Has everyone calmed down now?

[Top Flight]

Now that everyone has calmed down a little bit...........

We are not actually in that bad a shape.

This team:

GK: Hahnemann/Federici
RB: Murty/De La Cruz/Rosenior
LB: Shorey/Golbourne
CB: Bikey/Sonko/Duberry
CB: Ingimarsson/Bennett
RM: Oster/Rosenior/Little
LM: Hunt/Convey
CM: Harper/Gunnarrsson
CM: Fae/Cisse
CF: Doyle/Long
CF: Kiston/Lita

will get us results in the Premier League.

Against West Ham, because Fae a CM was played as an RM we lacked balance and shape against the Irons.

I think Fae in central midfield can be as good as Sidwell.

Gunnarsson to me looks like a 30 minute player. He doesn't have the stamina to be effective over 90 minutes. He scores alot of goals coming off the bench because over a short 20/30 minute period he can use all his energy driving forward, starting and finishing runs and powering in goals.

When Gunnar plays the full 90, he conserves energy and tries to last the game. He doesn't make the same energetic runs into the box and put himself about. Fae needs to be the answer to CM.

We are gonna have a big fight on this season because a lot of teams have moved forward with personnel and we have pretty much stood still. But we should have just about enough to live another Premier League day.

Right now, it just looks like we are a Glenn Little and Steve Sidwell short of being top notch once again. If Coppell can address particularly the right wing issue in January then we'll be fine. Hopefully he has already addressed the Sidwell issue in Fae and Cisse. We just need those lads to settle in and adapt to British football. They both look like they have all the attributes needed. They just don't know how to play the English game just yet. They need to learn fast.

Coppell will steer the ship. Nothing to worry about just yet!

[79Royal]

Spot on, although it would be nice if we didn't have to wait for two weeks to get a chance to prove it.

[Top Flight]

Maybe we need a 2 week break to regroup. We can come back in 2 weeks and start the season again.

[Tilehurst Mike]

Now that everyone has calmed down a little bit...........

We are not actually in that bad a shape.

This team:

GK: Hahnemann
RB: Murty/De La Cruz/Rosenior
LB: Shorey
CB: Bikey
CB: Ingimarsson
RM: Oster/Rosenior/Little
LM: Hunt/Convey
CM: Harper
CM: Fae
CF: Doyle
CF: Kiston/Lita

will get us results in the Premier League.

Against West Ham, because Fae a CM was played as an RM we lacked balance and shape against the Irons.

I think Fae in central midfield can be as good as Sidwell.

Gunnarsson to me looks like a 30 minute player. He doesn't have the stamina to be effective over 90 minutes. He scores alot of goals coming off the bench because over a short 20/30 minute period he can use all his energy driving forward, starting and finishing runs and powering in goals.

When Gunnar plays the full 90, he conserves energy and tries to last the game. He doesn't make the same energetic runs into the box and put himself about. Fae needs to be the answer to CM.

We are gonna have a big fight on this season because a lot of teams have moved forward with personnel and we have pretty much stood still. But we should have just about enough to live another Premier League day.

Right now, it just looks like we are a Glenn Little and Steve Sidwell short of being top notch once again. If Coppell can address particularly the right wing issue in January then we'll be fine. Hopefully he has already addressed the Sidwell issue in Fae and Cisse. We just need those lads to settle in and adapt to British football. They both look like they have all the attributes needed. They just don't know how to play the English game just yet. They need to learn fast.

Coppell will steer the ship. Nothing to worry about just yet!

agree, far too early in the season to worry yet, but my own view is that the transfer and wages policy has been a joke. According to Mirror today we are going to make Shorey an offer to be our highest paid player in history. I bet this still won't break the 25k barrier!

[The 17 Bus]

Sonks wont be happy at being ignored.

[The 17 Bus]

I would expect the offer to be £25k a week TBH, same as Sidwell was offered, bonuses will be high on top if we are sensible. Trouble is we need to get the contract extended, not just increase the salary, 4 years at 25k is same as 2 at 50k, it is why we find it so hard to compete in this division at the moment.

what we need is more bums on seats, an extra 6000 at the low price these days of 25 a ticket would bring in up to £2.85m a season, that would go a long way to helping pay the higher salaries to keep players like Shorey.

[cmonurz]

I disagree. Our midfield is severely lacking, and we are going to struggle to win away from home this season. I am also not convinced that Doyle or Lita can match their goals tally of last season.

[doyleisaroyal]

Only 7 years ago.....as the original poster says "We are not actually in that bad a shape", puts a bit of perspective on it all!

WORTHINGTON CUP, ROUND ONE, SECOND LEG
READING 0 LEYTON ORIENT 2 (HT: 0-0, AGG: 1-3, Orient through to round two)

Reading Scorers: -
Orient Scorers: Brkovic (51 mins), Christie (63 mins)

Date: 5 September 2000

Attendance: 4,337

Reading: Whitehead, Robinson, Viveash, Hunter (Mackie), Gurney, Parkinson (Smith), Caskey (McIntyre), Hodges, Butler, Cureton, Igoe.
Subs not used: Mackie, Ashdown.

Leyton Orient: Bayes, Lockwood, Smith, McGhee, Harris, Brkovic, Christie, Walschaerts, Martin, Dorrian, Watts.
Subs: Barrett, Downer, McElholm, Griffiths, Brissett.

Bookings: Cureton, Robinson (Reading); Dorrian, Griffiths, Watts (Leyton Orient)

[SpaceCruiser]

Orient were extremely lucky in that game. One of their goals came from the ball pinging about on the goal line.

[The 17 Bus]

Orient were extremely lucky in that game. One of their goals came from the ball pinging about on the goal line.

surely it came because it pinged over the goal line?

[doyleisaroyal]

And they had Wim Walschaerts, cracking name that.

Could be a new thread, favourite opposition players names....??

Or from your own team, I nominate Wayne oxf*rd

[The 17 Bus]

we have done great names, shouldn't you be out training?

[Vision]

Reading: Whitehead, Robinson, Viveash, Hunter (Mackie), Gurney, Parkinson (Smith), Caskey (McIntyre), Hodges, Butler, Cureton, Igoe.
Subs not used: Mackie, Ashdown.

Bookings: Cureton, Robinson (Reading); Dorrian, Griffiths, Watts (Leyton Orient)

You'll never beat John Mackies, you'll never beat John Mackies..

2 John Mackies, theres only 2 John Mackies.

[Coppelled Streets]

"We're all goin' on a European tour, a European tour..............."

[Smoking Kills Dancing Doe]

If Fae and Rosenior can do half as well as Little and Sid we'll be ok. What's frustrating is that we shouldn't have let ourselves get into a position we're we hoping we'll be ok. The shortcomings of this squad are so obvious and why they haven't been addressed is a serious issue.

oxf*rd all this look where we've come from crap, I hate the way you use our lack of history as an excuse. We're not as good as we were last season as we haven't replaced players that we've lost and not looked to strengthen the way every other team have in any other areas.

I agree the strikers are a big worry, Doyle looks nothing like the player I've watched for the last 2 years but when you don't create your strikers the chances, they've not got much hope.

[Skin]

Ballack's available in Jan, the quality of our hotdogs could be a problem.

[southbank1871]

Only 7 years ago.....as the original poster says "We are not actually in that bad a shape", puts a bit of perspective on it all!

WORTHINGTON CUP, ROUND ONE, SECOND LEG
READING 0 LEYTON ORIENT 2 (HT: 0-0, AGG: 1-3, Orient through to round two)

Reading Scorers: -
Orient Scorers: Brkovic (51 mins), Christie (63 mins)

Date: 5 September 2000

Attendance: 4,337

Reading: Whitehead, Robinson, Viveash, Hunter (Mackie), Gurney, Parkinson (Smith), Caskey (McIntyre), Hodges, Butler, Cureton, Igoe.
Subs not used: Mackie, Ashdown.

Leyton Orient: Bayes, Lockwood, Smith, McGhee, Harris, Brkovic, Christie, Walschaerts, Martin, Dorrian, Watts.
Subs: Barrett, Downer, McElholm, Griffiths, Brissett.

Bookings: Cureton, Robinson (Reading); Dorrian, Griffiths, Watts (Leyton Orient)

Can people please stop posting results from years ago when we were really quite shit, as if we should then be satisfied with struggling this season, just because we're in the Premiership?

Of course it's important to remember the dark years to appreciate where we are today and people who weren't around in those days probably have only ever experienced success supporting Reading, but on the whole it's pretty irrelevant.

[doyleisaroyal]

we have done great names, shouldn't you be out training?

Just got back, a dozen raw eggs at 4 in morning, put on the Rocky theme tune and I was off!

Sorry I should keep up more I know........

[Coppelled Streets]

Only 7 years ago.....as the original poster says "We are not actually in that bad a shape", puts a bit of perspective on it all!

WORTHINGTON CUP, ROUND ONE, SECOND LEG
READING 0 LEYTON ORIENT 2 (HT: 0-0, AGG: 1-3, Orient through to round two)

Reading Scorers: -
Orient Scorers: Brkovic (51 mins), Christie (63 mins)

Date: 5 September 2000

Attendance: 4,337

Reading: Whitehead, Robinson, Viveash, Hunter (Mackie), Gurney, Parkinson (Smith), Caskey (McIntyre), Hodges, Butler, Cureton, Igoe.
Subs not used: Mackie, Ashdown.

Leyton Orient: Bayes, Lockwood, Smith, McGhee, Harris, Brkovic, Christie, Walschaerts, Martin, Dorrian, Watts.
Subs: Barrett, Downer, McElholm, Griffiths, Brissett.

Bookings: Cureton, Robinson (Reading); Dorrian, Griffiths, Watts (Leyton Orient)

I was there and I'll be there again one day and still be proud of it!

[Top Flight]

Only 7 years ago.....as the original poster says "We are not actually in that bad a shape", puts a bit of perspective on it all!

WORTHINGTON CUP, ROUND ONE, SECOND LEG
READING 0 LEYTON ORIENT 2 (HT: 0-0, AGG: 1-3, Orient through to round two)

Reading Scorers: -
Orient Scorers: Brkovic (51 mins), Christie (63 mins)

Date: 5 September 2000

Attendance: 4,337

Reading: Whitehead, Robinson, Viveash, Hunter (Mackie), Gurney, Parkinson (Smith), Caskey (McIntyre), Hodges, Butler, Cureton, Igoe.
Subs not used: Mackie, Ashdown.

Leyton Orient: Bayes, Lockwood, Smith, McGhee, Harris, Brkovic, Christie, Walschaerts, Martin, Dorrian, Watts.
Subs: Barrett, Downer, McElholm, Griffiths, Brissett.

Bookings: Cureton, Robinson (Reading); Dorrian, Griffiths, Watts (Leyton Orient)

Can people please stop posting results from years ago when we were really quite shit, as if we should then be satisfied with struggling this season, just because we're in the Premiership?

Of course it's important to remember the dark years to appreciate where we are today and people who weren't around in those days probably have only ever experienced success supporting Reading, but on the whole it's pretty irrelevant.

All I was saying is that our team is not as weak as it looked against the Hammers.

We got hit by alot of injuries all in one go.

In 2 weeks time, we should be able to put a team out with good balance and shape that is capable of performing in the EPL and getting us results.

Against Bolton and West Ham, with a pile of injuries we couldn't put out a team with a good enough shape.

Coppell decided not to dabble in the transfer market because he feels too many senior players on the fringes is unhealthy for team spirit and he knows that our injury situation will ease up in the next 2 weeks. So we should be back on track with a good side in 2 weeks time.

Thats why I don't think we are in such bad shape right now.