Fans forum

[fruits]

My source at tonights forum informs me of the following revelations which came direct from SC himself:

- We were offered Kevin Phillips.
- We were interested in Ben Watson but Palace refused to do business with us.
- Coppell effectively offered his resignation in February.
- Expect a player to leave over the next day or two.

My source suspects that Lita might be the one to go because when asked about his front two for Saturday Coppell said that it would likely be Long and Doyle. Nick(y) Hammond was not at the forum because he was finalising the aforementioned departure.

If Long is selected ahead of N Hunt on Saturday, I will give up on Coppell.

Me too. It would be madness, to play Long ahead of Nhunt.

[Barry the bird boggler]

However, I despise the negativity surrounding the club with the current management in charge and the small-club syndrome we seem to have embraced, which is why I can't wait for Coppell to leave so that a new positive era can begin and I can start enjoying my football again.

But would it be that much different with another manager after all they'd have to deal with the same wage structure set by the club.

Several players have made it clear that they want to leave Reading for the Premiership but that wish has only come true for 4 members of last years squad so there's bound to be another 2 or 3 who are going to have to start dealing with it on Tuesday morning.

And despite what people think is our squad actually that much worse than anyone else's in the division if those players can deal with it...

August and September were always likely to be the dodgy months for us as we adjust, its how we manage to cope once we're 10 games plus into the league season.

[Royalee]

However, I despise the negativity surrounding the club with the current management in charge and the small-club syndrome we seem to have embraced, which is why I can't wait for Coppell to leave so that a new positive era can begin and I can start enjoying my football again.

But would it be that much different with another manager after all they'd have to deal with the same wage structure set by the club.

Several players have made it clear that they want to leave Reading for the Premiership but that wish has only come true for 4 members of last years squad so there's bound to be another 2 or 3 who are going to have to start dealing with it on Tuesday morning.

And despite what people think is our squad actually that much worse than anyone else's in the division if those players can deal with it...

August and September were always likely to be the dodgy months for us as we adjust, its how we manage to cope once we're 10 games plus into the league season.

Yes, I'm sure it would make a difference - after all, we were able to pay the likes of Hunt £25k a week when we were in the Premiership - an attractive offer for many players, probably with more talent than him. The wage structure can't be that bad if people are leaving other Championship clubs to join us can it?

I'd rather have a new man in now who can mould a squad rather than having to take over in a worse state when the inevitable happens after this season's failure.

As for our squad - we have some decent players, decent enough to make the playoffs if used properly (Coppell won't, he prefers to save them for cup games and 'stick with experience' (of what? losing games?, but we need key additions in order to get to where we want to be and I have no faith whatsoever in Coppell making these.

[joe999]

I am also told that as many as 8 or 9 players banged on Coppell's door following relegation, demanding a move. "Perhaps I have been too loyal to some of these players" - they showed no loyalty to you did they?

Coppell's reign is now unravelling painfully in front of anyone who cares to open their eyes and see the evidence in front of them. This is a long drawn out goodbye, devoid of any of the dignity you would expect from the man himself. Thanks again to the car park crew for their sterling work in persuading Mr Ponderous to stay

spot on

[SCIAG]

Yes, I'm sure it would make a difference - after all, we were able to pay the likes of Hunt £25k a week when we were in the Premiership - an attractive offer for many players, probably with more talent than him. The wage structure can't be that bad if people are leaving other Championship clubs to join us can it?

If third choice left backs are leaving their clubs to be first choice for us, the wage is pretty irrlevant...

[Stranded]

I am also told that as many as 8 or 9 players banged on Coppell's door following relegation, demanding a move. "Perhaps I have been too loyal to some of these players" - they showed no loyalty to you did they?

Coppell's reign is now unravelling painfully in front of anyone who cares to open their eyes and see the evidence in front of them. This is a long drawn out goodbye, devoid of any of the dignity you would expect from the man himself. Thanks again to the car park crew for their sterling work in persuading Mr Ponderous to stay

spot on

Honestly though, do you think any other manager would have been able to stop said players demanding a move away?

[rfc58]

I am also told that as many as 8 or 9 players banged on Coppell's door following relegation, demanding a move. "Perhaps I have been too loyal to some of these players" - they showed no loyalty to you did they?

Coppell's reign is now unravelling painfully in front of anyone who cares to open their eyes and see the evidence in front of them. This is a long drawn out goodbye, devoid of any of the dignity you would expect from the man himself. Thanks again to the car park crew for their sterling work in persuading Mr Ponderous to stay

spot on

Honestly though, do you think any other manager would have been able to stop said players demanding a move away?

Ferguson/Ronaldo

Mcleish/McFaddon

[BR2]

Not necessarily just down to the manager.
Having seen the exodus of 1995 I thought that with Sky money guaranteed for 2 years and so little spent last season I would have thought from the chairman downwards the club would have been saying to players "Give it till January and see how we are going and if you still feel that we won't be going back up we won't stand in your way".
Instead of that it has been something like "We are going to make drastic cuts all around the club so if any of you want to go then please do so 'cos incoming revenue is all that we care about and we don't hold out much hope for promotion and don't intend to bring in anybody else unless we have to".
Has the club sold itself hard enough to the existing players?
Has it f***.

[SCIAG]

Ferguson/Ronaldo

Mcleish/McFaddon

They didn't stop them demanding it, did they? They just stopped them getting it and calmed them down.

[Royal Lady]

Not necessarily just down to the manager.
Having seen the exodus of 1995 I thought that with Sky money guaranteed for 2 years and so little spent last season I would have thought from the chairman downwards the club would have been saying to players "Give it till January and see how we are going and if you still feel that we won't be going back up we won't stand in your way".
Instead of that it has been something like "We are going to make drastic cuts all around the club so if any of you want to go then please do so 'cos incoming revenue is all that we care about and we don't hold out much hope for promotion and don't intend to bring in anybody else unless we have to".
Has the club sold itself hard enough to the existing players?
Has it f***.

Absolutely spot on.

[rfc58]

Ferguson/Ronaldo

Mcleish/McFaddon

They didn't stop them demanding it, did they? They just stopped them getting it and calmed them down.

And SC couldn't do the same because ??????????????????????

[Wycombe Royal]

Not necessarily just down to the manager.
Having seen the exodus of 1995 I thought that with Sky money guaranteed for 2 years and so little spent last season I would have thought from the chairman downwards the club would have been saying to players "Give it till January and see how we are going and if you still feel that we won't be going back up we won't stand in your way".
Instead of that it has been something like "We are going to make drastic cuts all around the club so if any of you want to go then please do so 'cos incoming revenue is all that we care about and we don't hold out much hope for promotion and don't intend to bring in anybody else unless we have to".
Has the club sold itself hard enough to the existing players?
Has it f***.

Absolutely spot on.

To be honest I'm not too bothered. If the players don't want to be here then we should not be breaking our backs in trying to keep them. Most players look at the short term and if an offer comes in now they are going to take it because they know that if things don't go well that offer may not come in again.

So you can blame the club all you like, but in reality there isn't much they can do about it. These players that are leaving aren't ones that have only been here for 1 or 2 seasons, they have been here for quite a while, and just like you or I in our jobs after a while you just feel the need for a change, a new challenge. Why should footballers be any different?

[Wycombe Royal]

Ferguson/Ronaldo

Mcleish/McFaddon

They didn't stop them demanding it, did they? They just stopped them getting it and calmed them down.

And SC couldn't do the same because ??????????????????????

Who has needed to calm down? Only Doyle and Bikey have mentioned leaving in the press and they were hardly very forceful over it.

[rfc58]

Not necessarily just down to the manager.
Having seen the exodus of 1995 I thought that with Sky money guaranteed for 2 years and so little spent last season I would have thought from the chairman downwards the club would have been saying to players "Give it till January and see how we are going and if you still feel that we won't be going back up we won't stand in your way".
Instead of that it has been something like "We are going to make drastic cuts all around the club so if any of you want to go then please do so 'cos incoming revenue is all that we care about and we don't hold out much hope for promotion and don't intend to bring in anybody else unless we have to".
Has the club sold itself hard enough to the existing players?
Has it f***.

Thats the way I am starting to see things now.

[Kes]

The supporters invest their hard earned money and the club is fleecing them by bringing in cheap signings to replace the decent players that have left, this can only mean one thing - staying in the Championship or League One football.

[rfc58]

Maybe what someone else said, if we had said to Kitson/Sonko/Harper/Doyle/Shorey(if they go).. "give us until January" and if we are not challenging, you can go.. I'd see the club putting ambition before cash.

[Royal Lady]

Whilst Mr Mad is chairman, there will be no big strides to get back into the Prem because he doesn't want to pay the inflated wages for players. As soon as people realise that and are content with being a middling Championship side at best, then everybody's happy. Of course, if Mr Mad or someone actually came out and said, "we're looking to consolidate for the next couple of years, see if anyone comes in with a serious bid to buy the club, the next time we go up, we intend to stay there a lot longer, we've learnt from our mistakes, but rectifying it will take time.." then we'd all know where we stand. Instead, you get half of the supporters who nod in agreement with everything the club does from the Chairman down and the other half who can see where we're going wrong and try to explain it as best they can to the others.

[brendywendy]

of course!

there are the deluded, and plain mental members of the other faction
whereas your faction is rational, and sensible, and are only trying to teach the others the error of theor ways


hang on , thats how i feel in my faction too!

[Royal Lady]

I don't mean teaching them the error of their ways, just trying to explain why we feel the way we do at the moment. Of course, if the club actually came out and told us their objectives, we wouldn't have to speculate on them. We might not like them, but at least we'd know where we all stood, as it were.

[BR2]

Not necessarily just down to the manager.
Having seen the exodus of 1995 I thought that with Sky money guaranteed for 2 years and so little spent last season I would have thought from the chairman downwards the club would have been saying to players "Give it till January and see how we are going and if you still feel that we won't be going back up we won't stand in your way".
Instead of that it has been something like "We are going to make drastic cuts all around the club so if any of you want to go then please do so 'cos incoming revenue is all that we care about and we don't hold out much hope for promotion and don't intend to bring in anybody else unless we have to".
Has the club sold itself hard enough to the existing players?
Has it f***.

Absolutely spot on.

To be honest I'm not too bothered. If the players don't want to be here then we should not be breaking our backs in trying to keep them. Most players look at the short term and if an offer comes in now they are going to take it because they know that if things don't go well that offer may not come in again.

So you can blame the club all you like, but in reality there isn't much they can do about it. These players that are leaving aren't ones that have only been here for 1 or 2 seasons, they have been here for quite a while, and just like you or I in our jobs after a while you just feel the need for a change, a new challenge. Why should footballers be any different?

But in any business if key people leave they are generally replaced by key people and not by the about-to-be-retired and the office juniors.
The office juniors might well be up to the task eventually but it's asking a lot for them to have a big say in how the business performs in that year.
What a gamble it would be.