RUMOUR - Shane Long (lol)

[Stranded]

Nothing wrong with the move persee Woodcote, everyone would love him here. The general loling is because his last reported wage at Soton was £50k pw, in 2014. So you can probably add a few extra grand to that.

Would be great to be wrong, but I don't see the owners sanctioning that kind of wage just yet. Now, if we are interested and he was willing to take a hefty cut to be "home", then great, he is just what this team needs.

Until that looks likely, there will be lols a plenty.

[Woodcote Royal]

I'd have been LoLing myself had we not spent £3m on a centre back most Liverpool fans had never seen play, £2m on a keeper plus similar amounts on 3 other players. I don't believe we've done all that without budgeting for a new striker and that was never going to be cheap. Surely we would have kept Samuel if this was not the case?

I agree we won't be paying 50k a week but doubt Burnley would either. Anything upto 30k I would not discount, and lets face it, we've paid that and a lot more for much worse in the recent past.

Time is running out and unless the club pulls a rabbit of the hat or, gets luck, it will need to dig deep to acquire the final piece of the jigsaw for what is a very good squad when fully fit.

[GazzTheSpaz]

I'd have been LoLing myself had we not spent £3m on a centre back most Liverpool fans had never seen play, £2m on a keeper plus similar amounts on 3 other players. I don't believe we've done all that without budgeting for a new striker and that was never going to be cheap. Surely we would have kept Samuel if this was not the case?

I agree we won't be paying 50k a week but doubt Burnley would either. Anything upto 30k I would not discount, and lets face it, we've paid that and a lot more for much worse in the recent past.

Time is running out and unless the club pulls a rabbit of the hat or, gets luck, it will need to dig deep to acquire the final piece of the jigsaw for what is a very good squad when fully fit.

Could not agree more! Stam knows more than anyone we need a striker, personally I think he's waiting on news about Wells' injury, whilst poking the Oliveira fire every so often. He clearly has a plan, he's a sly fox.

[Hound]

there's always a chance of this one happening.

If we offered him a nice tasty 4 year deal as we seem to be in the habit of doing, a decent basic + plenty of add ons for promotion etc, then you never know

realistically I can't see him holding down a starting place in the Prem except at maybe someone like Brighton. Burnley is possible, but as mentioned its a long way for him and his young family to go. And its a hole.

[tee peg]

His Mrs doesn't like tup north apparently.

[genome]

His Mrs doesn't like tup north apparently.

What they get up to in the bedroom is none of our business

[RichTea94]

The likes of Stewart Downing and Glenn Murray both dropped down a division to 'go home' to promising Championship sides. Although most of us would rate ShLong higher than those two, his stock seems to have fallen in the past season- Southampton fans don't seem to rate him.

[MoorgateRoyal]

I'd have him back. He was taken from us just after his best season, when he started to look like he would fulfil his potential, and maybe he feels like he has some unfinished business here.

The money will be an issue unless he feels like he can take a cut to come back, with the potential of getting it back after promotion.

[CountryRoyal]

If we offered him a nice tasty 4 year deal as we seem to be in the habit of doing, a decent basic + plenty of add ons for promotion etc, then you never know

Just a bit on this, is anyone else slightly concerned that were seemingly offering very lucrative contracts to what can only be described as less than rated players? Huge vote of confidence in them, but I thought we might be a little more cautious after Pogg8. It was impossible to offload him.

[Hound]

Yep, it's a big show of faith

Suprised to see both Barrow and Bacuna get 4 years when their attitude has been questioned at times

[Snowball]

If Shane was just one year older would we think this transfer unlikely?

Interesting to compare him to Jason Roberts. The following is JR's total career
including his important contribution at Reading, when he was 33/34.

He didn't score a shed-load of goals but was very important to our promotion season

ROBERTS, CAREER

24,415 Minutes
346 Apps
089 Goals
3.88 Apps per goal
036 Assists
274.33 Minutes per goal
195 Minutes per goal/assist

Shane is 3-4 years younger, and barring serious injury, could give us 4-5 years.

IMO (tho it has no chance of happening) he would be perfect for the current side

LONG Career

24,493 Minutes
419 Apps
104 Goals
4.03 Apps per Goal
54 Assists
235.5 Minutes per Goals
196 minutes per goal/assist

Long is actually MORE experienced than Roberts was when he came to Reading
and he has 3-4-5 years left in him barring major injury.

[CountryRoyal]

I forgot about Snowball's Shane Long stat love in.

On second thoughts, please go to Burnley.

[LWJ]

Long has been back to Newbury (where he lived when played for us) at least three times in the last two years.

Not much brings you to Newbury so I wonder if he never sold his house or some family stayed...?

[Gav]

I forgot about Snowball's Shane Long stat love in.

On second thoughts, please go to Burnley.

It brings back memories of one of my all time favourite threads though, so for that alone it's thumbs from me.

[genome]

@TalkReading 14m
Reading are 5/1 and second favourites to sign Shane Long this summer. [@SkyBet] #readingfc

I bet that's solely down to the Twitter rumour.

I wonder if a club has ever decided to enquire about a player off the back of a made-up rumour? Brian T has been tagged in a lot of tweets by Reading fans responding to the rumour. It'd be funny if he saw them and went "oh, yeah, I'll give that go"

[CountryRoyal]

@TalkReading 14m
Reading are 5/1 and second favourites to sign Shane Long this summer. [@SkyBet] #readingfc

I bet that's solely down to the Twitter rumour.

I wonder if a club has ever decided to enquire about a player off the back of a made-up rumour? Brian T has been tagged in a lot of tweets by Reading fans responding to the rumour. It'd be funny if he saw them and went "oh, yeah, I'll give that go"

Like the 21st century version of Ali Dia.

I won't be happy until we sign a Cameroonian account called Yermas Dildo.

[maffff]

Not much brings you to Newbury so I wonder if he never sold his house or some family stayed...?

Wife's family.

[tee peg]

Not much brings you to Newbury so I wonder if he never sold his house or some family stayed...?

Wife's family.

Live in Earley

[maffff]

Not much brings you to Newbury so I wonder if he never sold his house or some family stayed...?

Wife's family.

Live in Earley

There's definitely some family out that way, I used to know one of her cousins who lives in Caversham.

[Kuhl_Runnings]

Probably just family related but I did see him a week or two ago on a train to Waterloo from Earley. Make of that what you will