Rumour - HRK

[Hendo]

http://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/football/transfer-news/swansea-plot-transfer-readings-hal-6035300

Ffs, just take whatever Swansea are offering.

A massive fukcing +1 here.

Why play hardball unless we know Swansea will end up paying. He's on huge wages and is completely shit.

Either Clarke/the club really rate him or Hammond/whoever is very good at what they do and know where to draw the line to get the best price.

With one year left on his deal and coupled with the fact that he is in fact absolutely dreadful at football, if we get anything over 2m then it will be the deal of the century.

Do your stuff, Hammond/whoever.

History seems to point in this direction.

[Nameless]

If we got 4 million for HRK and then threw Academy freebie Fosu into the first team surely the collective HNA wisdom would suggest that would be a massive statement of ambition by Swansea and a cheap and unambitious move by Reading ?

[Jano]

Too good to be true, there is no way we would seriously be asking (with a straight face at least) 4m due to his impressive recent form as some of those stories mention,

[John Smith]

62% of Swansea fans would be happy with the transfer apparently according to the survey on that article!

Must be a whole different breed of ostrich in South Wales

[CholseyRoyal]

62% of Swansea fans would be happy with the transfer apparently according to the survey on that article!

Must be a whole different breed of ostrich in South Wales

Or blinded by the fact he is Welsh

[Upper West Ginger]

62% of "Swansea fans"* would be happy with the transfer apparently according to the survey on that article!
Must be a whole different breed of ostrich in South Wales

* 100% of Reading fans are pretending to belong to Swansea in order to vote "Yes".
Surely not just me, is it?

[Nameless]

Swansea have a pretty good record in the transfer market, and they have a few players who know HRK well including one who grew up with him. They have also seen him play pretty well for Wales who are one of the form teams in the world.
So, if the interest is genuine and not just his agent stirring things, you would think they have done their homework.
HRK has played well for us, just not with any degree of consistency. But there is a decent footballer in there.
It's probably fair to ask whether at least part of the problem is whether we have failed to get the best out of him. Have we pushed him out on the left, where we have limited options, but where he doesn't play for Wales and is not his preferred position. Have we failed to motivate him ?
I kind of think a move would do him good, and we may be surprised that at a different club he looks like a different player.
It would be disappointing, and I'd be frustrated if he somehow found a few new gears elsewhere but it happens. We've picked up plenty of players in the past who were going nowhere at previous clubs and became transformed

[wingnut]

We have tried him up front as well, though.

He's been every bit as dogshit there (possibly even more so) as on the wing.

[Nameless]

The odd game, but not consistently.
Not suggesting we should, we should select the team to suit RFC, not to pander to individual player's whims but if he did move to another club and was told they were going to use him in a role he perhaps felt happier with he may look a different player.
If he played every game the way he does in his cameos then we would have a top player, but neither he nor a series of managers have been able to find that magic spell to make him a consistent rather than sporadic performer.

[Steve_Upper_West]

Swansea have a pretty good record in the transfer market, and they have a few players who know HRK well including one who grew up with him. They have also seen him play pretty well for Wales who are one of the form teams in the world.
So, if the interest is genuine and not just his agent stirring things, you would think they have done their homework.
HRK has played well for us, just not with any degree of consistency. But there is a decent footballer in there.
It's probably fair to ask whether at least part of the problem is whether we have failed to get the best out of him. Have we pushed him out on the left, where we have limited options, but where he doesn't play for Wales and is not his preferred position. Have we failed to motivate him ?
I kind of think a move would do him good, and we may be surprised that at a different club he looks like a different player.
It would be disappointing, and I'd be frustrated if he somehow found a few new gears elsewhere but it happens. We've picked up plenty of players in the past who were going nowhere at previous clubs and became transformed

Good post

Nice to see an objective view on HRK for a change

[RoyallyFcuked]

Swansea have a pretty good record in the transfer market, and they have a few players who know HRK well including one who grew up with him. They have also seen him play pretty well for Wales who are one of the form teams in the world.
So, if the interest is genuine and not just his agent stirring things, you would think they have done their homework.
HRK has played well for us, just not with any degree of consistency. But there is a decent footballer in there.
It's probably fair to ask whether at least part of the problem is whether we have failed to get the best out of him. Have we pushed him out on the left, where we have limited options, but where he doesn't play for Wales and is not his preferred position. Have we failed to motivate him ?
I kind of think a move would do him good, and we may be surprised that at a different club he looks like a different player.
It would be disappointing, and I'd be frustrated if he somehow found a few new gears elsewhere but it happens. We've picked up plenty of players in the past who were going nowhere at previous clubs and became transformed

Agree with this as well but still can't help but laugh that we are supposedly holding out for a £4m price tag. I mean yes, don't bite their hand off at a really low offer and try see how much you can get out of them, but don't scare them off by being stupid. If they have offered anything like £2m plus and they lose interest because we are not budging, we should hang our head in shame.

Say we get £2-3m for him, that's most of the fee for Robert Beric right there and just by selling a player we don't even particularly need...

[John Smith]

Swansea have a pretty good record in the transfer market, and they have a few players who know HRK well including one who grew up with him. They have also seen him play pretty well for Wales who are one of the form teams in the world.
So, if the interest is genuine and not just his agent stirring things, you would think they have done their homework.
HRK has played well for us, just not with any degree of consistency. But there is a decent footballer in there.
It's probably fair to ask whether at least part of the problem is whether we have failed to get the best out of him. Have we pushed him out on the left, where we have limited options, but where he doesn't play for Wales and is not his preferred position. Have we failed to motivate him ?
I kind of think a move would do him good, and we may be surprised that at a different club he looks like a different player.
It would be disappointing, and I'd be frustrated if he somehow found a few new gears elsewhere but it happens. We've picked up plenty of players in the past who were going nowhere at previous clubs and became transformed

Can't agree fully with this. He's come through the ranks with players he knows all around him his whole career - it's not like he was brought into a new team. He's had Gunter as well who he knows from Wales. Sure, the coaching side of things is probably different at Wales/Swans and he shows flashes of brilliance but I really can't see him being anything other than the average Championship player he is.
Cash in now Clarkey

[Nameless]

Who he is playing with now seems a bit irrelevant.
My point was that Swansea would not be buying him 'blind'. They have players who know him and have played with him so would be able to give feedback on his ability/attitude and whether he could do a job for Swansea.
Clarke doesn't need such feedback....

[Coppelled_Streets]

Two bids apparently knocked back by us. Nicky driving up the price. God love him!

[Rollerbob]

Wait... HRK is leaving??









And it could actually happen?








4 MILLION??!!

[Royal Ginger]

He was arguably our best player (probably second to McCarthy) for the final third of our last prem season, and generally better that whole season. He's also been good in the cup and for Wales. I'd say he's proven himself to be a big game player and think he might well look a much better player with the likes of Swansea.

[Hendo]

Would rather cash in on a "big game" player and replace him for a more consistent performer.

Playing well in the big games is no good if you don't turn up for the hum-drum of the league.

[MoorgateRoyal]

Swansea have a pretty good record in the transfer market, and they have a few players who know HRK well including one who grew up with him. They have also seen him play pretty well for Wales who are one of the form teams in the world.
So, if the interest is genuine and not just his agent stirring things, you would think they have done their homework.
HRK has played well for us, just not with any degree of consistency. But there is a decent footballer in there.
It's probably fair to ask whether at least part of the problem is whether we have failed to get the best out of him. Have we pushed him out on the left, where we have limited options, but where he doesn't play for Wales and is not his preferred position. Have we failed to motivate him ?
I kind of think a move would do him good, and we may be surprised that at a different club he looks like a different player.
It would be disappointing, and I'd be frustrated if he somehow found a few new gears elsewhere but it happens. We've picked up plenty of players in the past who were going nowhere at previous clubs and became transformed

I agree with all of this.

[andrew1957]

The truth about HRK is that he looked a much better player in the PL and for Wales than he does in the Championship. Perhaps he just does not have the motivation at this level.

And so for that reason it would be better for both him and RFC if he moves on and if we can get a reasonable fee so much the better. We van then reinvest in players more suited to this level.

We are fortunate to have two very good young wide players coming through in Stacey and Fosu and so I think we could perhaps get away with not replacing him like for like.

[Ian Royal]

Swansea have a pretty good record in the transfer market, and they have a few players who know HRK well including one who grew up with him. They have also seen him play pretty well for Wales who are one of the form teams in the world.
So, if the interest is genuine and not just his agent stirring things, you would think they have done their homework.
HRK has played well for us, just not with any degree of consistency. But there is a decent footballer in there.
It's probably fair to ask whether at least part of the problem is whether we have failed to get the best out of him. Have we pushed him out on the left, where we have limited options, but where he doesn't play for Wales and is not his preferred position. Have we failed to motivate him ?
I kind of think a move would do him good, and we may be surprised that at a different club he looks like a different player.
It would be disappointing, and I'd be frustrated if he somehow found a few new gears elsewhere but it happens. We've picked up plenty of players in the past who were going nowhere at previous clubs and became transformed

+1.

It's a good move for us if he goes, especially if we get money, let alone big money. He needs fresh scenery. His style of play doesn't really fit in with us. I wouldn't be particularly surprised if he went elsewhere and was a hit, although Swansea in the PL is a big ask for him. But I'd be very surprised if, should he stay, he'd have a very good season here.