Which one of these men is the Premierships's real hero?

[Top Flight]

Number 3: Linvoy Primus

Age: 33
Nationality: British
Position: Centre Back

One of the few top-flight players to have played in all four divisions, Primus has formed a great partnership with Sol Campbell and has a fan in George Graham. "He may not be everybody's cup of tea but he's impressed me with his attitude. He gets the maximum out of his ability."

[Top Flight]

Number 4: Kevin Nolan

Age: 24
Nationality: British
Position: Midfielder

Plenty of people have been calling for this attacking midfielder to be in the national squad, including Charlie Nicholas who reckons: "His performances should have been enough to get him in the England team, maybe not as a starter but certainly in the squad."

[Top Flight]

Number 5: Mikel Arteta

Age: 25
Nationality: Spanish
Position: Midfielder

According to Jeff Stelling: "Creative midfielders are in short supply, but he can beat players, deliver great passes and score goals." Everton's David Moyes has said: "If someone in Spain wanted him, they couldn't afford him."

[Top Flight]

That was all for you Royal Chicago...............

Straight from the magazine.

My fingers are knackered.

[Top Flight]

I think Sidwell is currently being heavily underestimated by RFC fans because he is gonna be leaving us soon.........

Sidwell has been a key performer for us this season. His contribution has been immense.

Sky Sports are quite right to name Sid as the Most Key player in the Prem this season. Its true, he probably is the most valuable.

more off target shots than anyone in th edivision

more mistimed tackles than anyone else in the division

not sure about his passing stats, but they wont be much better

i think many people here are overestimating sidwells worth due to newspaper hype generated becuase his contract is up.
he has been good, him and harper in the midfield have driven the team on, and protected the defence,
but when you actuallyt look at his contribution over every game?? im not wholly convinced


and im not sure if you meant he is th emost valuable player in th eprem or just at reading
both statements are wrong

Well I'm glad you're not the manager brendy wendy........... Who would you replace him with? Marc Bircham?

woah there nelly

did i say id drop him?

its just that im not sure he is really that good

he is good, he has done alot for reading, i wish he'd stay,dont blame him if he goes

its just that when you start to actually quantify what it is that he does that makes him so much better than harper and gunnarson(bearing in mind the fact that he cant shoot, cant pass, can tackle a bit,) im left groping around a little

Well carry on groping around then. In football its the smallest things that make the difference.

Sidwell might no be much better than Jagielka but he is better and thats why we are higher in the league. He may not be loads better than other midfielders but he has an edge and thats why we are a top 10 club. The fact is he is a better player than most along with many other RFC players and thats why we are a top 10 side.

If you were managing and would be happy with average players then we would soon be relegated.

In the Premiership, clubs are prepared to pay a premium which is perhaps 600% higher in financial terms for a player that may only be 5% better than others in ability terms.

Sidwell may only be 1% better than other players but that percentage makes all the difference between winning and losing from having a good team and a bad team.

You might notice the difference next season.

[Vision]

Number 5: Mikel Arteta

Age: 25
Nationality: Spanish
Position: Midfielder

According to Jeff Stelling: "Creative midfielders are in short supply, but he can beat players, deliver great passes and score goals." Everton's David Moyes has said: "If someone in Spain wanted him, they couldn't afford him."

Really like watching Arteta play. He'a a real artist with bags of ability but doesn't seem to have the Prima-donna tendencies which come with that type of player. He's a player that someone like Seol should have a look at in order to mix his undoubted ability with the physical demands of the Premiership.

[brendywendy]

I think Sidwell is currently being heavily underestimated by RFC fans because he is gonna be leaving us soon.........

Sidwell has been a key performer for us this season. His contribution has been immense.

Sky Sports are quite right to name Sid as the Most Key player in the Prem this season. Its true, he probably is the most valuable.

more off target shots than anyone in th edivision

more mistimed tackles than anyone else in the division

not sure about his passing stats, but they wont be much better

i think many people here are overestimating sidwells worth due to newspaper hype generated becuase his contract is up.
he has been good, him and harper in the midfield have driven the team on, and protected the defence,
but when you actuallyt look at his contribution over every game?? im not wholly convinced


and im not sure if you meant he is th emost valuable player in th eprem or just at reading
both statements are wrong

Well I'm glad you're not the manager brendy wendy........... Who would you replace him with? Marc Bircham?

woah there nelly

did i say id drop him?

its just that im not sure he is really that good

he is good, he has done alot for reading, i wish he'd stay,dont blame him if he goes

its just that when you start to actually quantify what it is that he does that makes him so much better than harper and gunnarson(bearing in mind the fact that he cant shoot, cant pass, can tackle a bit,) im left groping around a little

Well carry on groping around then. In football its the smallest things that make the difference.

Sidwell might no be much better than Jagielka but he is better and thats why we are higher in the league. He may not be loads better than other midfielders but he has an edge and thats why we are a top 10 club. The fact is he is a better player than most along with many other RFC players and thats why we are a top 10 side.

If you were managing and would be happy with average players then we would soon be relegated.

In the Premiership, clubs are prepared to pay a premium which is perhaps 600% higher in financial terms for a player that may only be 5% better than others in ability terms.

Sidwell may only be 1% better than other players but that percentage makes all the difference between winning and losing from having a good team and a bad team.

You might notice the difference next season.

and you keep going on about if i was manager how bad we would do
ive never said drop him, he is the engine that makes us go vroom, and i will miss him, we will miss him, he is a good player, and at least in our top 5 midfielders ever
i would not have dropped him this year, i would have played him where he plays every week, so im not sure why the teams fortunes would plummett under my tutelage
apart from the fact im not steve coppell

my point is that with more off target shots and more mistimed challenges than anyone else in the league, maybe alot of it is hype

that is all



[/b]

[Top Flight]

I think Sidwell is currently being heavily underestimated by RFC fans because he is gonna be leaving us soon.........

Sidwell has been a key performer for us this season. His contribution has been immense.

Sky Sports are quite right to name Sid as the Most Key player in the Prem this season. Its true, he probably is the most valuable.

more off target shots than anyone in th edivision

more mistimed tackles than anyone else in the division

not sure about his passing stats, but they wont be much better

i think many people here are overestimating sidwells worth due to newspaper hype generated becuase his contract is up.
he has been good, him and harper in the midfield have driven the team on, and protected the defence,
but when you actuallyt look at his contribution over every game?? im not wholly convinced


and im not sure if you meant he is th emost valuable player in th eprem or just at reading
both statements are wrong

Well I'm glad you're not the manager brendy wendy........... Who would you replace him with? Marc Bircham?

woah there nelly

did i say id drop him?

its just that im not sure he is really that good

he is good, he has done alot for reading, i wish he'd stay,dont blame him if he goes

its just that when you start to actually quantify what it is that he does that makes him so much better than harper and gunnarson(bearing in mind the fact that he cant shoot, cant pass, can tackle a bit,) im left groping around a little

Well carry on groping around then. In football its the smallest things that make the difference.

Sidwell might no be much better than Jagielka but he is better and thats why we are higher in the league. He may not be loads better than other midfielders but he has an edge and thats why we are a top 10 club. The fact is he is a better player than most along with many other RFC players and thats why we are a top 10 side.

If you were managing and would be happy with average players then we would soon be relegated.

In the Premiership, clubs are prepared to pay a premium which is perhaps 600% higher in financial terms for a player that may only be 5% better than others in ability terms.

Sidwell may only be 1% better than other players but that percentage makes all the difference between winning and losing from having a good team and a bad team.

You might notice the difference next season.

and you keep going on about if i was manager how bad we would do
ive never said drop him, he is the engine that makes us go vroom, and i will miss him, we will miss him, he is a good player, and at least in our top 5 midfielders ever
i would not have dropped him this year, i would have played him where he plays every week, so im not sure why the teams fortunes would plummett under my tutelage
apart from the fact im not steve coppell

my point is that with more off target shots and more mistimed challenges than anyone else in the league, maybe alot of it is hype

that is all



[/b]

I will not accept your criticism of Sidwell............. It is completely unacceptable.

I think you are going to be devastated when Sidwell leaves and you are just trying to make yourself feel better that his loss won't be such a big hit by belittling his ability and contribution.

You WILL miss Sidders. You are just trying to cope with the inevitable departure of an all time great RFC midfielder by stating that he is not actually all that good. It is a coping mechanism that you are deploying to protect your mental health

Why can't we just celebrate Sidwell for his last 3 games with us instead of now trying to belittle his talents.

[brendywendy]

I think Sidwell is currently being heavily underestimated by RFC fans because he is gonna be leaving us soon.........

Sidwell has been a key performer for us this season. His contribution has been immense.

Sky Sports are quite right to name Sid as the Most Key player in the Prem this season. Its true, he probably is the most valuable.

more off target shots than anyone in th edivision

more mistimed tackles than anyone else in the division

not sure about his passing stats, but they wont be much better

i think many people here are overestimating sidwells worth due to newspaper hype generated becuase his contract is up.
he has been good, him and harper in the midfield have driven the team on, and protected the defence,
but when you actuallyt look at his contribution over every game?? im not wholly convinced


and im not sure if you meant he is th emost valuable player in th eprem or just at reading
both statements are wrong

Well I'm glad you're not the manager brendy wendy........... Who would you replace him with? Marc Bircham?

woah there nelly

did i say id drop him?

its just that im not sure he is really that good

he is good, he has done alot for reading, i wish he'd stay,dont blame him if he goes

its just that when you start to actually quantify what it is that he does that makes him so much better than harper and gunnarson(bearing in mind the fact that he cant shoot, cant pass, can tackle a bit,) im left groping around a little

Well carry on groping around then. In football its the smallest things that make the difference.

Sidwell might no be much better than Jagielka but he is better and thats why we are higher in the league. He may not be loads better than other midfielders but he has an edge and thats why we are a top 10 club. The fact is he is a better player than most along with many other RFC players and thats why we are a top 10 side.

If you were managing and would be happy with average players then we would soon be relegated.

In the Premiership, clubs are prepared to pay a premium which is perhaps 600% higher in financial terms for a player that may only be 5% better than others in ability terms.

Sidwell may only be 1% better than other players but that percentage makes all the difference between winning and losing from having a good team and a bad team.

You might notice the difference next season.

and you keep going on about if i was manager how bad we would do
ive never said drop him, he is the engine that makes us go vroom, and i will miss him, we will miss him, he is a good player
i would not have dropped him this year, i would have played him where he plays every week, so im not sure why the teams fortunes would plummett under my tutelage
apart from the fact im not steve coppell

my point is that with more off target shots and more mistimed challenges than anyone else in the league, maybe alot of it is hype

that is all



[/b]

[brendywendy]

I think Sidwell is currently being heavily underestimated by RFC fans because he is gonna be leaving us soon.........

Sidwell has been a key performer for us this season. His contribution has been immense.

Sky Sports are quite right to name Sid as the Most Key player in the Prem this season. Its true, he probably is the most valuable.

more off target shots than anyone in th edivision

more mistimed tackles than anyone else in the division

not sure about his passing stats, but they wont be much better

i think many people here are overestimating sidwells worth due to newspaper hype generated becuase his contract is up.
he has been good, him and harper in the midfield have driven the team on, and protected the defence,
but when you actuallyt look at his contribution over every game?? im not wholly convinced


and im not sure if you meant he is th emost valuable player in th eprem or just at reading
both statements are wrong

Well I'm glad you're not the manager brendy wendy........... Who would you replace him with? Marc Bircham?

woah there nelly

did i say id drop him?

its just that im not sure he is really that good

he is good, he has done alot for reading, i wish he'd stay,dont blame him if he goes

its just that when you start to actually quantify what it is that he does that makes him so much better than harper and gunnarson(bearing in mind the fact that he cant shoot, cant pass, can tackle a bit,) im left groping around a little

Well carry on groping around then. In football its the smallest things that make the difference.

Sidwell might no be much better than Jagielka but he is better and thats why we are higher in the league. He may not be loads better than other midfielders but he has an edge and thats why we are a top 10 club. The fact is he is a better player than most along with many other RFC players and thats why we are a top 10 side.

If you were managing and would be happy with average players then we would soon be relegated.

In the Premiership, clubs are prepared to pay a premium which is perhaps 600% higher in financial terms for a player that may only be 5% better than others in ability terms.

Sidwell may only be 1% better than other players but that percentage makes all the difference between winning and losing from having a good team and a bad team.

You might notice the difference next season.

and you keep going on about if i was manager how bad we would do
ive never said drop him, he is the engine that makes us go vroom, and i will miss him, we will miss him, he is a good player, and at least in our top 5 midfielders ever
i would not have dropped him this year, i would have played him where he plays every week, so im not sure why the teams fortunes would plummett under my tutelage
apart from the fact im not steve coppell

my point is that with more off target shots and more mistimed challenges than anyone else in the league, maybe alot of it is hype

that is all



[/b]

I will not accept your criticism of Sidwell............. It is completely unacceptable.

I think you are going to be devastated when Sidwell leaves and you are just trying to make yourself feel better that his loss won't be such a big hit by belittling his ability and contribution.

You WILL miss Sidders. You are just trying to cope with the inevitable departure of an all time great RFC midfielder by stating that he is not actually all that good. It is a coping mechanism that you are deploying to protect your mental health

Why can't we just celebrate Sidwell for his last 3 games with us instead of now trying to belittle his talents.

stop it you loon

i said i would miss him
i siad the team would miss him
i love the man

and would like to kiss his little ginger peanut head
i am just highlighting some of his failings this season

[RoyalChicagoFC]

Number 2: Brian McBride

Age: 34
Nationality: American
Position: Striker

Jeff Stelling says: "Where would Fulham be this season without his goals?" Martin Tyler adds, "I've waxed lyrical about him being a perfect professional."

Aww ~*snif*~...brings a warm feeling to the pit of my stomach, that does --and it's only helped along by the Chinese leftovers I just enjoyed-- but even absent that, if you've got dear old Martin Tyler in your corner, you've got absolutely everything.

That was all for you Royal Chicago...............

Straight from the magazine.

My fingers are knackered.

If it were appropriate to use the "F" word (and variants) here, I'd say that you f'in' rock, dude --but since it isn't, I'll just say cheers for the yeomanlike --heroic, even-- effort.

Anyway, back to the Sidwell controversy...

[Top Flight]

Attention of: Brendy Wendy

Why? Why do you have to highlight his failiings? Everyone has failiings! Doyle has failings...... If Doyle was leaving in the summer would we all start saying, ah Doyla, he wasn't that good really!

There is no need to highlight the negative aspects of Sid. He is a great man, a great player, a legend for RFC. He will only wear the blue and white shirt on three more occassions in his current spell with the Rs. (You never know he could be back in a couple of years time if he doesn't make it with the high expectancy football club that is the Geordie boys.)

Lets just be positive about the contribution that he has made to the football club in HELPING getting us to where we are today!

I think we should celebrate him in his final three games with the Royals and give him a fantastic send off because he deserves it more than most.

There is something wrong with Reading fans where the great people who achieved success with the club are hate figures and the idiots who plummeted us down the league table and got us relegated are respected.

Its a shame that we can't celebrate McGhee and Pardew, the two best previous managers before Coppell.

Sidwell is up there with all the Reading legendary players and lets keep him there. In years to come when Sid comes back in his 50s with grey hair (no longer a ginger), he was part of the 2006 team that won the Championship by a landslide. He was part of the 2007 team that established us in the Premier League. He is a legend!

[Top Flight]

Number 2: Brian McBride

Age: 34
Nationality: American
Position: Striker

Jeff Stelling says: "Where would Fulham be this season without his goals?" Martin Tyler adds, "I've waxed lyrical about him being a perfect professional."

Aww ~*snif*~...brings a warm feeling to the pit of my stomach, that does --and it's only helped along by the Chinese leftovers I just enjoyed-- but even absent that, if you've got dear old Martin Tyler in your corner, you've got absolutely everything.

That was all for you Royal Chicago...............

Straight from the magazine.

My fingers are knackered.

If it were appropriate to use the "F" word (and variants) here, I'd say that you f'in' rock, dude --but since it isn't, I'll just say cheers for the yeomanlike --heroic, even-- effort.

Anyway, back to the Sidwell controversy...

Well you deserve it with your superb coverage of the US TV schedules...

I'm gonna be in LA in a few weeks time and am still wondering if I will be able to watch the final game at Blackburn............. I will keep an eye on your US TV thread.

[RoyalChicagoFC]

I'll just say cheers for the yeomanlike --heroic, even-- effort.

I'm gonna be in LA in a few weeks time and am still wondering if I will be able to watch the final game at Blackburn............. I will keep an eye on your US TV thread.

Yup, me too alas. Probably won't know anything until, quite literally speaking, we pretty much know exactly what'll be at stake up and down the league on the final day, and then the programmers make their TV selections before dithering in getting word to an anxious viewing public.

But I'll be right on top of it, rest assured. If you plan to have communications devices in your possession while you're over here (AOL/IM, MSN, HNA?/PM), I'll be easy to reach, and we can exchange contact detaiLOLs via PM beforehand if you'd like. It's beginning to look like a matchup with more real promise in terms of interest to programmers than it did a few weeks ago --that's for sure. Stay tuned.

Anyway --and once again-- back to the Sidwell controversy...

[Reading_Royal]

It says thr premiership's most valuable player... NEWSFLASH - He's leaving on a free!!!!!

[Cookie]

Number 2: Brian McBride

Age: 34
Nationality: American
Position: Striker

Jeff Stelling says: "Where would Fulham be this season without his goals?" Martin Tyler adds, "I've waxed lyrical about him being a perfect professional."

Didn't make much impression at our gaff


ALSO

There is no need to highlight the negative aspects of Sid. He is a great man, a great player, a legend for RFC. He will only wear the blue and white shirt on three more occassions in his current spell with the Rs. (You never know he could be back in a couple of years time if he doesn't make it with the high expectancy football club that is the Geordie boys.)

Lets just be positive about the contribution that he has made to the football club in HELPING getting us to where we are today!

Very good point.

[West Stand Man]

Sidwell will be lucky to make the top 3 in the RFC supporters player of the season vote, I fancy.

But that is not becuase of his performance, it becuase of the contract stuff. Forget that, and he has been our best player this year.

No, it is because many people think that our player of the year was not SS. Some of us genuinely think that Ingimarsson deserves it more- sorry to disappoint you.

[Behindu]

Precisely because we are a TEAM I don;t think judgements about how Sidwell will fair if he goes or how we might fair without him are very hard to make.

I don;t think he is guaranteed to be a success at another club, he is a very good player but has some significant weaknesses, that may be becasue of the way we play. He doesn;t have a great range of passing, his shooting is not great and he gets booked too often for badly timed tackles. But he also has some great strengths and if a club uses those well then the weaknesses won't matter much. There aren;t many perfect players !

I can;t think of too many players that have left and not been replaced adequately. I guess those who left after the playoff defeat are the obvious ones but almost without exception players who we thought coul dnever be replaced have been. And so will Sidwell....

[paultheroyal]

Sidwell should do what Matt Le Tissier did. Big fish little pond syndrome.

If he goes to another club he will have any flaws seriously exposed and fans will be on his back. He is no better than say a Nicky Butt.

[lozz2601]

It says thr premiership's most valuable player... NEWSFLASH - He's leaving on a free!!!!!

Doesn't mean he isn't worth more!