Squad for 2025-2026

[Royal Monkey]

Losing Craig is the most disappointing out of the 3 for me.
Really surprised Wareham and Wifi are choosing to leave as they both get good amount of game time and it ain’t as if we are splashing loads of cash and brought in any other strikers or wingers.
Wonder who the top player we just missed out on who has chosen to go to Europe instead that Couhig has just mentioned?
Definitely don’t see this being a spectacular transfer window that Couhig alluded to.

[Stranded]

So if this is accurate

We are now in to pre-season and 16 days away from the first friendly without a single recognised striker definitely staying on for next season.

Appreciate the club has been left in a mess and that improvements may take time but we are getting to the stage where the squad will be so new that the less time they have together before the beginning of August, the slower the start we are going to have. We may even need to get 5 or 6 loanees (more than ideal) in in August to bulk out the squad.

I thought this summer might be tough but it does seem to be getting tougher - one thing is certain, we aren't going to die of boredom this summer.

It's certainly not an ideal situation. I wouldn't be surprised if we have some trialists lined up for the friendly at Gillingham but the longer we leave it to make signings we'll be well into the fixture list with the side gelling. Hopefully we'll sign 3-4 players next week. Mind you Redwood are clearly making some tough choices to reduce the playing staff costs at the club. I'm still expecting us to sell Savage too.

Who knows - Stevens signing yesterday shows there are clearly a lot of things moving that we are simply not aware of - so we may well suddenly get 4 or 5 announcements in quick succession - selling players now would be counterproductive but naturally the longer things go with a small squad then players may get restless - unless of course they are fully looped in with what is happening recruitment wise.

[Stranded]

Losing Craig is the most disappointing out of the 3 for me.
Really surprised Wareham and Wifi are choosing to leave as they both get good amount of game time and it ain’t as if we are splashing loads of cash and brought in any other strikers or wingers.
Wonder who the top player we just missed out on who has chosen to go to Europe instead that Couhig has just mentioned?
Definitely don’t see this being a spectacular transfer window that Couhig alluded to.

They've had game time - doesn't mean they would get it next year if the planned recruitment works out - Kelv E may still sign of course.

Assuming the player who went to Europe is from an English club then it's either the Peterboro bloke who just went to St Pauli or the Plymouth guy who just joined Schalke. Neither are clubs I would expect us to be able to compete with.

[mikey_1871]

Not overly worried about Wareham, he showed flashes last season but in reality would likely just be a squad player in the long term. If Exeter see him as a starter (perhaps with wages to match/higher than what we were prepared to offer) then I can see why he'd have made that call.

WiFI and Craig though I was really hoping would stay. Not exactly alarm bells if they leave, but definitely disappointing.

[MouldyRoyal]

Like others, not sure losing Wareham or Wifi is the loss some are making it out to be. If they want to go be first team regulars and we see them as squad players, then it suggests we are setting our sights above them some what. Which is probably right given we struggled for goals from forwards post Smith.

Craig is a big loss though, versatile and talented, and easily a first team regular in L1. Shame.

[genome]

Is there an up to date incoming/outgoing list anywhere? Don't fancy reading through pages of the thread

[Stranded]

The thing with Craig is he had a pretty serious injury which curtailed his season, so its possible any offer took that in to consideration as always a risk that he doesn't comeback quite the same player.

I liked him though, so would be a shame.

[MouldyRoyal]

I think the other thing I would point out is that the new administration have a problem that we haven't seen in 20 odd years, i.e. having so few people in contract at the end of the season. Obviously this is simply the hand they have been dealt by the previous regime, but I suspect the proportion of people not taking up new contracts is similar to usual years but given the numbers it seems higher in absolute terms.

This was always going to be a shit show of a summer trying to rebuild from almost nothing with a more prudent approach to budgetting. That said, we have secured our most important performers while getting in a top L1 defender. Hopefully we can find more players that fit that ambition.

[Only one Trevor Morley]

I am definitely glass half full but it’s hard to make the case that Wareham would go to Exeter unless they are paying him more or offering a longer term contract. Him and Craig would be big losses.

[Royal_jimmy]

The thing with Craig is he had a pretty serious injury which curtailed his season, so its possible any offer took that in to consideration as always a risk that he doesn't comeback quite the same player.

I liked him though, so would be a shame.

That too. Mind you he's still young so there's a higher chance that won't happen. A shame either way.

[MouldyRoyal]

I am definitely glass half full but it’s hard to make the case that Wareham would go to Exeter unless they are paying him more or offering a longer term contract. Him and Craig would be big losses.

I suspect they have offered him a wage that is higher because they see him as a starting forward and we see him as a squad player. Our aim is likely to be much higher up the table than Exeter (no shade to them). You look at the players we have in contract: Pereira, POC, Wing, Elliott, Savage, Knibbs, Yiadom (if back fully fit). These are the backbone of a top table side. I don't see Wareham at that level personally. I wonder whether the club had similar thoughts. Craig is a loss for sure though.

[Royal_jimmy]

I think the other thing I would point out is that the new administration have a problem that we haven't seen in 20 odd years, i.e. having so few people in contract at the end of the season. Obviously this is simply the hand they have been dealt by the previous regime, but I suspect the proportion of people not taking up new contracts is similar to usual years but given the numbers it seems higher in absolute terms.

This was always going to be a shit show of a summer trying to rebuild from almost nothing with a more prudent approach to budgetting. That said, we have secured our most important performers while getting in a top L1 defender. Hopefully we can find more players that fit that ambition.

The transfer embargos haven't helped this situation. Certainly can't blame the new owners for that as they've inherited a club in a huge mess. I see that Huang Kang or whatever his name is on Twitter claiming that the owners have no money. If anything they're just ensuring we aren't overpaying for players and running the club on a more sustainable footing.

I think if we're in July and we've not made any real signings then I'll feel more concerned. Especially as most of the more desired players who were available on free transfers will be snapped up and the reset of the squad will be more likely to impact how we start the season.

[Royal_jimmy]

I am definitely glass half full but it’s hard to make the case that Wareham would go to Exeter unless they are paying him more or offering a longer term contract. Him and Craig would be big losses.

I suspect they have offered him a wage that is higher because they see him as a starting forward and we see him as a squad player. Our aim is likely to be much higher up the table than Exeter (no shade to them). You look at the players we have in contract: Pereira, POC, Wing, Elliott, Savage, Knibbs, Yiadom (if back fully fit). These are the backbone of a top table side. I don't see Wareham at that level personally. I wonder whether the club had similar thoughts. Craig is a loss for sure though.

Yeah, Wareham has a lot of potential and could well be a very good and clinical forward at this level but he's not an instrumental player for us. He did a decent job when Sam Smith left but he did look quite lightweight and didn't get into games enough.

[tidus_mi2]

Definitely believe the suspicion that Wareham has been offered better guarantees of first team football elsewhere, if so and that's his decision, fair enough but thought he might have stayed here and tried to prove himself.

[AthleticoSpizz]

If he’s ‘not good enough’ to be a regular starter here for us, that doesn’t bode well for the team that will be starting him regularly.

[Mid Sussex Royal]

Definitely believe the suspicion that Wareham has been offered better guarantees of first team football elsewhere, if so and that's his decision, fair enough but thought he might have stayed here and tried to prove himself.

Maybe Craig too - he's by no means a guaranteed starter in midfield as its our strongest area and we looker stronger at RB if Yids is fully fit.

Shame though - decent player.

[MouldyRoyal]

If he’s ‘not good enough’ to be a regular starter here for us, that doesn’t bode well for the team that will be starting him regularly.

Do you think Reading and Exeter have equal expectations of what their season could be?

[morganb]

We all watched these players play for us last season. In reality were they really that good or were they playing as we had nobody else?

When Smith left did Wareham seamlessly slot in up front and start banging in the goals? What were his stats like? Was he even a fixture in the starting 11 until the last few games? We are bound to bring in a new striker or two so he knew his game time would be limited and his new contract offering probably reflected that. He has potential and is a good lad to have around, but a great loss?

Kelvin has been knocking around the first team for a few seasons but has he really cemented a place in the starting 11 or improved greatly? There are flashes but no real consistency

Craig took a while to settle at right back and made a number of mistakes during that time. It was a shame he didn't get the opportunity to play in his actual position before he got injured (is he quite an injury prone player?) Of the three his will probably be the biggest miss as he seemed the most developed of the three.

Guess we've got to hope that the replacements we bring in are of a higher calibre

[WestYorksRoyal]

It's a difficult balance. How would you compare Wareham to Smith when he was 21? Ahead of him for sure, and I can see him becoming a good L1 player, but he's not ready to lead the line for a team with promotion ambitions. Losing Craig is also a big blow, but he would also not be a 1st choice starter.

Should you push the boat out on wages for players who likely won't be starting? Clearly the decision is not to.

It's too early to judge whether I agree or not. Last season we massively over achieved; our full back positions and attacking positions after losing Smith were not L1 standard; I genuinely think Shrewsbury wouldn't have swapped with us in those positions. Our GK, CBs and CM compensated for that. So it is a fair expectation that we should have a stronger squad this season than last season. Maybe playing hardball with Wareham, Craig and Ehibhatiomhan now is part of that. But if we line up at the start of August with a weaker team than faced Barnsley, that is an unambiguous failure by the new owners.

[traff]

I'm starting to think the reason for the continued freeze on season ticket prices might be down to a lack of compelling reasons to drive new sales right now , fewer re-signings than expected and no imminent new arrivals to build excitement.

I'm confident we'll see some solid recruitment in the coming weeks, but it's clear this is going to be quite a different team from the one that finished 7th last season. Whether that turns out to be a step forward or not, time will tell.

That said, I'm just genuinely grateful that these are the kinds of discussions we're having, about squad evolution and expectations, rather than the far more serious issues that dominated the past couple of years.