Next Season's Squad.

[super darren caskey]

I would have given McNulty a shot rather than Baldock

At least McNulty has been scoring goals recently,Baldock just seems to run around a lot not really doing that much

[Rollerbob]

I can't understand a lot of the positivity around the current squad. Are people forgetting how much we struggled without the 5 loanees in Jan?

This is the same side (maybe slightly younger and more inexperienced) that really, really struggled at champ level. I remain positive that we'll get a few more faces in (Gomes wouldn't have put a number on new signings if he had been told nothing was happening), and boy oh boy do we need new faces.

[Elm Park Kid]

I would have given McNulty a shot rather than Baldock

At least McNulty has been scoring goals recently,Baldock just seems to run around a lot not really doing that much

Not sure. McNulty only seems able to score at a level/team where he's getting lots of chances. Baldock is a proven Championship goalscorer. He might just need an extended run to get up to speed.

[Elm Park Kid]

I can't understand a lot of the positivity around the current squad. Are people forgetting how much we struggled without the 5 loanees in Jan?

This is the same side (maybe slightly younger and more inexperienced) that really, really struggled at champ level. I remain positive that we'll get a few more faces in (Gomes wouldn't have put a number on new signings if he had been told nothing was happening), and boy oh boy do we need new faces.

I said something similar a few pages back.

Football isn't an exact science - the same squad could finish mid-table or get relegated just dependent on the general atmosphere at the club, the manager and luck. But IMO our current squad is more likely to get relegated than not.

[Stranded]

I would have given McNulty a shot rather than Baldock

At least McNulty has been scoring goals recently,Baldock just seems to run around a lot not really doing that much

Not sure. McNulty only seems able to score at a level/team where he's getting lots of chances. Baldock is a proven Championship goalscorer. He might just need an extended run to get up to speed.

Plus rumoured that McNulty was one of 2 players asked to go on tour who said no.

[blythspartan]

Blackett has just come off a really good season, and we can always play one of the right backs on the left, Yiadom and Gunter both look comfortable there. If we bring in a centre back or Osho steps up, then McIntyre also becomes an option there.

If we don't sign another central midfielder, and probably two, then I find it hard to imagine us not being relegated.

Yeah. Blackett is a much better LB than CB in a two for me. Maybe best at a left sided CB in three, but we don't play that enough to really judge.

With Gunter still here, I've said it before and I'll say it again, I think our depth at fullback is phenomenal. Not up with the best in the division for the first choice players maybe... but I'd be reasonably comfortable seeing Richards and Watson play for 5/10 games if there's injuries. How many teams can say that about their 4th RB and 3rd LB?

I hope you are right about our depth at fullback. I think Yiadom is first class but if Gunter leaves and Obita struggles to get back to full fitness Watson and Richards might have to play a lot more games but then maybe it will be the making of them.

[Hound]

Not sure if posted elsewhere, but Olise has signed a new year 3 deal

Great news I think, on the small sample I've seen of him, he could be a star

[Zip]

Not sure if posted elsewhere, but Olise has signed a new year 3 deal

Great news I think, on the small sample I've seen of him, he could be a star

+1

[NewCorkSeth]

I can't understand a lot of the positivity around the current squad. Are people forgetting how much we struggled without the 5 loanees in Jan?

This is the same side (maybe slightly younger and more inexperienced) that really, really struggled at champ level. I remain positive that we'll get a few more faces in (Gomes wouldn't have put a number on new signings if he had been told nothing was happening), and boy oh boy do we need new faces.

It's a different manager. Different atmosphere. There was a clear message sent by Gomes and Moore that certain characters in the squad were creating disharmony.

We have the bones of a good team. Yiadom, Moore and Swift are all good players at this level. Not many teams they wouldn't get in to. Blackett, Obita, Rinomhota, Meite and Barrow are all championship level players with a few of them having room to grow.

Add in to that players like Loader and Olise, who have bags of potential, and the 3 or so players we are likely to sign in the coming weeks and there is plenty to be positive about.

I dont think anyone on here thinks we are about to storm the league but we should be safer than we were last season. That's worth being positive about right now.

[andrew1957]

Not sure if posted elsewhere, but Olise has signed a new year 3 deal

Great news I think, on the small sample I've seen of him, he could be a star

+1

Indeed - best news all summer so far IMO. I think he will break our outward transfer record in due course as a big club will eventually come in for him.

[andrew1957]

Now we have Olise signed up I hope Loader follows!

[Tilehurstsouthbank]

Not sure if posted elsewhere, but Olise has signed a new year 3 deal

Great news I think, on the small sample I've seen of him, he could be a star

Yep. Confirmed on the OS here: https://www.readingfc.co.uk/news/2019/j ... he-royals/

[Hendo]

Now we have Olise signed up I hope Loader follows!

That really would be ideal.

Also +1 to the MO love in.

[Stranded]

Great news on Olise - very important to get him signed up as a potential star in the making - just hope this can be a bit of a recruitment momentum to get a few much needed (and clearly wanted) players through the door.

[Ranger_762]

To come back to the topic of Oliveira, I think he's a goner; it's too bad, because we fed him for nothing, but I don't think it can be any different now.

[Royal_jimmy]

I can't understand a lot of the positivity around the current squad. Are people forgetting how much we struggled without the 5 loanees in Jan?

This is the same side (maybe slightly younger and more inexperienced) that really, really struggled at champ level. I remain positive that we'll get a few more faces in (Gomes wouldn't have put a number on new signings if he had been told nothing was happening), and boy oh boy do we need new faces.

We're definitely 4 players light in the side. We need 2 solid championship centre backs, a centre midfielder and a striker. I think we'll be lucky to stay up without reinforcements.

[SCIAG]

I can't understand a lot of the positivity around the current squad. Are people forgetting how much we struggled without the 5 loanees in Jan?

This is the same side (maybe slightly younger and more inexperienced) that really, really struggled at champ level. I remain positive that we'll get a few more faces in (Gomes wouldn't have put a number on new signings if he had been told nothing was happening), and boy oh boy do we need new faces.

What positivity?

[From Despair To Where?]

I'm not massively gutted if Oliviera isn't joining as long as we do sign someone. It's gone quiet on the Hooper front but I wouldn't be too disappointed if it was him.

[Hound]

I'd think there would be lots of loan options to fill in up front (mentioned previously but Nketiah at Arsenal IS apparently available for loan), but the problem is it's bringing in another untried youngster or a failed prem striker, who isn't likely to be cheap (ie Hugill)

I'm actually not that worried by what we have up front. Meite and Barrow have proven to be a good combo, and Loader is a season older. Novakovich has 2 solid seasons behind him and has scored against quality opposition in pre-season, and if Baldock stays he is an option in any of the 3 forward positions

NO has obviously quality, but definitely could have gone either way for us. And in fairness, he did only score 3 for us, one of which was a pen, and had a few poor games for us (Rotherham he was awful) as well. Meite's goals were probably more impt in the run in

CB and CM are the bigger concerns for me at the moment.

[NewCorkSeth]

I'd think there would be lots of loan options to fill in up front (mentioned previously but Nketiah at Arsenal IS apparently available for loan), but the problem is it's bringing in another untried youngster or a failed prem striker, who isn't likely to be cheap (ie Hugill)

I'm actually not that worried by what we have up front. Meite and Barrow have proven to be a good combo, and Loader is a season older. Novakovich has 2 solid seasons behind him and has scored against quality opposition in pre-season, and if Baldock stays he is an option in any of the 3 forward positions

NO has obviously quality, but definitely could have gone either way for us. And in fairness, he did only score 3 for us, one of which was a pen, and had a few poor games for us (Rotherham he was awful) as well. Meite's goals were probably more impt in the run in

CB and CM are the bigger concerns for me at the moment.

Just saw this morning Nketiah is available. Doesn't make sense to me. They let Welbeck go so who is their 3rd striker?

Anyway apparently the kid is the cats pyjamas so I'd take him.