The Final Countdown

[AthleticoSpizz]

To select Cisse and Harper over Marek was a worrying dispay of defensive tactics.

Bullshit, it is completely rational to leave out the player most likely to gift the opposition the ball time and again, the player who can't tackle to save his life, and has a lower level of fitness than what is required in order to play regularly in this division.
I hope you enjoy your Matejovsky-waknfest, but he is a player who flatters to deceive, all hype and no end product.

ffs

and I thought i was the only one here who felt that way

Spot-on Ideal!

Marek is NOT good enough for this club!

Wasn't impressed with his cameos last season....even less impressed this season

(a nice guy but) might as well put a nice "gift tied ribbon" onto the ball most of the times that he has it,


does one or two bits of magic....then plays the ball to Mr Invisible/Mr Ballboy, or worse still Mr Opposition four or five times per half.

Copps has to try and justify his signing of course....but Marek needs to play to the team (not the other way around).................very disappointed with him this season

[winchester_royal]

ffs

and I thought i was the only one here who felt that way

Spot-on Ideal!

Marek is NOT good enough for this club!

Wasn't impressed with his cameos last season....even less impressed this season

(a nice guy but) might as well put a nice "gift tied ribbon" onto the ball most of the times that he has it,


does one or two bits of magic....then plays the ball to Mr Invisible/Mr Ballboy, or worse still Mr Opposition four or five times per half.

Copps has to try and justify his signing of course....but Marek needs to play to the team (not the other way around).................very disappointed with him this season

Are you joking?

'Marek is not good enough for this club' LOL

So he is good enough for the C.R. but not RFC?

He is the most talented player at this club, and whilst he has not hit his potential, he has still hit heights that Harper and Cisse could only dream of achieving.

If only you can 'see' that Marek isn't good enough, then you are probably wrong, unless you are suggesting that you know more about football than 95% of HNA?

[AthleticoSpizz]

ffs

and I thought i was the only one here who felt that way

Spot-on Ideal!

Marek is NOT good enough for this club!

Wasn't impressed with his cameos last season....even less impressed this season

(a nice guy but) might as well put a nice "gift tied ribbon" onto the ball most of the times that he has it,


does one or two bits of magic....then plays the ball to Mr Invisible/Mr Ballboy, or worse still Mr Opposition four or five times per half.

Copps has to try and justify his signing of course....but Marek needs to play to the team (not the other way around).................very disappointed with him this season

Are you joking?

'Marek is not good enough for this club' LOL

So he is good enough for the C.R. but not RFC?

He is the most talented player at this club, and whilst he has not hit his potential, he has still hit heights that Harper and Cisse could only dream of achieving.

If only you can 'see' that Marek isn't good enough, then you are probably wrong, unless you are suggesting that you know more about football than 95% of HNA?

and that, my friends is what is wrong with this clubs supporters.


Marek is more of a liability than an asset.............he needs to buck his ideas up, if you are blind to that, then I have no pity for you perrennial whinges

[AthleticoSpizz]

He doesn't fit in. He is a square peg in a round hole.
Or to continue the Batman analogy, he is like the Riddler - nobody understands him and he doesn't play well with others.

He lacks stamina, he lacks any tackling ability, he takes too long on the ball, and he misplaces a lot of passes.

He makes errors in judgement. Some people claim it is because his teammates "aren't with the hip deal", but in fact it is not so.
He plays a pass to where a man was five seconds ago, because it is the continental style of play to only run when on the ball, and sometimes he plays the ball into space where a man should appear in a short while, without it being the tactical disposition of the manager for a man to appear there - so there won't ever appear a man there, and the ball goes out for a throw in. And a lot of the time it appears he decides to put a pass somewhere, then looks down, an opposition player appears in the space where he was going to put the ball, but having already decided to send the ball there he does so anyway, and the opposition get the ball.
Anyone who can't see why this keeps going wrong need to understand football better, rather than just claiming "Matejovsky is too smart for his teammates".

It's just a case of the emperor having no clothes.

and of course the Matejovski " is an international" hysteria

[SLAMMED]

and more recently I dont think Kitson and Little coming back has helped the team squad dynamics

Little no, but Kitson has already won us 2 points.

[Schards#2]

Matejovsky's defensive limitation are well noted but when he's not playing we, simply, do not have any creativity in the entire midfield.

Six 0-0's isn't going to do sadly so we have to create. When we are creating, we can then worry about excuting the chances but, without Matejovsky at present, there are no chances whatsoever.

It was no surprise that Reading created far more in the 20 minutes he was on the pitch yesterday than in the 70 he wasn't when we created zilch.

He may not have lived up to some peoples expectation but he's still head and shoulders above everyone else as an attacking midfielder.

[loyalroyal4life]

Harper was never Batman, he was Robin. Batman left us and Robin couldn't do the job alone.
In short, what we need is a new Batman. And Cissé isn't him.

I agree, but whilst we are without a batman, playing Harper is rendered useless.

Harper is oxf*rd, said it since the start of the season the guy is useless (this season) and won't recapture any of his previous form (this season) so why play him? Sidwell made harper in many ways and right now we need CREATIVITY!! He is no messiah but HE WILL create so bring in Marek! Who to play next to him is the key as i feel Cisse has dropped off his earlier form in the last 8 or so games.

[papereyes]

The Czech Republic really aren't the side they used to be.

Also, he hasn't really played since the European championships, has he?

Further to that, saying "oh, yeah, but he's a BLAH international" is a bit of an appeal to false authority. It doesn't mean he fits into our side and it certainly doesn't mean that he has played well for us in the past.

After the Sheff Weds game, I thought he'd stepped up a level but didn't actually notice him at the CP game.

[SHORT AND CURLY]

Ignore him.
Its the likes of Royal Lee that is the epitome of a Glory Hunter.
He throws his toys out of the pram, cause he cant see Man U, Liverpool, Chelsea and Arsenal week in week out.

Someone who's watched us down at Dorchester, Bury and Chesterfield to name a few doesn't really fit the model of glory hunter you mong.

If you have to resort to insults its MR MONG! Thankyou Mr Glory Hunter

[Royalee]

ambitions

It's plain to see that you are disappointed, but do try and keep in mind that there is always next season.
Next season Murty will be gone, most likely Gunnarsson and possibly a few others as well.
Who will be brought in? Will we finally get a defensive midfielder? Perhaps Karacan will develop further?

Even if we don't go up this season, at least we've had a go. I'm sure we will compete next season as well.

Also, you speak of tactical decisions gone wrong. I feel like a lot of the things done this season are being done in preparation of next season.
For example, Lita was brought back into the team and was a massive failure. Perhaps this was a test, to see if there was any point in keeping him. I predict he will not be offered a new contract and will have to find a new employer.
It also seems Coppell does not have faith in Kebe's ability, or he would not have brought in Little.

Would you rather we went up this year and came straight down, or strengthen ahead of next season and have a chance of staying up when we get back there?

Glass half full / half empty etc

I'd much rather us stay down if Coppell is guaranteed to leave if we do - it' would be better for the club in the long term as if he stays I can see us just coming straight back down again before he goes, thus making the year a pointless exercise.

[Royalee]

And Matejovsky doesn't 'fit in' because Coppell doesn't know how to play him properly, due to his lack of tactical knowledge - another thing holding us back. Matejovsky is frequently played as a box-to-box midfielder, which he can't do as he's a playmaker attacking midfielder. Play him in a diamond behind the strikers and you'll get the most out of him. Matejovsky and Bikey started 5 games in the same side last season and we got 10 points in those games - no coincidence that when we had our strongest creative player and strongest defensive player in the same team, we got by far the best return on points.

Anyone who says Matejovsky's not good enough for the club is seriously deluded - he's a Czech Republic international and stood out during the Euros before his injury - I don't see any others at the club who have played at that level.

[exileinleeds]

And Matejovsky doesn't 'fit in' because Coppell doesn't know how to play him properly, due to his lack of tactical knowledge - another thing holding us back. Matejovsky is frequently played as a box-to-box midfielder, which he can't do as he's a playmaker attacking midfielder. Play him in a diamond behind the strikers and you'll get the most out of him. Matejovsky and Bikey started 5 games in the same side last season and we got 10 points in those games - no coincidence that when we had our strongest creative player and strongest defensive player in the same team, we got by far the best return on points.

WOW! I find it amazing that we have this level of expertise and insight on the fans site- why do you not work for the club. Coppell must indeed be a dolt if he has failed to knock your door down to sign up your unparalled and unequaled tactical awareness. He, after all only has such limited experience of the game at this and the very highest levels of the sport.

Anyone who says Matejovsky's not good enough for the club is seriously deluded - he's a Czech Republic international and stood out during the Euros before his injury - I don't see any others at the club who have played at that level.

Surely that has something to do with the potential of the others in the national sides? Ryan Giggs, being Welsh, has probably not played much top-flight international football. How many England caps do you think Doyle would have were he eligible? Bikey would certainly be a contender for many national squads that play at a higher level than Cameroon.

[floyd__streete]

I agree with most of Royalee's original post. Unfortunately though I have a sneaking feeling that Coppell will be at the helm again next season as this sharp decline in our fortunes continues; I somehow suspect that Nick(y) Hammond will be begging Coppell to stay come what may, will Steve be able to resist the emotional blackmail? He couldn't resist it last summer - when he perhaps should have gone - could he?

[Royal Lady]

I truly think he'll go at the end of the season, come what may. He'll feel he's done all he can here and I really think he wants a break from football. His latest interview almost seems to hint at it. I think he was persuaded by a combination of fan pressure and the Chairman wanting him to stay on and I think that after we were relegated he felt an obligation to try and put it right and get us back up. It just seems at the moment that no-one, Chairman, Manager, Players and fans have any enthusiasm whatsoever.

[exileinleeds]

I truly think he'll go at the end of the season, come what may. He'll feel he's done all he can here and I really think he wants a break from football. His latest interview almost seems to hint at it. I think he was persuaded by a combination of fan pressure and the Chairman wanting him to stay on and I think that after we were relegated he felt an obligation to try and put it right and get us back up. It just seems at the moment that no-one, Chairman, Manager, Players and fans have any enthusiasm whatsoever.

I don't think anyone can argue with any of that.

Part of the reason why their is no real urgency at the club, may well be the very expensive cost of a move this season to the Prem.

No one looking at the team now, could doubt it would need substantial strengthening to survive in the premier league. Of course there is the substantial money from the TV rights, however, in the current economic crises, banks are looking for reductions in lending- we may well have found ourselves having our credit facilities substantially reduced- and our expenditure rise. Not a great business model- and SJM is nothing if not a very astute business man.
If we remain in the Championship, we will continue to have a parachute payment, which will be used to reduce debt, maybe replace one or two of the inevitable we shall lose, and an extra year for the potentially brilliant young players to become a team that storms the league next season, under a new hungry and exciting manager.
Steve Coppell then to retire with the love and eternal gratitude of everyone at RFC.

You could argue that Sir John is a very wealthy man and should be prepared to spend the money now, but how much has his wealth and access to ready cash been affected by the movements in the world markets?

[Jeffers217]

I have given up on this season which is a real shame as on our day we shouldve walked this league, but we havent been at our best for nearly the whole of 2009.
It will be an absolute travesty if Brum go up instead of us but we are gifting them promotion. We shouldve kicked on after we beat them at their place but it hasnt worked. Thing is yer we may easily get into the play offs but we dont have the momentum whereas Sheff Utd do. I would back us on friday but I actually think we are going to lose and I think that will be a good thing for the club. We need a right royal kick up the arse and playing mid table teams with nowt to play for means we are not having to try. I watched the Cov game yday and I just think we will end up like Coventry in a few years time- every season mid table with a half full stadium with no hope and constantly looking back at our time in the premiership.

The reasons we wont make it it all down to the manager I'm afraid and his team selection:

1. Duberry- every game he just hoofs it, never plays it out and spreads the play. Yer he can head but Reading cant play crap football if you get me. What we do well at is passing it on the ground from the back- he dont fit our style.
2. No settled centre midfield pairing- funny how as soon as Marek comes on we create more in 20 mins than the whole game. Yer he does some stupid stuff but I'd prefer to see the player lose the ball whilst trying to create stuff than just passing it back like Harper. There is no understanding between the central midfield and Sidwell has never been replaced.
3. No settled strikeforce- everyone who went to Cov will agree with me when I say Shane Long had a shocking game yday. As soon as N Hunt came on he looked lively, showed the hunger that was lacking and went past players. Long was un interested the whole day. Kitson is a shadow of himself. We have to go back to Doyle and N Hunt like earlier this season.
4. Lack of Kebe- the guy may frustrate some but he's the only one with any quality to go past players and do summat. I love Little but his legs have gone and he's not the player he was.

Unfortunately if we dont go up we stand to lose a lot of players this season- Doyle, Marek, Bikey. Coppell will leave which will be a good thing for this club and then its down to the replacement. But I can see us rapidly turning into a boring mid table team like Coventry. We need passion and urgency and by Coppell coming up with excuses every week means we are giving away that glorious oppertunity of going up automatically. It's just not gonna happen this season guys

[Jeffers217]

Harper was never Batman, he was Robin. Batman left us and Robin couldn't do the job alone.
In short, what we need is a new Batman. And Cissé isn't him.

I agree, but whilst we are without a batman, playing Harper is rendered useless.

Harper is oxf*rd, said it since the start of the season the guy is useless (this season) and won't recapture any of his previous form (this season) so why play him? Sidwell made harper in many ways and right now we need CREATIVITY!! He is no messiah but HE WILL create so bring in Marek! Who to play next to him is the key as i feel Cisse has dropped off his earlier form in the last 8 or so games.

Jem Karacan- look at our record with him in the side

[Negative_Jeff]

I truly think he'll go at the end of the season, come what may. He'll feel he's done all he can here and I really think he wants a break from football. His latest interview almost seems to hint at it. I think he was persuaded by a combination of fan pressure and the Chairman wanting him to stay on and I think that after we were relegated he felt an obligation to try and put it right and get us back up. It just seems at the moment that no-one, Chairman, Manager, Players and fans have any enthusiasm whatsoever.

It really would be incredible if this team were to achieve promotion given the appalling displays since Christmas. However, if we do manage it and Coppell resigns that would also be very strange.
Trivia time then. Who was the last manager to gain promotion to the top division and then resign?
I`ll start with Jimmy Hill at Coventry in 1967.

[Rev Algenon Stickleback H]

Thanks for two great years Steve during your reign, it's a shame you didn't have the foresight or energy to fully fulfil the potential that was there in the end but enjoy your upcoming break and you'll be welcome as a guest when a better manager with more drive and energy and willingness to question oneself's ideas comes in this summer and succeeds where you have ultimately failed.

8 games left and counting...

Coppell is one of the shrewdest and best managers out there. He did not win the PMA League Manager of the year award twice since he has been with us for nothing ffs!

If you actually think about it, we have been punching well above our weight for some time now. With our club being run, at least financially, very well, who on earth could have done more with the budget he has been given?

The simple and one that is the truth is nobody.

Get over your delusions of grandeur, we have been spoilt over the last few years and that is purely down to one man, that being the Legend that is Steve Coppell.

Please explain to me what's shrewd about failing to strengthen your squad when it's underperforming and failing to learn from mistakes year on year? People like you need to get over the fact that the club's no longer 'Little Old Reading', we have the base and resources at our disposal to establish ourselves in the Premiership. And for the last time, Coppell's ALWAYS said he has money required to strengthen but underlined his desire to CHOOSE not to strengthen.

All of that aside, he picks the wrong team week in, week out and neglects the stronger players in our squad, particularly if youth is on their side and is fundamentally scared of change.

I do actually think one of Coppell's biggest failings has been an inability to bring in players beyond those he's worked with elsewhere with any degree of success.

Saying that, I'd also lay a great deal of blame on the club scouting system too. If it's their job to find players, they aren't doing it very well.

[Aly Murty]

I do actually think one of Coppell's biggest failings has been an inability to bring in players beyond those he's worked with elsewhere with any degree of success.

You mean like Doyle, Rosenior, Noel Hunt, Armstrong, Bikey, Duberry etc. etc.