You reject offers that are nowhere near good enough. You consider or negotiate offers which aren't far from what you had in mind. My gut feeling is that it will be £2.5m plus add-ons.
i can't see Newcastle coming back in for him... i would have thought we'd want £3m....the fact that they may not have rejected this offer is a little worrying to say the least!
Pardew said in January if we didn't sign him then, we wouldn't be coming back in for him, believe Newcastle are looking at a lad who just missed out on the France squad. Hope you guys can keep hold of Mariappa as you were so determined to keep hold of him in January. If he was to leave you though Reading would be a good club and he would get more first team football.
More First team football?!, Mapps started over 100 games in a row, until he got suspended or injured, and has started every single match he could, except when he came back from injury at the end of the season.
I think you'll find that he means at his 'new' club - Mapps is more likely to be first choice at Reading whereas at Newcastle he may simply be viewed as a squad player.
From the Rumours site.... Mariappa fee was agreed weeks ago. Watford, with Reading's permission have been leaking stories that bids have been rejected. This is to soften the blow of selling their player of the season. Mariappa is away on International Duty but will complete his £2.7m move when he returns (some of that is in add-ons) Why soften the blow? We all know he is on his way.
he is more creative than Williamson, but what he has is a fantastic attitude, which we all know Williamson hasn't! I'd have Mariappa over Williamson anyday of the week.
Don't think Reading would allow him to make a cameo appearance in LDs testimonial, which is a shame with how long they've been team-mates together.
sooner this sale goes through the better, we need to know what the deal is ASAP so we can be in top squad shape for the start of next season. Yes I AM impatient !
oh that's a good point. Still, it's 2 weeks before the start of the season..they might do...i don't see why not really..if it was a cameo appearance...
agreed. We know he's going, and yes, we want the best money for him, but the longer he's with us, the less chance we get of getting someone good in..
Agree Mexico. Also, while pre-season is always important, in my opinion it's more so for a centre back than for any other position. It's crucial for all concerned that come this time next month, players are at the clubs they're going to be at next season.
if, on the slim chance that Mapps doesn't go this summer, will we offer him a new contract now so that he's worth more in January?
I think we have too. We cannot risk our best players walking out for peanuts. He is worth 2-3mill and we need to be sure of getting that for him.
It's sad but true that he's only worth what another club is prepared to pay for him - and it's starting to look like no-one else values him as much as we do. I would have put his 'natural market' as lower end or recently promoted EPL clubs - with Reading as a best bet. If, as touted, they have backed off, then it may well be that he goes to one of our Championship rivals - possibly one of the three relegated teams - given that he is a proven performer at this level and there would be no level of risk in buying him. I'm not sure that he would view such a move favourably though.
