The Gylfi thread.

[Maguire]

Probably true, but I can't think of any player who looked so classy and effective in the Premier last season who would be available for £7m.

How much would the likes of Clint Dempsey, Cabeye or Ben Arfa go for (the latter being great examples of cheaper talent available if you can identify them of course)?

Which is why I think we should buy him, but you kind of make the point for me in the last sentence. It's because we know him that we're fixated - Newcastle probably didn't pay much more that 7million for Tiote and Cabaye combined and they've been excellent.

[JordCot]

True but Gylfi plus Connolly at LB

A midfield of Karacan-Elwood-Gylfi wouldn't be too shabby.

I think we would need a striker and tbh I'm still not sure on Harte for PL.

Its hard because obv you want to give the whole squad a chance to step up or show they can still do it at that level but for every player that does step up brilliantly we could get one that doesn't and there lies the problem. We may know after the first couple games that we still need to buy a few players which could lead us to save a little in the bank until then.

I kinda get the feeling that because the club and in particular Brian have such a close relationship with Gylfi and he father that all our business would have been conducted 'casually' if you get what I mean. Through talking to him and his family Brian would have known very early on whether the transfer was viable from Gylfi's end and maybe thats why we have heard little news about our bids, maybe he doesn't want to come back. We could be bidding (or looking likely to bid) to try and increase the sell on percentage?

[TBM]

Thing is, Swansea will now just rely on loans and cheap(er) signings and hope all their players perform like they did this/last season....

I see that Scott Sinclair is stalling on signing a new deal, so they may well lose him which would be a massive blow for them

[leww_rfc]

Thing is, Swansea will now just rely on loans and cheap(er) signings and hope all their players perform like they did this/last season....

I see that Scott Sinclair is stalling on signing a new deal, so they may well lose him which would be a massive blow for them

To be fair, losing Sinclair wouldn't be too big of a loss. Dyer's overshadowed him by a mile this season.

[URZZZZZZZZ]

Much as I think we should be bending over backwards to get Sigurdsson, he is but one player and there are many hundreds of others out there who could a job for us in the PL.

There'll be some major moves in the transfer market by RFC this summer all being well so there's little point in getting hung up on one man. After all, it's only because he played for us before that we're so obsessed by him. If he'd been at Ipswich or somewhere then this thread would only be two pages long.

This is a cracking post, there's too many people getting caught up in sentiment here.

When are people finally going to trust Brian and Nicky, they've done very well for us do far.

[mr_number]

Much as I think we should be bending over backwards to get Sigurdsson, he is but one player and there are many hundreds of others out there who could a job for us in the PL.

There'll be some major moves in the transfer market by RFC this summer all being well so there's little point in getting hung up on one man. After all, it's only because he played for us before that we're so obsessed by him. If he'd been at Ipswich or somewhere then this thread would only be two pages long.

This is a cracking post, there's too many people getting caught up in sentiment here.

When are people finally going to trust Brian and Nicky, they've done very well for us do far.

WRONG! Football is all about blind sentimentality.

[RockheadRumple]

I reckon we could get him for 5 mil.

[Terminal Boardom]

I want us to spend on Shane Long.

Gylfi has proven himself in the Prem whereas Shane has still some way to go because of the illness and injuries he has picked up.

[Ian Royal]

Much as I think we should be bending over backwards to get Sigurdsson, he is but one player and there are many hundreds of others out there who could a job for us in the PL.

There'll be some major moves in the transfer market by RFC this summer all being well so there's little point in getting hung up on one man. After all, it's only because he played for us before that we're so obsessed by him. If he'd been at Ipswich or somewhere then this thread would only be two pages long.

This is a cracking post, there's too many people getting caught up in sentiment here.

When are people finally going to trust Brian and Nicky, they've done very well for us do far.

I think you can trust in Bri and Nick and still express disappointment that we don't seem to be busting a gut to try and make this happen.

I'm sure most of us will be happy with whatever we get. But players like Gylfi barely ever come along for teams like us, so to have had him so briefly and have even a small chance of getting him back, well the fans are going to be desperate for it. The guy's amazing.

[Hoop Blah]

If Gylfi has as good a season as he had a half season, then the big boys will come in for him next Summer.

Agreed, which is why I think 7-8-9 Million now is a fairly safe bet.

But lets just say we buy Gylfi now but that stops us buying some other players we were potentially looking at. This time next year we might be getting a big transfer sum from our good investment but going back down. As good as he is, he wont plug a hole if we lose a full back or get injuries to other, poorly covered, areas of the team

Apparently we've got an ambitious budget though, surely that means we can scrape enough together to get those other players that I totally agree we also need.

Do we need those other players more than we need someone more creative and capable at the business end of the pitch? I'm not so sure we do to be honest, partly because I think there are more cheap but proven options for those roles.

[Royal Lady]

I'll cry when he plays at the Mad Stad for Swansea and beats us with one of his free kicks.

[Hoop Blah]

Probably true, but I can't think of any player who looked so classy and effective in the Premier last season who would be available for £7m.

How much would the likes of Clint Dempsey, Cabeye or Ben Arfa go for (the latter being great examples of cheaper talent available if you can identify them of course)?

Which is why I think we should buy him, but you kind of make the point for me in the last sentence. It's because we know him that we're fixated - Newcastle probably didn't pay much more that 7million for Tiote and Cabaye combined and they've been excellent.

Altough I totally agree, knowing the player takes away a lot of the gamble though, it's not just an emotive thing (although I just happen to love watching the lad play because of the way he plays as much as the results he gets).

As brilliantly as Cabeye and Tiote have been, they could've easily turned out to be a Fae, Mateovsky & Cisse problem. Fair do's for Pardew and his team for both spotting them and getting them settled in and playing so well so quickly.

[Maguire]

Probably true, but I can't think of any player who looked so classy and effective in the Premier last season who would be available for £7m.

How much would the likes of Clint Dempsey, Cabeye or Ben Arfa go for (the latter being great examples of cheaper talent available if you can identify them of course)?

Which is why I think we should buy him, but you kind of make the point for me in the last sentence. It's because we know him that we're fixated - Newcastle probably didn't pay much more that 7million for Tiote and Cabaye combined and they've been excellent.

Altough I totally agree, knowing the player takes away a lot of the gamble though, it's not just an emotive thing (although I just happen to love watching the lad play because of the way he plays as much as the results he gets).

As brilliantly as Cabeye and Tiote have been, they could've easily turned out to be a Fae, Mateovsky & Cisse problem. Fair do's for Pardew and his team for both spotting them and getting them settled in and playing so well so quickly.

I think we're on the same page here HB.

[JordCot]

Apparently we've got an ambitious budget though, surely that means we can scrape enough together to get those other players that I totally agree we also need.

Do we need those other players more than we need someone more creative and capable at the business end of the pitch? I'm not so sure we do to be honest, partly because I think there are more cheap but proven options for those roles.

Has someone at the club said we have an ambitious budget? I remember something recently where Hammond said they may bring in a big name signing but I'm not sure what has been said about the budget. For example I would consider Yakubu a big name signing and he is being touted at 1Million so not breaking the bank. So we could have big names without the cost.

The whole idea of scraping together enough to buy the other players is the whole problem, we don't want to buy a brilliant player in Gylfi and then fill the squad with mediocre Championship players and PL rejects. We want to buy a number a players (not as good as gylfi) who will lift the overall quality of the club by more (that's the aim at least).

In terms of which is more important I agree that to some extent our style may have to change as it may not be as effective in the PL but we would be in deeper trouble if we have to rely on players that just aren't good enough in the case of Injuries

[Bring Back The SB]

Apparently we've got an ambitious budget though, surely that means we can scrape enough together to get those other players that I totally agree we also need.

Do we need those other players more than we need someone more creative and capable at the business end of the pitch? I'm not so sure we do to be honest, partly because I think there are more cheap but proven options for those roles.

Has someone at the club said we have an ambitious budget? I remember something recently where Hammond said they may bring in a big name signing but I'm not sure what has been said about the budget. For example I would consider Yakubu a big name signing and he is being touted at 1Million so not breaking the bank. So we could have big names without the cost.

The whole idea of scraping together enough to buy the other players is the whole problem, we don't want to buy a brilliant player in Gylfi and then fill the squad with mediocre Championship players and PL rejects. We want to buy a number a players (not as good as gylfi) who will lift the overall quality of the club by more (that's the aim at least).

In terms of which is more important I agree that to some extent our style may have to change as it may not be as effective in the PL but we would be in deeper trouble if we have to rely on players that just aren't good enough in the case of Injuries

Nail hit on head.

[Hoop Blah]

Apparently we've got an ambitious budget though, surely that means we can scrape enough together to get those other players that I totally agree we also need.

Do we need those other players more than we need someone more creative and capable at the business end of the pitch? I'm not so sure we do to be honest, partly because I think there are more cheap but proven options for those roles.

Has someone at the club said we have an ambitious budget?

Sorry, that was more a nod at those earlier in the thread that were stating our lack of a move for Sigurdsson meant we had more ambition than them because we still had this 'ambitious budget'.

I remember something recently where Hammond said they may bring in a big name signing but I'm not sure what has been said about the budget. For example I would consider Yakubu a big name signing and he is being touted at 1Million so not breaking the bank. So we could have big names without the cost.

The whole idea of scraping together enough to buy the other players is the whole problem, we don't want to buy a brilliant player in Gylfi and then fill the squad with mediocre Championship players and PL rejects. We want to buy a number a players (not as good as gylfi) who will lift the overall quality of the club by more (that's the aim at least).

In terms of which is more important I agree that to some extent our style may have to change as it may not be as effective in the PL but we would be in deeper trouble if we have to rely on players that just aren't good enough in the case of Injuries

I agree with you're thinking, and welcome the reasoned debate by the way, but I don't think the cheaper option players have to be lesser quality if we're smart about it. Yes, spending a bit of money usually equates to less risk with a player, but it's much more about the wages than the fee's these days and there will be some excellent players available on loan or free transfers who will be just as good as those we'd probably purchase with a fee.

[SCIAG]

Thing about Gylfi is, what is it that football fans see in him that the big clubs obviously don't?

Man U fans had a banner up saying buy sigurdsson when he played at OT, commentators were wetting themselves over him... but no big clubs want to take the risk at 7 mill?

Strikes me as a bit odd, especially considering the money they've spent on very average english players recently. Gylfi is better than most of them and counts as home grown. Brucey bonus.

Sorry, what "very average" English players have Man United signed? Are you talking about Liverpool?

United seem to have gone with Kagawa, who is maybe a bit more versatile and provides marketing opportunities Sigurdsson doesn't.
Man City, Spurs and Chelsea have Silva, Van der Vaart and Mata respectively, Sigurdsson wouldn't get in the side (particularly with Marin arriving at Chelsea to play left wing).
Arsenal have Ramsey, whilst Sigurdsson is better, he isn't £7m better.
Liverpool are managerless, and there's only really a place for Sigurdsson if Suarez leaves.

I'm really surprised Newcastle didn't come in for him, and to be honest I'm surprised Hoffenheim accepted £6.8m (only £200k more than they paid for him). But well done Swansea, an excellent player who will be utterly crucial for them.

I think Samuelson's promise that we wouldn't need to sell players turned into "we're going to sign Gylfi back" in a lot of people's heads, mine included, because we'll probably never have the opportunity to sign a player of his quality for such a good fee. In Brian and Nicky we trust.

[JordCot]

I agree with you're thinking, and welcome the reasoned debate by the way, but I don't think the cheaper option players have to be lesser quality if we're smart about it. Yes, spending a bit of money usually equates to less risk with a player, but it's much more about the wages than the fee's these days and there will be some excellent players available on loan or free transfers who will be just as good as those we'd probably purchase with a fee.

Yeah loans are a bit funny really because obviously we would like to be able to cope without them but you look at the impact of players like Caulker and Naughton who have come into promoted teams and done well and there is obvious benefit in it. Rodgers obviously has strong links with Chelsea hence Bertrand, Cummings and McEachran linking up with him. I wonder how strong a link Brian has with Arsenal? I would potentially welcome Afobe back but I dare say players like Frimpong would need another season on loan so maybe there are more that could do well.

There is obviously so much uncertainty with transfers and it is interesting the mixed views people have on buying from relegated teams. You look at the teams that went down and there are lots of players that could improve our team but there was a reason they were relegated as well so its tricky. I suppose all we can do is put our faith in Brian and that list he has been writing for weeks before we were promoted

[Royal Rother]

What the hell is an "ambitious budget" anyway? I guess it's one where if it doesn't work you're a bit financially fcuked for the next few years. A gamble in other words. That is not how Reading FC has been run in the past and, by all accounts, is not how we will be run in the future with TSI.

Ambitious budget eh? What a nonsense term.

[Cypry]

I think you can trust in Bri and Nick and still express disappointment that we don't seem to be busting a gut to try and make this happen.

Don't you think that if Brain and NH thought that Gylfi was the player we needed, the we WOULD be busting a gut to make it happen?

People were shouting about why it wasn't us that got Gylfi when he first came to Swansea on loan, we got Roberts instead and, oh, won the Championship.....

You either trust the club, or you don't - on our recent track record I'm erring on the side of trust....if that means that Gylfi isn't coming to us, then so be it....