New Signings ?

[Wycombe Royal]

some people with claimed inside knowledge said he was looking for a replacement for Armstrong. Don't believe that myself, but we'll see.

Well now that Armstrong has been made the new kit manager I suppose this move would make sense.

[Forest Gump]

I could be proved wrong in the next couple of days but Reading appear unable and/or unwilling to do anything in the transfer market and I suspect that their form in the league will be reflect this. Good luck to Sheffield if they try for Smith. If you don't give it a go you will get nothing - so I am not expecting anything next season other than a dog fight with the likes of Barnsley and Plymouth

[Ian Royal]

I could be proved wrong in the next couple of days but Reading appear unable and/or unwilling to do anything in the transfer market and I suspect that their form in the league will be reflect this. Good luck to Sheffield if they try for Smith. If you don't give it a go you will get nothing - so I am not expecting anything next season other than a dog fight with the likes of Barnsley and Plymouth

Yeah, clearly it being 3 July proves we have no intention of making any signings! Despite Rodgers having been extremely open in discussions with STAR naming his transfer targets.



Moron.

[IMAMATEOFJOVSKY]

I could be proved wrong in the next couple of days but Reading appear unable and/or unwilling to do anything in the transfer market and I suspect that their form in the league will be reflect this. Good luck to Sheffield if they try for Smith. If you don't give it a go you will get nothing - so I am not expecting anything next season other than a dog fight with the likes of Barnsley and Plymouth

Yeah, clearly it being 3 July proves we have no intention of making any signings! Despite Rodgers having been extremely open in discussions with STAR naming his transfer targets.



Moron.

Think you are the moron or simply gullible - what does it matter if Rodgers runs o9f a list of players he@s targeting - saying it is one thing- actually getting the players is another - Forrest is totally right, we havent shown any ambition in transfer market for a good few seasons and now its coming home to roost ...so who are the players you are getting all excited about then Ian Royal and lets see what happens during the transfer window - with our pitiful transfer budget that will be made available!!

[CMRoyal]

I could be proved wrong in the next couple of days but Reading appear unable and/or unwilling to do anything in the transfer market and I suspect that their form in the league will be reflect this. Good luck to Sheffield if they try for Smith. If you don't give it a go you will get nothing - so I am not expecting anything next season other than a dog fight with the likes of Barnsley and Plymouth

It's still only early July, you'll have to wait more than a couple of days to be proven wrong. Have faith, though, wrong you will prove to be.

[Dirk Gently]

I could be proved wrong in the next couple of days but Reading appear unable and/or unwilling to do anything in the transfer market and I suspect that their form in the league will be reflect this. Good luck to Sheffield if they try for Smith. If you don't give it a go you will get nothing - so I am not expecting anything next season other than a dog fight with the likes of Barnsley and Plymouth

Interesting opinion - please could you tell us what evidence you base it on?

[RoyalBlue]

I could be proved wrong in the next couple of days but Reading appear unable and/or unwilling to do anything in the transfer market and I suspect that their form in the league will be reflect this. Good luck to Sheffield if they try for Smith. If you don't give it a go you will get nothing - so I am not expecting anything next season other than a dog fight with the likes of Barnsley and Plymouth

Yeah, clearly it being 3 July proves we have no intention of making any signings! Despite Rodgers having been extremely open in discussions with STAR naming his transfer targets.



Moron.

Yes Rodgers has been very clear about wanting to sign Smith. What is far less clear is whether the keepers of JM's purse will allow Rodgers to spend the money required to sign that player.

"Director of football Nick Hammond said: “We have shown an interest in the player and have had a bid rejected.

“I will have a word with the chairman and the board and we will then decide the next course of action.”"

We may have fantastic intentions of signing players but once again unless the club are prepared to pay the transfer fees and wages demanded by the market, then we are extremely unlikely to fulfil those intentions.

£1.8 million is far too much money to pay for Smith - 800k would have been a reasonable deal but he's 29 and there are better long term prospects about for that money.

Such as whom?

Even if you can come up with some names, you seem to be overlooking the fact that we need someone who can deliver the goods this coming season. We have just sold a PL class player for a small fortune and the supporters deserve a player of proven class in his place.

[Friday's Child]

One thing that I will say, regardless of the outcome of the Smith transfer from Watford to his next club, is that Rodgers appears far more up-front to the media when discussing transfers than any of his recent predecessors. While it is definitely the policy of the club to conduct transfer dealings in private, it is - for the first time in a long time - out in the open that we want a player, have made a bid, the manager thinks that if we bid we will win because of the connections, and it is now down to the board determining whether the funds required justify the benefits of his signing.

While I remain totally convinced on the choice of Rodgers, his Mourinho-like nature, and his overall capabilities, this is the first time in a while I feel that we are coming close to breaching our historical stance of confidentiality, and moving into the territory around transfer that Premiership clubs often find themselves in - public and with appropriate disclosure.

[Ian Royal]

I could be proved wrong in the next couple of days but Reading appear unable and/or unwilling to do anything in the transfer market and I suspect that their form in the league will be reflect this. Good luck to Sheffield if they try for Smith. If you don't give it a go you will get nothing - so I am not expecting anything next season other than a dog fight with the likes of Barnsley and Plymouth

Yeah, clearly it being 3 July proves we have no intention of making any signings! Despite Rodgers having been extremely open in discussions with STAR naming his transfer targets.



Moron.

Yes Rodgers has been very clear about wanting to sign Smith. What is far less clear is whether the keepers of JM's purse will allow Rodgers to spend the money required to sign that player.

"Director of football Nick Hammond said: “We have shown an interest in the player and have had a bid rejected.

“I will have a word with the chairman and the board and we will then decide the next course of action.”"

We may have fantastic intentions of signing players but once again unless the club are prepared to pay the transfer fees and wages demanded by the market, then we are extremely unlikely to fulfil those intentions.

£1.8 million is far too much money to pay for Smith - 800k would have been a reasonable deal but he's 29 and there are better long term prospects about for that money.

Such as whom?

Even if you can come up with some names, you seem to be overlooking the fact that we need someone who can deliver the goods this coming season. We have just sold a PL class player for a small fortune and the supporters deserve a player of proven class in his place.

If Rodgers feels he is worthy of a high enough fee to get him, then if he isn't capable of persuading SJM to part with the cash he isn't good enough for the job and isn't a patch on any recent managers we've had.

It is extremely well documented and acknowledged that SJM will grant requests for funds when a good case is put to him. He may give the manager guidance on what he is willing to part with, but if Rodgers thought we wouldn't pay as much as he regards Smith as worth he wouldn't have bothered going for him as it would be pointless.

Either we'll see an increased bid, or it'll tell us Rodgers doesn't value him that high.

[Cookie]

Shit - I thought this was a poll

[leww_rfc]

Shit - I thought this was a poll

why would you possibly think that?

[Tilehurst End]

BR would almost certainly have discussed his buying power with the club before he took the job and would have had a fairly good idea of who would be leaving. With the £5-6m that is likely to come from the sale of Hunt and Bikey, added to the Doyle money, and the fact we've off-loaded some major wage earners, I would hope to see a couple of substantial singings and one or two exciting loanees.

[loyalroyal4life]

£1.8 million is far too much money to pay for Smith - 800k would have been a reasonable deal but he's 29 and there are better long term prospects about for that money.

Like Who? Daniel Sturridge on loan ?

[RoyalBlue]

If Rodgers feels he is worthy of a high enough fee to get him, then if he isn't capable of persuading SJM to part with the cash he isn't good enough for the job and isn't a patch on any recent managers we've had.

It is extremely well documented and acknowledged that SJM will grant requests for funds when a good case is put to him. He may give the manager guidance on what he is willing to part with, but if Rodgers thought we wouldn't pay as much as he regards Smith as worth he wouldn't have bothered going for him as it would be pointless.

Either we'll see an increased bid, or it'll tell us Rodgers doesn't value him that high.

"It is extremely well documented and acknowledged that SJM will grant requests for funds when a good case is put to him."

Perhaps it has been repeatedly said but I'm not sure that it has been particularly well documented or that well proven. And, of course, it all comes down to what SJM regards as a 'good case'. There might be a very good footballing case but if SJM has decided he only wants to use a very tiny proportion of the money received from the PL and mutli-million pound sales of our players then I doubt it will fall into his idea of a 'good case'.

[Mid Sussex Royal]

It would be nice to see some money spent soon - Cardiff have just spent nearly all the Johnson money on Chopra although don't think he's worth £4m

[Jeffers217]

What baffles me is that we receive £6.5 mill for Doyle, we are on of the best run and best off financial clubs in the league- but we STILL can't compete in the transfer market. And then Hammond uses the CREDIT CRUNCH as an excuse. This guy is a prick. I would use £2 mill of that money we've received to sign Simon Cox and then loan out Mancienne, sign Cork and Rose and we are sorted. I find the whole process shocking tbh.

[Super_horns]

Rodgers still wants Smithy it seems but would your chairman be prepared to pay 1.8 million for a guy out of contract next summer?

http://uk.eurosport.yahoo.com/04072009/ ... union.html

[Ian Royal]

If Rodgers feels he is worthy of a high enough fee to get him, then if he isn't capable of persuading SJM to part with the cash he isn't good enough for the job and isn't a patch on any recent managers we've had.

It is extremely well documented and acknowledged that SJM will grant requests for funds when a good case is put to him. He may give the manager guidance on what he is willing to part with, but if Rodgers thought we wouldn't pay as much as he regards Smith as worth he wouldn't have bothered going for him as it would be pointless.

Either we'll see an increased bid, or it'll tell us Rodgers doesn't value him that high.

"It is extremely well documented and acknowledged that SJM will grant requests for funds when a good case is put to him."

Perhaps it has been repeatedly said but I'm not sure that it has been particularly well documented or that well proven. And, of course, it all comes down to what SJM regards as a 'good case'. There might be a very good footballing case but if SJM has decided he only wants to use a very tiny proportion of the money received from the PL and mutli-million pound sales of our players then I doubt it will fall into his idea of a 'good case'.

You carry on ignoring all the evidence presented to you and believe you're own moronic, pessimistic consipracy then.

[Deathy]

Rodgers still wants Smithy it seems but would your chairman be prepared to pay 1.8 million for a guy out of contract next summer?

http://uk.eurosport.yahoo.com/04072009/ ... union.html

It's more of a case of is that much money available for players, let alone just the one? I don't think it is. Times are a lot harder here than many seem to think. I'd be delighted if we actually had £1.5m as a transfer budget this summer.

Smith is a terrific player at this level, and is a good age. But he isn't worth £1.8m with 12 months left on his contract. £1m would be good business IMO.

[RoyalBlue]

Rodgers still wants Smithy it seems but would your chairman be prepared to pay 1.8 million for a guy out of contract next summer?

http://uk.eurosport.yahoo.com/04072009/ ... union.html

It's more of a case of is that much money available for players, let alone just the one? I don't think it is. Times are a lot harder here than many seem to think. I'd be delighted if we actually had £1.5m as a transfer budget this summer.

Smith is a terrific player at this level, and is a good age. But he isn't worth £1.8m with 12 months left on his contract. £1m would be good business IMO.

What relevance how long his contract has left to run?!

As with everything else in this world, his current worth is what someone else is prepared to pay for him!