Negotiations Continue As Clearout Gathers Pace

22 May 2015
By Hob Nob Anyone?

There's no huge news on contracts as the club begin talks with players they are looking to retain. As widely expected Yakubu, Zat Knight, Jure Travner and Danny Guthrie will not be offered new contracts by the club. Yakubu, Knight and Travner only signed on temporary contracts and didn't do anything to suggest they would be offered a new deal. The only real memory produced by those three players was by Yakubu when he came off the bench and scored the winning goal at Derby County to continue Reading's FA Cup run.

Danny Guthrie was rumoured to be a big earner and was out of favour with new manager Steve Clarke - and wasn't that popular under previous managers. It had seemed like his days were numbered for quite some time and that was essentially confirmed when he finished the season on loan at Fulham. Guthrie arrived on a free transfer three years ago and went on to make 69 appearances for the Royals scoring five goals. His form was hit and miss and now he finds himself set to join another club on a free transfer. Back in 2008 Newcastle paid Liverpool 2.5 million pounds for his services but he failed to live up to the hype with the Royals.

It was confirmed earlier this month that Ryan Edwards would not be offered a contract. Edwards was set to be the next big thing last season and broke into the first team at the start of the season, making ten appearances. However, his last appearance was back in October 2014 before he disappeared from the first team squad.

Perhaps the one big surprise is the impending departure of Mikkel Andersen. The club haven't confirmed that Andersen won't be getting a contract but they haven't said that talks are on-going with the player. Andersen has spent the whole season as understudy to the impressive Adam Federici. He did manage five appearances for the Royals last season, conceding nine goals in four defeats and a single clean sheet in the FA Cup victory at Huddesfield. Young goalkeepers Dan Lincoln and Jonathan Henly are not expected to have their contracts renewed - which means Clarke will have to find a back-up goalkeeper from somewhere - and that assumes that Adam Federici stays at the club.

Adam Federici is negotiating terms of a new deal with the club and looks likely to stay at the moment. Perhaps the results of his negotiations will determine if Andersen is offered a new contract to keep him at the club. Jem Karacan made a successful come back from injury towards the end of the season and has done enough for the club to offer a new contract. Alex Pearce and Stephen Kelly have also been offered new contracts - with Kelly being the only real surprise of a player that the club are trying to keep hold of.

Dominic Samuel spent the second half of the season on loan at League One Coventry City where he scored his first senior goals - he grabbed six goals in thirteen appearances and did enough to grab attention and earn himself a contract extension with the Royals. The re-signing of players like Samuel and the departure of Yakubu gives a good signal of where the club are heading as they look to trim the squad, and the wage bill, and re-structure for the new campaign after a disappointing showing in the league last season.

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