players as well, we will talk about it.

“The thing is you need to work very, very hard to get results.”

Reading were booed off at half time and full time and there were audible shouts of ‘You’re getting sacked in the morning’ directed at Stam when Gallagher put Blues 2-0 up midway through the second half.

But Stam accepted supporters are entitled to their opinion.

“You need to ask them what they expect, I don’t know,” he declared.

“They are entitled to react how they like but it doesn’t make it easier for the team to perform.

“Booing now then cheering the same players again when it’s going well, I just don’t know. But that’s how it works.”

However, the 45-year-old Dutchman refused to discuss whether his position at Reading is under threat.

“I’m not getting into that discussion,” he stressed. “I know it’s nice for you guys to write about that and it’s a common thing in England where you see it week in week out.”

Steve Cotterill's Birmingham have now strung back-to-back victories together for the first time this season following their victory against Leeds United at the weekend.

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Yann Kermorgant collapses to the ground after the 2-0 defeat to rock-bottom Birmingham City.

And Stam believes netting the first goal against his side was the key to their success.

“We worked very hard, we had chances to score first but we didn’t," he groaned.

“We conceded another goal from a set piece which makes it hard to get back into the game.

“We tried to go forward in the second half but when you are behind players can become more insecure or disappointed in the way they are playing. You don’t need that in the position we are in.

“You just need to go forward and take the initiative. We tried, but Birmingham were waiting for that moment to come out on the break. We lost the ball and they scored a second one.”

He added: “Sometimes it’s easier to play teams at the top than the bottom because you know how they play.

“It’s also can be hard to get out of certain situations because of confidence and certain things.

“That’s how it work, you saw Birmingham, they’re not a bad team. After a win against Leeds they had a certain feeling and also a gameplan.

“I’ve seen the last couple of games they played so they didn’t surprise me.

“They worked very hard for it and picked their moments to go forward.”

Finally, Stam suggested Royals may not be in a position to strengthen the squad during the January transfer window.

“There is nothing in the pipeline as far as I’m concerned, but we are always looking for quality,” he explained.

“We’d like to do something but you need to talk to Ron (Gourley, chief executive) and Brian Tevreden (director of football).

“But while you always want to add extra quality to your team, it’s also about the self-confidence of players.

“When confidence is low players don’t do things they normally do when they feel good and results are working for them.”