Coppell out!

[Skyline]

To be fair to Woodcote, he didn't flounce out. It was more of a dignified waddle...

[papereyes]

So at worst we are probably heading for 'only' our 5th best finish in 138 years?

Its like the limits of what the side can achieve with the players in a squad can't change on a season by season basis ...

[Stranded]

So at worst we are probably heading for 'only' our 5th best finish in 138 years?

Its like the limits of what the side can achieve with the players in a squad can't change on a season by season basis ...

Maybe the limits of what this side can acheive are what we are currently seeing...

[Once were Biscuitmen]

So at worst we are probably heading for 'only' our 5th best finish in 138 years?

Its like the limits of what the side can achieve with the players in a squad can't change on a season by season basis ...

My point is on the grand scale of things it could be far worse and indeed has been far worse for all but a handful of seasons in the existence of Reading FC.
We won’t miss SC until he has gone. If being 3rd in the league and going through a dip in form is the end for some on here I wonder how they could possible cope with a few seasons of mid-table mediocrity.

We’ve been spoilt over recent years and have no divine right to be in the Premiership. If we do get up I dread to think how many more threads of unending whinging we could generate while selling out every week .

How many clubs in the Championship would not swap their manager for SC? Apart from Swansea if they are playing on ITV obviously.

[Huntley & Palmer]

How many clubs in the Championship would not swap their manager for SC? Apart from Swansea if they are playing on ITV obviously.

Quite a lot I would say, most would probably swap their squads though which is the key item. Coppell's record in man managing during slumps in performance are not the best, I certainly would not put him forward as a candidate to walk into a team like Forest or Charlton and turn their fortunes around. I think it is the one area he is weak in, he doesn't seem able to switch up our tactics if something is not going right. This would be further magnified at the bottom, let alone the top.

[Ian Royal]

How many clubs in the Championship would not swap their manager for SC? Apart from Swansea if they are playing on ITV obviously.

Quite a lot I would say, most would probably swap their squads though which is the key item. Coppell's record in man managing during slumps in performance are not the best, I certainly would not put him forward as a candidate to walk into a team like Forest or Charlton and turn their fortunes around. I think it is the one area he is weak in, he doesn't seem able to switch up our tactics if something is not going right. This would be further magnified at the bottom, let alone the top.

I think that comes from his hands off style. It relies on the players pulling themselves together on the pitch and motivating themselves.

Sometimes you need the blood and thunder from the manager. I could imagine that Coppell's quiet frustration and disappointment could suck confidence and allow you to fall into a shell rather than inspire a player to bust a gut to turn the form around.

The imagination and flair has gone from the side. They don't know what to do about it and Coppell doesn't take enough of a hands on approach to sort it for them.

If we do go up, I think it would probably be time for his break from football. Although I certainly wouldn't be calling for him to leave. He's got enough credit in the bank with me to choose when he goes still.

The good news is, if we can put a few past Forest, we could regain that spark. It's been fragile all season, but it's still fluttering about somewhere in the depths of the team's soul waiting to be rekindled.

[Arch]

So at worst we are probably heading for 'only' our 5th best finish in 138 years?

Its like the limits of what the side can achieve with the players in a squad can't change on a season by season basis ...

Maybe the limits of what this side can acheive are what we are currently seeing...

I'm not buying that. Whilst this side is clearly not good enough to flourish in the Premiership, we've seen how they can dominate pretty much all comers in this league. That makes the fact that they're not doing it now, with the division there for the taking, all the more frustrating.

[IMAMATEOFJOVSKY]

My worry would be, assuming that promotion was achieved, that the hierarchy would again bleat on about how the current crop of players are good enough to hold their own in the premiership - its plain to see that there is no way that the current squad would be able to compete sufficiently to avoid a relegation battle -

However I do not see investment being made either, Sir Mad has been banging the drum about how he wants out, its a rich mans game yadda yadda yadda..nicely lining us up for a "little in the transfer kitty" line in the coming months - and no doubt "we will need to sell before we buy" line as well

"Cake and eat it" comes to mind - if you want success, its going to cost! = Mad wants the success but he doesnt want to open that wallet - if he hasnt now seen that the current crop arent good enough - then what hope is there

[Ian Royal]

You wouldn't see us spunking loads of money about, but you would see more players and money coming in and going out that either of our other Prem campaigns.

Probably in the region of £10m over both windows. A bit less maybe. That's assuming we weren't just turned down by absolutely everyone we were interested in though.

Remember we spent:

Bikey - £1m
Fae (bastard) - £2.5m
Cisse - £600k
Matejovsky - ~£1m
Kebe ~£400k
Rosenior - for Seol - call it the equivalent of £1m?

Without Rosenior that's still spending of £5.5m in a season. Which is gargantuan compared to our normal spending. We had some ~£4m bids turned down around that time too. And we'd spent £2.5m on Halford and ~£800k on Doobs the January before.

[Sun Tzu]

"Cake and eat it" comes to mind - if you want success, its going to cost! = Mad wants the success but he doesnt want to open that wallet - if he hasnt now seen that the current crop arent good enough - then what hope is there

Isn't it also us who are constantly on about wanting success ?

And us who are always moaning about the cost of football ?

[SteveRoyal]

If Coppell was going to leave, it would have to be at the end of a season.
If he leaves at the end of this season, then it gives Madejski time to go out, find a manager capable of keeping us in the Premiership, seeing our squad and adding some more quality to it where needed.
If he left, say, next week, it would mean destabilising the whole club in order to try and find someone capable.

[Sun Tzu]

Rosenior - for Seol - call it the equivalent of £1m?

Without Rosenior that's still spending of £5.5m in a season.

Rosenior for Seol wasn't a player swap deal.

I can't quite recall the reasons behind it but it was cash - possibly there was a medical or other issue with one of them and so the two deals were not linked to avoid one of them failing if the other went wrong.

If we go up I firmly believe we will spend in excess of £10 million. Whereas the 0506 squad was put together on the basis that they could take it right through to the Premiership I think this squad has been put together very differently and there would be no intention to simply tinker here and there for the new division.

[Y25]

I love Coppell to bits and will miss him alot when he does go but ...

his loyalty to players is letting us down at the minute and his inability to change personnel after 45 mins is infuriating.

Kebe and Harper did not deserve to start after the recent run and certainly should not have appeared after the first half.

Lita has had a go now and N. Hunt looks better so thats another easy change.

I would stick with Shunt who is still in a rut (and being man marked in every game) as he can create goals the stats speak for themselves.

[SteveRoyal]

Look at the current squad, the players with premiership quality, and can keep it up for a few more years until we are stable in the Premiership.
Goalkeepers: Hahnemann, Federici (possibly).
Defense: Rosenior, Bikey, Pearce (possibly) and Armstrong (possibly)
Midfield: Matejovsky, S Hunt (when trying to prove himself worthy of £5mil)
Strike: Doyle, N Hunt (possibly)

That's basically a squad that could be premiership material. There is, however, the issue of strength in depth beyond the above players.

[Ian Royal]

Agreed Sun.

When you walk the league like we did you don't need to make huge changes. If we go up, it won't be walking the league.

It would be interesting to know how many changes Sunderland made after 98/99 or Fulham after 2000/01. Both broke the 100 barrier. The following season, neither were relegated. Sunderland finished 7th and Fulham 13th.

[Royalee]

It's so easy to pick holes in your 'squad'.

[The 17 Bus]

I would stick with Shunt, the stats speak for themselves.

no assists in 5 games you mean??

[Sun Tzu]

Look at the current squad, the players with premiership quality, and can keep it up for a few more years until we are stable in the Premiership.
Goalkeepers: Hahnemann, Federici (possibly).
Defense: Rosenior, Bikey, Pearce (possibly) and Armstrong (possibly)
Midfield: Matejovsky, S Hunt (when trying to prove himself worthy of £5mil)
Strike: Doyle, N Hunt (possibly)

That's basically a squad that could be premiership material. There is, however, the issue of strength in depth beyond the above players.

That's a Premiership sqaud without the real quality.

If you added maybe 4 or 5 players to that squad who would be first team starters and filled it from the remainder we might do OK. I reckon you could add Cisse to the list though and remove Marcus (sadly).

We have no way to judge if Tabb warrants inclusion yet.

[Stranded]

It's so easy to pick holes in your 'squad'.

Yes it is, but the same can be said about the other 23 sides in this division.

[IMAMATEOFJOVSKY]

"Cake and eat it" comes to mind - if you want success, its going to cost! = Mad wants the success but he doesnt want to open that wallet - if he hasnt now seen that the current crop arent good enough - then what hope is there

Isn't it also us who are constantly on about wanting success ?

And us who are always moaning about the cost of football ?

Yes we want success too -- If supporters knew that any increase in entrance fees would go towards the purchase of quality players AND NOT upgrading the likes of the media centre, then do you think many would complain? I don't -- you can speak for yourself in terms of moaning about the cost