Perez tucked the ball past Franky Rose just after the half-hour mark to break the deadlock; the schoolboy has now netted in back-to-back league matches after scoring in our 5-0 win over Bournemouth before the international break.

The Blues found plenty of success down the right wing in the opening period, with Riley Ebho and Ibrahim Rabbaj doubling up on the Reading full-back effectively.

Yet it wasn't until the second period that we added to our lead. McGillvary was a constant thorn in the Royals' side and doubled our advantage three minutes after the restart.

We were reduced to ten men when Gabriel Sambou was dismissed, but the Blues showed our resilience by standing firm in defence and then adding to our advantage, with Eliah Semakula scoring late on to seal an impressive win.

Pushing for the opener

The Blues dominated the first half, creating several good opportunities and not allowing Reading to string a collection of passes together.

Our biggest threat came down the right flank, where Ebho caused lots of problems on the overlap. He had our first attempt of the afternoon: a firm effort down the throat of Reading goalkeeper Franky Rose, who pushed the ball behind for a corner.

The 17-year-old continued to threaten in advanced areas. One give-and-go with Rabbaj led to Andrew Pennie coming close, as his sweeping shot went just wide of the far post.

Against the run of play, Reading’s Aiden Smith struck the crossbar after cutting inside, but it felt only a matter of time before we broke the deadlock.

Going ahead

And in the 32nd minute, the goal arrived. McGillvary collected the ball on the left wing and played a pass inside to Perez. He produced a first-time finish into the bottom corner to score his fourth goal of the campaign and put us ahead.

We then had a flurry of chances to double our lead, with Rabbaj hitting the post after beating two defenders with his quick feet.

Taking control

McGillvary doubled our lead quickly after the restart. Taking control of the ball on the left flank, he cut inside before being forced to turn his back to goal.

Yet he spun away from a challenge and dispatched a left-footed shot beyond Rose and into the bottom corner.

Reading hit the crossbar once again in the second half, this time through a Christian Cary free-kick, which came after Sambou was shown a straight red card.

Being a man down, the Blues had to showcase our defensive abilities for the first time in the contest. We held off the hosts and managed to come away with a clean sheet, as well as a third goal via Semakula.

Perez appeared set for his second of the afternoon but had the ball snatched from his feet by Rose. However, Semakula followed up to finish the attack with a goal and round off our victory.

What it means

This victory means Chelsea remain second in the Under-18 Premier League on 15 points after seven matches. We trail the league leaders by just one point.

What comes next?

Our Under-18s return to league action on Saturday 17 October, when we face West Bromwich Albion at The Fitlife Foods Performance Centre. The fixture kicks off at 12pm and can be watched live with a CFC+ subscription.

The teams

Chelsea: 1. Isaac Collinson; 2. Riley Ebho, 3. Gabriel Sambou, 4. Jacob Hall (C), 5. Isago Silva; 6. Isaac Badu Da Silva, 8. Jacob Dako (17. Kwamina Ampah 85’), 10. Isaac McGillvary (12. Emmanuel Ayinde 85’); 7. Ibrahim Rabbaj (16. Jayden Malundama 76’), 9. Andrew Pennie (18. Eliah Semakula 76’), 11. Eden Perez
Unused substitutes: 13. Aaron Woolford, 14. Oliver Crofts, 15. Rico Sealey
Scorers: Perez 32, McGillvary 48, Semakula 90+2
Booked: Perez 62’, Sambou
Sent off: Sambou 67

Manager: Dan Hogan

Reading: 1. Franky Rose; 2. Elijah Imafidon, 3. Kenaya Kaninda (12. Omaree John-Finn 45’), 4. Tyler Coffey (C), 5. Sammi Omoregie; 6. Rafael Fewings (14. Ryan Beacroft 72’), 8. Aiden Smith (16. Christian Cary 59’), 10. Kayden Bancey; 7. Henry Agyekum (15. Matthias Ojo 72’), 9. Jayden McDonald (17. Lucas Daka 59’), 11. Jeremiah Berkeley-Agyepong
Unused substitutes: 13. Luca Hollidge, 18. Kaden Allsopp

Manager: Harrison Gilkes