True - and as I say he probably wanted 1st team football having seen Gomes sign a new 3 year deal but would we really want to rely on Gilmartin as 3rd choice? Guess its the risk you take.. Its a home grown player gone which probably means the likes of Murray and even those out casted from last season might stay.
Shame but can understand why he's gone. Going to be third choice so very little chance of game time, let alone bench time Hopefully we got a decent amount for him, along with a sell on clause and maybe a buy-back
I guess if one of the other two got a long-term injury someone else would be brought in ahead of Gilmartin but I'm not sure I would want to see Gilmartin thrown into a 'Jack Bonham' situation in a really important game where we need the three points.
Not the best bit of business this one. I'd go so far as to say a mistake. However the coaching staff must see something in RG that we haven't and, to be fair, they know a lot more about these things than we mere mortals.
Bond isn't good enough for the Prem, but too good to be third choice. If Gomez gets injured I would expect a loan to come in. Risk management. As for bond, will he follow Foster or Loach?
Probably also did not want to be the number three GK either and he would find it hard to join a club say on a season long loan and expect to be their regular number one keeper so this for him looks a good move.
I thought Loach was getting worse when still with us. Bond should do ok at Reading under a good coach. I presume he did want to leave. Apparently the Lithuanian goalie reckons he is coming to be first choice...
Now that we are in the Prem it will become increasingly difficult for our Academy players to break into the first team squad. We should not have sold Brit Assombalonga at the time we did and I hope that this is not another mistake - at the moment it feels like one.
I am sorry but I personally disagree. Britt was not going to get into our first team, the coaching staff who saw him every day did not see he was the future, and we got an excellent price for him. I think that was an excellent bit of business personally. I think we sold him at exactly the right time. I am sad to see Bond go, I am sure most supporters and the club wanted him to go out on loan this year. But with one year left on his contract, if the player didn't want to do that then the correct thing was to let him go for a fee. Next summer he could have left for nothing.