When Duchâtelet and Meire rode into town in January 2014 most people were prepared to give them the benefit of the doubt. A couple of months later two of the most iconic members of the team that had gained promotion and finished ninth the following year had gone. Chris Powell had been sacked and Yann Kermorgant had joined Bournemouth. Duchâtelet's arrogance led him to believe that he didn't need people like Powell and Kermorgant.  As a visionary he knew he could do better. Karel Fraeye and Piotr Parzyszek for example.

Yann Kermorgant gave his view on the situation at Charlton this week to the publication "GetReading" in advance of Saturday's fixture against his new club - Reading.

"I'm gutted. I think they have wasted the club.

When I was there I didn't really want to leave. At first I wanted to sign a new deal and spend a longer time with the club. In my first meeting with the new owners I found out things were really different - they had a vision which for me was completely deluded.

They didn't know much about football. I felt they were wrong and the club would be in trouble."

How right he was. It is looking more and more likely that Charlton will not only be relegated this season but that they will also finish bottom of the division. As anticipated, Jose Riga has not been able to foster a winning mentality in the squad and it would now need three wins on the spin just to move them out of the relegation zone.

Reading ought to be there for the taking. They are a mid table team with one eye on the FA Cup. They have stormed into the quarter finals beating Huddersfield 5-2, Walsall 4-0 and WBA 3-1 and they are looking forward to their next tie at home to Palace.  However their recent league form is poor with Tuesday's 1-0 over Rotherham their first victory in seven games. They have scored only three goals in their last six league games. They haven't won away from home for nearly five months - taking just two points from thirty since they won at Burnley at the end of September. Most home side would fancy themselves against them.

When Yann Kermorgant returned to The Valley with Bournemouth for the final game of last season he gave an absolute masterclass. We can expect more of the same this weekend. It just makes it all that much harder to bear.