and Sheffield United player Peter Ndlovu, who the referee also claimed was abused, all stated that they did not hear any racist abuse. No evidence was found to support Prosser's claim and the FA took no further action. Coppell did get an emotional return to Palace, being applauded into his dugout, despite taking charge of Palace's arch-rivals in the game. Palace won the match 5–0. Some Brighton fans accused Coppell of deliberately capitulating which he denied. Although their performances improved, they were relegated on the final day of the season, five points behind Stoke. In the next season, Brighton pushed hard for promotion, but Coppell received a job offer from Reading, which he accepted, despite the Seagulls topping the Division Two table. Coppell cited the apparent lack of progress on the Falmer stadium project, which was a major factor in his decision to join the club. Without a modern stadium, Coppell felt Brighton had little chance of getting to the Premier League, which was where Coppell wanted to be managing. Reading had recently completed the Madejski Stadium, making them an ideal employer. Reading (2003–2009) On 9 October 2003, Coppell was appointed manager of Reading, succeeding West Ham bound Alan Pardew (who had played under Coppell at Palace, in the late 1980s and early 1990s, and had scored 'that' goal against Liverpool, in the FA Cup Semi-final). His first season in charge, 2003–04, was somewhat hampered by the season's transfer budget already having been spent by his predecessor. His second season in charge began well, and Reading raced to second place in the Championship but a run of eleven matches without a win between Boxing Day 2004 and the 3–1 home victory over Pardew's West Ham United on 12 March 2005 helped end their hopes of promotion as they finished seventh, narrowly missing out on a playoff place. Reading dominated the Championship in the 2005–06 season, setting a new league record of 33 league games unbeaten between the opening day defeat by Plymouth Argyle and the loss at Luton Town in February; these were the only league defeats the team would suffer that season. On 25 March 2006 they clinched promotion to the top flight for the first time in their 135-year history thanks to a 1–1 draw away to Leicester City. Coppell's team secured the league title in the following week, with a 5–0 drubbing of Derby County, and they