5 reasons why Gylfi Sigurdsson's departure could be a good thing

It was inevitable. The only surprise might be the timing and the destination, but the Royal's gifted Icelandic midfielder Gylfi Sigurdsson is off to Hofenheim to play in the Bundesliga. Cue mass hysteria from a sizable portion of fans, but once again it's time for a reality check for many Loyal Royals. Here's my 5 reasons why this isn't the end of the world for Reading FC:

Back to 4-4-2
Churchy, Long and Hunt don't exactly excel in the lone front man role and we've lost Rasiak, so with Gylfi gone it's an ideal opportunity to revert to the system that took us to glory a few years back under Sir Steven of Coppellshire.

Dump the debt

No football club of our size should be operating with debt, it's not a good foundation for long-term success. Those who think this is all about 'lining Madejski's coffers' I think are being naive to say the least. Our ambition should be to prosper as a club on a firm financial footing.

Bring on the kids

A youth policy only works if you give those youngsters you are developing a chance. Gylfi got his chance and grasped it, what's to say that others won't do the same? Why should we 'reinvest' in older 'established' players who are often overvalued, overpaid and don't deliver the goods?

One-man team

I'm not sure it was ideal the way Gylfi had been portrayed in some corners as the saviour of Reading FC. We need more than one star in the team - and we've got a few players who fit that bill on their day. Of course he'll be missed, but the team can unite and move forward with purpose.

Now we can move on

Such drawn out transfer stories are never going to be a good thing for the player, team and club. Nobody wanted a Stephen Hunt saga. As sad as it is to see the departure of a fine young player, tomorrow it will be in the past and it will be time to focus on the next game.

...and how about some celebration for the fact that the club can nurture and develop talent in this way? Gylfi had not played any 1st team football before the start of last season - now he's valued at £6m. Who is to say we can not continue to do this?

England, your England

I remember when it started.

One of my earliest sporting memories was watching rugby on the TV with my father. I guess it must have been about 1975, and that legendary Wales team were beating absolutely everyone in sight. I liked football, but didn't really watch it much at that age. Hard to imagine for some now, but it wasn't really on the telly much back then. (the first live televised 'top tier' game of the modern age was not until 1983). My old man always said it was full of 'poofs kissing each other' anyway. Not really a man's sport at all. So it was rugby for me, sat in front of the telly for Five Nations matches on a Saturday afternoon. And when my Dad exploded with joy after a Gareth Edwards' try, running around the room like a court jester on amphetamines, I knew the Welsh jersey meant something very special to him. So the Dai was cast as it were.

Despite being born and living in England there was never really a question of ever supporting England. The rugby Five Nations was all about the rivalry between 'the Celts' and the English, with the French thrown in for good measure and the odd gallic shrug. Supporting a fabulously exciting team who chucked the oval ball around with buckets of flair was easy to do, but the truth is I had no choice. "You're Welsh son, don't forget it!" That sort of thing. Except my mother is Scottish. So technically I was a pure-blooded celt who happened to live in England. What's a boy to do?

My love affair with the round balled-game came a bit later after I started playing it. Everybody was playing football. All you needed was a ball and some jumpers. Rugby? I didn't really have the physique. And all those complicated rules, it's not a game for playing down the park. My earliest memories of a football World Cup were of the 1978 tournament. All ticker-tape, bad hair and, well, no England. So of course with no sign of Wales I naturally supported Scotland. Strange to consider now that Ally McLeod's team went to that tournament with serious ambitions to win it. Archie Gemmill's goal aside there was little to cheer for the Tartan Army. But subsequently during the Home Internationals I found myself wanting Scotland AND Wales to beat England. Didn't happen very often, but oh when it did that was something special to savour.

Something strange happened in Italia '90, I found myself out watching the games a lot in pubs and finding it easy to set aside my natural prejudice. Second Summer of Love? The brilliance of 'World in Motion'? Gazza? The legendary Bobby Robson? Can't work out why, but it didn't last.

In the many years between it's been simple really. Wales all the way, through thick and mainly thin. Even saw (and enjoyed) Wales beat Scotland twice in one crazy week back in 2004, once at rugby and then at football! So maybe I'm best described as an Englishman with the blood of a celt. Easy to see why supporting 'Great Britain' (Olympics, British Lions etc) is so appealing for me. No complexities, no twisted loyalties.

So can I support England during this World Cup? No, sorry. I have no axe to grind, no chip on the shoulder. Despite being my country I'm afraid they're just not my team and never have been. The partisan nature of football fans often requires us to ask that old clichéd question: Club or Country? Royals winning a major trophy or England winning the World Cup? Well, obviously for me there's no contest.

The Big Murty Man!

It's a song. About Graeme Murty. A haunting, melancholic paean to a lost legend, a soulful ballad that tugs at the....um, no it's not, it's a noisy cod-ska rabble-chant - and perfectly acceptable for all that.

May the Norse be with us

Icelandic midfielder Brynjar Gunnarsson has signed a one year contract. As previously suggested on the 106 Twitter feed he is still very much seen as a man who can do a job in the Championship, and his hunger and commitment have been duly rewarded. Nicky Hammond remarked "He is a very good player, his quality gives him great versatility and he continues to set a good example for the younger players. He has a big part to play this season." I couldn't agree more. Bryn can be vital in helping bring through those youngsters which we all know BR will be keen to do. Not only does he have the proverbial 'good engine' but let's not forget that he has chipped in with some vital goals over the years. Good to have him on board still.

Glory days revisited

I found this and thought it was worth a post (despite awful soundtrack!) to sort of mark the passing of an era. Made me a tad emotional to be honest , seriously though, how good were we?! Enjoy.

Steve Coppell resigns

So the inevitable happened, albeit sooner than expected. Steve Coppell resigned after six years as Reading manager late last night. His legacy is one unprecedented success, soured a little latterly by the taste of bitter disappointment. It's clearly the end of an era at Reading FC. Although he ultimately failed to takes us back to the Premier League, it's certainly a sad day for the club. Honest, intelligent and highly principled, we may not see his like again.

Coppell's heartbreak

Steve Coppell gave an emotional post-match interview after the defeat tonight. The gaffer described a 'hollow feeling' after the match and added that once the second Burnley goal went in he knew 'it wasn't meant to be'. Tellingly he talked of the need for 'significant change with the playing staff' and added that the club needed 'a new generation to take responsibility'. He also told the BBC that he 'fully intended to be in work tomorrow planning for the play-off final' and that he signed on the dotted line last year to 'take the club to promotion', admitting failure to do so was a responsibility he accepted. One of the best managers in the game, and the best Reading have ever had, Coppell spoke with more emotion that we're used to, but was his usual measured, thoughtful and insightful self. Whatever decision he makes in the coming weeks his status as a Royals legend is secure.

Church starts as Coppell has striker dilemma

Simon Church will be handed his full Royals debut against Burnley this evening. The Welsh U21 star has been handed a chance to make the headlines and fire the Royals in to a Wembley showdown with Sheffield United. You can get the full story of Church's short career thus far here.

With Kevin Doyle injured and Leroy Lita is not quite fit, it looks posible that the gaffer could start with Shane Long and Church with the out of form Kitson on the bench...let's see!

Follow 106points on Twitter!

It's all the rage you know. Now bite-sized chunks of juicy Reading FC nonsense can be followed on Twitter. Unsurprisingly it's here twitter.com/106points

Howard Webb gets the big game for being a bit crap

It was a terrible decision, and now ref Howard Webb has been punished for awarding Manure a penalty for a perfectly fair challenge by Spurs keeper Gomes. His punishment? He's reffing our game against Bongo on Sunday. Crikey!

Royals v Blades: Head to head

With ten man Bongo beating Wolves last night the picture looks bleak for automatic promotion for the Royals. Small crumbs of comfort might be on offer when we look at our record against Sheffield United in recent years, ahead of our televised Good Friday clash against the Blades. In 13 games stretching back to 2002/2003 (including one League Cup encounter) we have lost just once. It's quite a record, especially when you consider that includes nine victories. We're desperately clutching at straws I know, but maybe we've got a hoodoo over them. Let's just ignore the fact for now that they've won nine times since Christmas and have posted five victories out of the last seven games! This is clearly a huge game for both teams, and we've got to find a performance with the right result to match or the 'promotion decider' against Bongo in May is a dead rubber.

Coppell's 1000th match

As has been widely reported tonight's game will be SC's 1000th game as a league manager. He joins an exclusive club of just 17 gaffers, and I think only Dario Gradi and the Purple One are still active in football league management. It's an astonishing landmark and the man is truly a legend; it'd be fantastic to get a win tonight, not least because of the way things have been going lately. I'm going to predict a hard-fought 2-1 win for the Royals, and hearty congratulations to Mr. C. Even if we don't win!

Tenacity, nonsense and despair

Just when you had almost forgotten Alan Pardew he's kindly reminded us what an absolute plank he really is by making some ill-judged and truly offensive remarks on MotD2 last Sunday. Frankly I'm not that surprised he's put his foot in his mouth, he always struck me as one of the great exponents of the gormless post-match comment, splitting infinitives at will and mixing his tenses with the best of them (Peter Reid was the master of this particular art: 'He's went in there like a dose of salts, to be fair' etc). What's more surprising is that he's been asked for an expert opinion on football. Clearly the man's out of his depth when quizzed about such matters, to be fair.

Kitson back on loan too!!!

Another rumour becomes reality as Dave Kitson returns to the Royals on loan until the end of the season. I'm excited. A target man of his ilk could be just what we need. More here from the BBC

Little back on loan!

Rumours were rife, but it's now official: Glen Little has returned to the Royals on loan until the end of the season. He's already trained with the squad this morning, and will be available for the visit of Charlton on Tuesday. He told the official website:

"I'm really looking forward to it; it should be an exciting end to the season and I'll do everything I can to try to help Reading get back into the Premier League.

"I'm fit and have been training every week, but just haven't had the opportunity to play at Portsmouth since Boxing Day which has been frustrating.

This has to be great news for Reading FC, a firm favourite of the fans, it will be fantastic to see him marauding down the right wing again. Despite Jimmy Kebe's goal yesterday he's had a poor run of form and we certainly need options there. I expect Little to be eased in as an 'impact sub' rather than an automatic starter. Let's hope he can recreate some of the form that he showed during those halcyon days!

Convey knows the way to San Jose

He's only gone and joined the San Jose Earthquakes, and now their 'offence' is complete!
Read all about it here!

A really interesting article about Reading FC

Tired of all this nonsense? Yeah me too. You can read something really good about us here, from the BBC website.

Bobby Convey leaves

His star shone all too briefly during the halcyon days of '05/'06, and now Bobby Convey has left the club by mutual consent. Convey was one of the revelations of that season, but hardly featured after that with injury giving Shunty his opportunity which he duly took. Convey's last contribution of note was over a year ago, when he supplied the pass to set-up Jim Harper's goal against Liverpool. Since then he has become an increasingly peripheral figure, though one who remained well-liked by the fans. Stand out Convey moment for me?  A goal that lingers in the memory was one he scored at Molineux, typical marauding run, cuts in from the left and drives a low shot home. Quality. Nicky Hammond offered some gracious words on his departure, suggesting he 'has a place in our history'. Quite so.

Royals deadline day deals as they happened...

....<whistles>


Good news really, we didn't lose anyone - and despite my feelings about Harps and Hunt right now, this is probably for the best at such a crucial stage of the season. I fully expect Shunty to knuckle down and have one of his all-too-infrequent purple patches now. Don't be surprised if you see more arm-waving and faux tackling from Jim Harper.


And now for some debate: I don't want to give you the impression that I don't rate Jim, it's just he used to do so much more, and to qualify this I have nominated my top three favourite Harper moments, see if you can come up with more of your own.


1. That equaliser against Crystal Palace
A tense Friday night affair at their place, and Andy 'Andrew' Johnson does what he did best (eh?!) by falling over and converting the subsequent penalty. Within two minutes a slick move ends with JH blasting it past their hapless keeper to extend the 29-match unbeaten run. This is how the Independent described that night and it's a joy to read, what a team.


2. That winner against Boro
On the back of about 54 Premier League defeats, Jim turns up from nowhere to bury a late winner at the Riverside. A few hundred Royals fans go bonkers; Gareth Southgate looks more glum than usual.

3. That goal against Liverpool
Yes, that result did really happen. The coolest of finishes from Jim as he puts the nail in the coffin and sends Rafa's lot packing with their first league defeat of the term. Easily our finest moment of a miserable season.

Got any more?

Harper the striker

This from today's BBC football gossip column: 'Middlesbrough are closing in on Reading striker James Harper. (Daily Express)'

OK, where to begin? If Jim Harper is the answer to Boro's multitude of problems, then seriously, I want to know the question.

..and 'striker'? Poor research by the BBC (I'm going to ignore tha fact that it came from the Diana Express) at the very least. Harper going forward? He makes Ray Wilkins look like Steven Gerrard.