Getting the old gang back together again….?

Every summer transfer speculation is always rife, and even more so following a promotion. And as clubs publish their lists of released players and former Royals become available, there’s discussion about which former Royals would be worth bringing back for this second spell in the Premier League.

So, just for fun, here are some thoughts on just which of the former Royals from the record-breaking 2005/06 team and the subsequent Premier League seasons we should consider re-signing.  For simplicity, I’ve only considered players who made a significant contribution or played in a reasonable number of matches, and as this my opinion piece I get to decide what a “significant contribution” or a “reasonable number of matches” actually means!

Reading FC Transfer Rumours – April 20, 2012

After the celebrations of Tuesday night the players still have the task of bring the Championship trophy home to the Madejski Stadium before the season closes a week on Saturday.

However fans and the media have already started to look at who might be arriving and departing the Madejski Stadium over the summer so here’s the start of a weekly transfer rumour round up.

2012 January Transfer Window Round-up

And that was the window that was. Reading completed their busiest ever January transfer window by signing four players and just as crucially, seeing no key players leave the squad. On top of that we had new contracts for Kebe, McCarthy and Andersen and most importantly of all a transfer of ownership…..well almost anyway.

But how have we done this transfer window, did we get what we needed, have we improved the first team and squad right now and have we made ourselves better for next season and beyond?

The Tilehurst End January Round Table

Earlier this week a few of the writers from the Tilehurst End gathered to talk about the season so far and what might be next. I’d just preface this by saying we met up Thursday so this happened before the news about the potential new investment, which could change quite a few things!

Regardless below the jump you’ll find a few thoughts on what’s gone before and what’s to come.

The Kebe Conundrum

Jimmy Kebe. Sometimes brilliant, sometimes frustrating, sometimes our best player, sometimes our worst, always inconsistent. The ‘Malian Magician’ has reportedly refused to sign a new contract at Reading as Nicky Hammond told the Reading Post:

“With Jimmy we have made him an extremely good offer for this football club. However, the feedback I have had is that he won’t sign it.”

So, it’s at this point we consider our options. After the jump I’ll reveal my thoughts on the situation.

Reading FC Transfer Rumours – July 27th, 2011

Reading FC Transfer Rumours –  July 27, 2011

After weeks on inactivity the Royals have gone out and finally made a first team signing, securing the services of south African defender Bongani Khumalo on loan from Tottenham until at least January. Khumalo has also been joined on the training ground by former Royal Ibrahima Sonko who’s having a trial with a view to a permanent move.

Still, the window remains open for another month, so who else could be arriving, or leaving the Madejski Stadium? We’ll sum up the rumours below.

As always If you’ve got a story we’ve missed or want to offer your thoughts please drop them in the comments section or tweet us @thetilehurstend

Reading FC Transfer Rumours – July 19th, 2011

Reading FC Transfer Rumours –  July 19, 2011 

Around 40 days to go until the transfer window slams shut for 2011 and Reading are still to make a signing! still patience is a virtue and here’s some rumours to keep you going.

If you’ve got a story we’ve missed or want to offer your thoughts please drop them in the comments section or tweet us @thetilehurstend

Where Do We Point A Finger? – A Take On The Matt Mills Transfer

July 8, 2011

(Courtesy This Is Leicester)

When the final whistle blew at Wembley some six weeks ago, I fully expected one player to leave the club for around 5 million pounds, but if you’d have told me that it would be Matt Mills, I’d have asked where you were drinking pre-match and how cheap was the beer…..

I’d have suggested you were drinking/taking even stronger stuff if you’d told me the same thing 15 months ago when a certain central defender caused uproar amongst a group of fans for giving them the middle finger and followed it up weeks later with a needless red card at Ipswich to all but end our play-off hopes.

However, yesterday Matt Mills’ transfer to Championship rivals Leicester City was confirmed, with a fee reported to be £4.5 million rising to £5.5m.  The initial reaction from Reading fans has been mixed, with some players angry and the player, others frustrated at the club’s management and others praising Nick Hammond for getting maximum value for the player.

Below I’ll be giving my take on the whole saga and trying to figure out what might be next.

Longing For More – July 6th, 2011

Longing For More – July 6th, 2011

Something sits rather unhealthily when Sky Sports News teased with the prospect that Reading values the half-season-wonder striker Shane Long at £10 million buckaroos. The leading men at Reading will fall over in sheer excitement and probably in a mental breakdown over astonishment caused if the Royals get an astounding eight-figure sum for a striker who was picked up for £30,000. The transfer market is frankly becoming rather ridiculous.

Reading FC Transfer Rumours – July 6th, 2011

Reading FC Transfer Rumours –  July 6, 2011

The transfer window has still yet to heat up for the Royals but that hasn’t stopped some rumours and murmours for circulating online. Below we’ll review the rumours from the past week or so.

If you’ve got a story we’ve missed or want to offer your thoughts please drop them in the comments section or tweet us @thetilehurstend

Reading FC Transfer Rumours – June 28th, 2011

Reading FC Transfer Rumours –  June 28, 2011

Here’s a few more transfer rumours from the past few days as the Shane Long and Matt Mills bandwagons keep rolling.

If you’ve got a story we’ve missed or want to offer your thoughts please drop them in the comments section or tweet us @thetilehurstend

Reading FC Transfer Rumours – June 21st, 2011

Reading FC Transfer Rumours –  June 21, 2011

Here’s a few more transfer rumours from the past few days in what has been a relatively low-key week in terms of transfer activity.

If you’ve got a story we’ve missed or want to offer your thoughts please drop them in the comments section or tweet us @thetilehurstend

Defensive Shake-up

Ivar Ingimarsson, out. Zurab Khizanishvili, out. Matt Mills rumoured to be out. Ian Harte and Andy Griffin getting on a bit. Marcus Williams chucked out on loan. Shaun Cummings, Alex Pearce and Sean Morisson unproven at this level. It could be quite a summer for the Royals’ defence.

Next season could be pivotal to this current Reading era; will we manage to improve on last seasons dramatic and heartbreaking play-off final, or will we find ourselves drop down to mid-table mediocrity?

Read on to see how a defensive refreshening could help our cause.

Reading FC Transfer Rumours – June 12th, 2011

Reading FC Transfer Rumours –  June 12, 2011

It’s been a tough weekend, it’s raining, there’s no football and still nobody has invented a DeLorean capable of travelling back in time and making Jem’s shot sneak inside the post….

Given those things Andrew has been kind enough to put together a few more transfer rumours to chew over.

Once again, if you’ve got a story we’ve missed or want to offer your thoughts please drop them in the comments section or tweet us @thetilehurstend

Reading FC Transfer Rumours – June 7th, 2011

Reading FC Transfer Rumours –  June 7, 2011

Welcome to the first in a weekly look at the latest Reading transfer rumours and gossip, written by our newest contributor Andrew Wearing.

If you’ve got a story we’ve missed or want to offer your thoughts please drop them in the comments section or tweet us @thetilehurstend