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Sigurðsson in and Taylor out at Newcastle?

Posted on May 4th, 2010 | 63 Comments |

Iceland international interesting Newcastle?
Iceland international interesting Newcastle?
Rumours are abound that Newcastle gaffer Chris Hughton is keeping tabs on Reading’s Icelandic midfielder Gylfi Sigurðsson as he looks to bolster the squad for our return to the Premier League.

Sigurðsson has been one of the stand out performers for Reading in what could be classed as his breakthrough season at the Madejski, scoring 20 goals in 38 appearances from a variety of different positions on the field. Gylfi was one of the stand-out performers of an FA Cup run that saw the Berkshire side reach the Quarter Final, beating the likes of Liverpool, Burnley and West Brom along the way. I have noticed him playing on the right, in the middle and as a second striker in recent weeks and he has done nothing but impress me every time I have happened to see him play. Sigurðsson is undoubtedly a bright talent, and is also attracting interest from Fulham and Bolton Wanderers, although as ever there will be questions surrounding whether the player will be capable of making the step up to the Premier League.

From what I have seen so far, I would say he has what it takes to make it. The Reykjavik born midfielder wont turn 21 until September, and providing he is available at a reasonable price would be a cracking addition to the squad in my opinion. He is a current Iceland Under-21 international and has just picked up the Reading Player of the Season award, which means their manager, Brian McDermott, will be likely to try and stave off any bids for a player that has quickly turned into one of his key men.

Perhaps we could use Ryan Taylor in a makeweight kind of fashion to end Bolton’s interest in Sigurðsson? Rumour has it that Owen Coyle is keen to take the 25 year old scouser from Newcastle anyway and would offer a deal of around £2 million, despite an apparent reluctance from Newcastle to sell.

Apparently it’s the versatility of Ryan Taylor that Coyle is after as he can play at both right midfield and right back. I’ll keep it quiet but, I think Ryan Taylor is pretty awful at right back to be honest and it’s his worst position in my opinion. He doesn’t have the pace to cover any mistakes that may happen, and for me pace is important for any full back.

I would definately like to see Sigurðsson at St James’ Park, he could be the pacy kind of player we need to spice up a midfield that can lack mobility at times. I personally feel that the step up to top level football will be no problem for him and at his age, has the potential to only get better.

As for Ryan Taylor, it’s hard to decide whether I would like to see him stay or not. On one hand he takes great set pieces, gets on with the job in hand, doesn’t kick up a fuss and keeping him would avoid the possibility of him popping up and scoring against us again, probably on Boxing Day. On the other hand, there are better players than him out there, and are the four reasons I just mentioned good enough to keep him on the wagebill at Newcastle United?

I’m not so sure..

NUFCBlog Author: toonsy toonsy has written 643 articles on this blog.

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Comment on this post

63 Responses

  1. 1st~~~~ ;)

    Anyway, Ryan has already spoken that if he does not get enough games,he will have no choice but to move on.

    As for the reading player,he is improving.it would good for him to come to Newcastle.

    Here’s my true opinion about transfers.

    Yes,we keep hearing Newcastle is following Arsenal Mode of nurturing young talents.But what i do hope is that we don’t follow Arsenal Mode of transforming all 1st team players into youngsters.

    What i hope is that,we bring in around 2 youngsters,whereas for other players we bring in decent/semi-classy players.

  3. The Arsenal model would be a Joke….I said they would win sweet FA again this year again so that is 6 years without any silverware or something like that.

    You need a spine to the team that has experience at the highest level that can set an example….when Arsenal had a solid spine they where winners now they are losers that play pretty football.

    I am all for bringing in young talent but we need some experience right through the team then add some hungry kids.

  5. SJT @ 3 – That is basically what AOD said. Bringing in kids only is a wrong’un. It needs the right mixture of youth and experience.

    “1st~~~~”

    I knew that would get you :lol:

  6. @Sirjasontoon: i am only 13yrs old. Yup i do need to grow up. But slow and steady. ;)

  7. did anyone see the late show last night on bbc1..hughton was getting interviewd,and he was saying that we only need 1 or 2 players in coz he dosnt want to spoil the team spirit…team spirit will only get you so far mr hughton a few defeats on the bounce and it will vanish,this is a worry

  9. AOD – Don’t worry about it man, SJT can be touchy sod at times lol

    9th ;)

  10. Hitman – He said he didn’t see too many people coming in but didn’t put a figure on it. I reckon (hope) it’s all smoke and mirrors and we will se 4 players coming in.

    Although if it is 1 or 2 guaranteed starters, say a RB and a goal scorer, then I think the 2 would do it. I don’t think we are a million miles away from having a first 11 that can stop up. The problems would happen when injuries occur.

  11. aye toonsy,but we defo need more than 1 or 2 .its like were just replacing butt and xisco,lets hope its smoke and mirrors..the journal are saying that ashley is releasing a statement sooner.

  13. Aye Hitman, just debating whether or not it’s worth a right up for everyone, or whether it would be better to leave it until the statement comes out.

    I know what Ed would do :)

  14. Chris Coleman sacked by Coventry. The chavs by me will be joyriding in celebration!

  15. Hitman- Im with you on this one mate. Hughton did a fantastic job this season and I rate him as a bloke but the gulf between the ccc and prem is huge. Definitly hoping it’s smoke and mirrors. 1 or 2 won’t cut it. We need RB cover, a midfielder and a proven goal scorer for me at minimum. Any more would be more than welcome. The right players at the right price obviously. Don’t just buy for the sake of buying…but it takes more than team spirit to keep you up in your first season back. I’ve already said I hate the fact the scum got it bang on in snapping up someone like bent, that’s what we need.

  16. sorry the way ch is talking is a big worry! we need cover in loads of areas and for him to say we need 2 players is not something i want to hear. the bottom line is are first 11 never stay fit and when he puts these players on the bench who cant change games then we have nothing to offer. on the bench u need 1 defender 1 midfield and 1 striker the rest players who can change a game or make something happen. that means if he is going to stick to same players then he must have are young hungary players who can make a difference in attack to come on. not people like r.talor smith best. who wont make a difference off the bench.

  17. asim says:
    May 4, 2010 at 11:28 am

    “for him to say we need 2 players”

    He didn’t say those words, Asim.

  18. Can’t watch the vid here, but I trust CH to do the right thing. I believe he knows what is needed, and that’s not just more kids but a really strong experienced spine, as has been said before. If he’s said ‘1 or 2’ I expect he means that many to come straight into the starting line-up. I very much doubt if we’ll sign less than three youngsters on top of that, to keep the feed of talent going.

    He’s also right about building on what we’ve got, and there’s a good interview with Alan Smith that shows everyone’s on the right page.

    As for Ryan Taylor, it’s tricky. He’s put in some decent shifts on the wing and has a good cross and throw on him. Decent, hard-working chap, but – as you say – could we do better for the money, and would he be happy on the bench anyway?

    As for this Icelander (must be a joke about that and ASHley somewhere) he sounds good, but to be honest I think we need another out-and-out winger more than another generic, young midfielder like Vukic. I suspect that if CH gets a good deal on players like him then they will arrive.

    We saw in January how these guys think, and it worked. I expect the same strategy applied, but with bigger numbers. Quite right, too.

  19. :)
    15TH
    Alreet Toonsy?

    Agree with Ross we need more than what Houghton is saying…maybe he has already had his transfer list laughed at By Llambias and Ashley…..”Ho Ho ho even funnier transfers than Keegans Last effort !”

  21. Good words from Smith here: http://www.newsnow.co.uk/A/418137126?-11058

    If he, CH, Owl Heed and Ashley are of the same mind, we’ll do well in the window and next season. Sounds to me like we could see a couple of new 1st-teamers and several young backups for competition.

    If we do that, I think we’ll be safeish from relegation, with the tantalising chance of pulling another blinder and finishing in a decent spot in the top half. A bit like this year: aimed for automatic promotion, and went past that target by TWENTY-THREE POINTS.

    Encore!

  22. Imo we need 1 x LB, 1 RB, 1 x Creative Mid, 1 x who can play both winds if poss & 1 Striker, so that 5 minimum to give us enough backup due to injuries as there are really dirty players in the PL these days & if you remember out last PL season, we had 11 out injured at one time, so we defo need 5 or 6 in or 3 in & 3 promoted from the reserves!!

    Did you see that the Muckem won the dirtiest team of the PL this season, they had 88 yellows & 1 red card :0

  23. I just think people should step away from the pitch forks and wait and see. The window doesn’t open for another 21 days yet let’s chill out a little.

    Nobody expected owt in January and we got four players in, unannounced. Why not expect more of the same this time around?

  24. Chris will Know deep down Whumpie that major investment is needed in the 1st team to retain our premiership status.

    2 additions to the squad will certainly not be enough in my opinion…top priority is a Striker with a good track record at premiership level…ship out Shola and Best or send em out on loan to a championship side if nobody wants them.

    Best will defiantly struggle in the premiership-Shola has always struggled in the premiership.

  25. you all saying cover at r/b,what about L/b,we only really have J.E.so theres two players straight away,we def need some extra guile in m/f,and for me a striker,ok we have carroll still not proved in pl,shola has been there and its to far for him imo,blake of wolves got 25 goals last year in ccc this year in pl he scored 1,take heed ch

  27. Toonsy – spot on, man. Season not over 48 hours and already we’re getting all excited. Still -beats doing work, eh?

    SJT – I think you’re too pessimistic. If we had ‘only’ got promoted, I’d be of the same opinion. But we didn’t. We absolutely steamrollered the CCC and broke just about every record in the process. I think our current squad is a match for most of the bottom half of the prem on its day.

    …but in the prem, that squad won’t be “on its day” that often, hence the need to strengthen. But if you’re hoping to sign half a dozen current prem players, you may want to look away for the next four months or so, ‘cos we’ve all been told very clearly and consistently that it will not happen.

    Have a bit of faith, fella. Surely the club’s performance this season has earned that?

  28. TOONSY,hope your right m8,dont think any body has there knifes out YET,just a bit concerned with statements by CH seem strange.
    good there not a quote on “war chest”as some clubs seem to be saying

  29. Not being pessimistic Whumpie-we have had a great season…I would rather be safe than sorry and get in a handful of players that will compliment the 1st team.

    20m summer spend,10m winter warmer spend.

  30. Noo hitman – just watched that vid and can’t find the bit where Hughton says we just need 1 or 2.

    Did he really say that or are you stirring the anti-fatman pot?

  31. R Taylor couldn’t even get a game in the Championship in a position which we don’t have a particularly good player playing.

    Has for how many players we need – We need more than two, even if they were brilliant players – They can get injured.

  34. Haha – thought as much ;)

    I reckon 3 or 4 will be sweet so long as they’re decent. After Routledge and Williamson I trust Hughton to identify the right players.

    We can always get reinforcements in Jan if we’re struggling with injurys.

  35. Hitman – I don’t think it comes down to budget at all. I doubt if there will be a budget.

    We saw in January how they operate: if they find a player who could up our capability or lower a risk for the squad, and if they are young enough, have the right personality and attitude, and can be brought in for a reasonable expense, we’ll have him.

    That’s a lot of ‘ifs’ but they are out there. Let’s not forget that we are back in the Prem, having proven the legendary support, and with a full squad extolling the virtues of playing for such a brilliant club. We have pulling power, and it’s nowt to do with transfer kitties or famous-name managers.

    Just an opinion, like.

  36. Sirjasontoon, will you ever give it a rest about Arsenal. I would love to be in 3rd place playing in Europe every year and playing superb football. 6 years, when did we last win anything !!!!!!!!!!

    Wenger has no money to spend as the stadium has basically bankcrupted them. They’ve had shocking
    injuries off cloggers like Stoke and still try to play football.

    I would kill for a Wenger as manager and all that he ha put in place. I agree with you on a lot of things, but you must see sense on this one.

  37. I realise R Taylor is one of the whipping boys with the mob these days, but in fairness he dug in and played a canny part this season – including a couple of crucial goals. He’s a decent utility/squad player and I can’t see the problem with having a good honest pro – with an eye for goal – like him on board.

    Siggurdsson – EXACTLY what we need. We don’t have an obvious weak position which CH will look to address with a summer replacement – with the exception of partner for Carroll maybe. So we need to learn from our year down under -and bring in top young technical and versatile players to be work their way into the new look CH hughton revolution.

    What about Connor Whickham anyone, SHouldn’t we be looking to get that boy in noo? Buy and loan back to the labrador fiddler I reckon

  38. Agree with you on Taylor getting unfair stick, Boater. On these blogs it’s as if many are not happy unless they’re calling some player or other a waste of space.

    I think the question is whether Taylor is worth the expense, rather than whether he’s been good. I’d quite like to see him stay, but I’ll trust CH’s opinion on that – he sees him play far more than us.

  39. You do realise that the new PL rules out this season is that the 1st team can have no more than 25 players in it & 8 of them have to be home grown, that includes anyone who’s been at the club for 3 year or more……

    So do we have 8 homegrown players in our first 25???

    That’s why Chelski are promoting 6 of their reserves into their 1st team to get within these guidelines & also to bring the average age of the squad down from 30 to 26.. lol

  40. I actually quite like Ryan Taylor. After signing for Kinnear as a swop for Charles Insomnia he’s never really been given a fair crack at the whip under Hughton. I think if he got a run of 5-10 games at RB we would see how good he is, we’ve always seemed to do allright when he’s played. He has so much more to offer than Simpson both in terms of crossing, set pieces and closing down, which Simpson is shocking at.

  42. Cyprus –

    Harper, Krul, Simpson, Raylor, Saylor, Routledge, Barton, Nolan, Guthrie, Smith, Ameobi.

    All home grown off the top of my head :)

  43. Whumpie says:
    May 4, 2010 at 12:56 pm

    If saying someone isn’t good enough is unfair stick then some people need to get in the real world!

    People who happen to think that some of our players aren’t good enough shouldn’t be criticsed for having that opinion.

    I some comments on here and I sometimes think we should be in the top 4 next season – We seem to have a great squad, with great players.

  44. Chronicles full of cr@p – they print any old rumour (and Ed usually copies them)

    Kadar can fill in at LB so I reckon we need a RB, CM and Striker – maybe Vuckic can step up as CM?

    Out – Smith, Taylor R, Best, Xisco
    Loan – Forster, Lua Lua, Donaldson

  45. stevep – It took Ed 17 minutes from the Chronicle printing the story, to him putting up near enough a carbon copy of it 8O

  47. u cant please everyone if its not signing 1-2 players its not giving young lads a game.
    i think ch has got it spot on our aim is mid table next season with bringing some youth lads through in place of injuries ect and the squad we have at the moment is not inexperienced in the prem with smith nolan barton harper ect.
    we can acheive mid table and build for 3 seasons ahead with this tactic without getting into major debt.
    as with taylor hes one player i can honestly say has tried and seems commited in every game he plays good energy and decent eye for goal ect def not the worst fb in the prem and would do more harm away from us than playing for us.
    after last year we hit rock bottom and between everyone ch/ashley/players/fans everything is possitive lets keep it that way not get on players/managers backs it never makes them better only puts them on a downer support em and lift there pride higher.
    cos if you want something a tad more than someone else and commit to that you have a good chance of getting it

  48. if we can get rid of smith we would be saving at least 5-6 mil in wages with butt going! that would be great in getting good players. paying money for players isnt the problem at clubs. it is going over the wage limit at clubs with ashley never going to do that it should be a good balance between what we can do with wages. he already stands to make a big profit if we stay up if he doesnt even buy or pay wages out.take 40 mil in wages and the club will make 100mi easy this year then he is going to make 30 mil profit if he stays as he is at this moment.are wages have been 75 mil in the prem not any more thats why i think he stayed and if he can keep the wages to that level he is going to make money on us and thats what i think he will do.

  49. Asim – I don’t think he will make any money as such, he may take some money back to repay his loan though. I don’t mind that to be honest as it means we get out of debt quicker.

    Just with Nicky Butt leaving and getting rid of Xisco will save £6 million a year.

  50. thats what i think he will do toonsy take 10 mill a year!we can still become top ten club again if he puts the money in on players slowly and i hope ch buys good players not bad onces we need players who are going straight in the side not players who are just squad players. thats when i will juge him over the summer and if he buys well then i will be his biggest fan.

  51. If someone offers 2M for Rtaylor they can have him. But absent that, he can play 4 positions which is good for a squad/depth player. Although he isn’t one to rely on, he would be valuable in an emergency.

    As for the winger, I think cover there is exactly what we need. Our squad looks completely different when Jonas and Routledge are flying down the wings. I for one am comfortable with Guthrie/Nolan/Barton/Vuckic at CM for next season. Plus, am I wrong, but I don’t think we have a good developing winger in the reserves.

  52. The way I see it is that a lot of what happens on the football field is to do with confidence. You could see it all through the team last season. We were on a roll from start to finish and a couple of blips weren’t going to stop this team.
    We just have to hope that after a series of defeats that the team will have enough in it to pull it’s self off the ground and get on with the next game. You only have to look at the likes of Stoke, Hull (in their 1st season) and Burnley early on last year to see what confidence can bring to a team. It’s the knocks that we have to learn to deal with. We are a team that’s used to winning. Will we be able to cope with two or three defeats in a row? How will we bounce back? To me that is the mark of a good team, how well you cope with defeat and come back stronger. ManU are masters of this. Just when you are writing them off, they go on a winning streak.
    Team spirit does count for a helluva lot and just dismissing it is plain daft. Remember what Wimbledon did all those years ago? Everton in the late 80’s, Fulham for a more recent example. None of them have or had the best players in the league, but they all are good examples of getting a good team spirit. Man U is the best example, especially around the Beckham/Cantona years.

  53. MDS – some would say LuaLua was our up and coming winger but having seen him play for Brighton a couple of times he’s very much a headless chicken and still has a lot to learn (and thats in league one!)

  54. christ, the last of the champaigns just been finished and we must have put the bottle down on top of the panic button.
    anything, other than a new player pictured with a jersey on the official site is going to be speculation at this point, and no reason to get all up in arms. we need to trust that CH and company know where we need to step up and have targets to improve the squad in mind. it’s their job.
    relax a bit and have some faith!

  55. 45 toonsy says:

    ”stevep – It took Ed 17 minutes from the Chronicle printing the story, to him putting up near enough a carbon copy of it”

    Then it takes someone 1.7 minutes to write…..

    !!! 1st !!!

    lol

  57. ‘Although he isn’t one to rely on, he would be valuable in an emergency.’

    He’s had 4 goals this season from the 6mins here and there hughton has afforded him. I can’t understand why people want rid of him. Hughton is a manager that likes to stick with one idea and has ‘favourites’. This has been the case with players like Nolan and Simpson. If Hughton continues to wear his rose-tinted glasses with Best and Simpson next season we are in for a poor start.

  58. “If Hughton continues to wear his rose-tinted glasses with Best and Simpson next season we are in for a poor start.”

    I agree that those are probably our weakest players, but they won’t be starting next season. I’m sure of that.

    They are the positions we needed to bolster during the season. But unfortunately they were all we could attract in January. Hopefully its a different story this time round.

    I don’t think Taylor is fantastic but definately better than Simpson. But will he stay as a back up player? I think he’ll go wanting first team football.

  59. Attracted by the theme of Sigurdsson, I read this blog. I am a Reading Season Ticket holder.
    he’s not a winger – he is an excellent young man who can play wide or centre. He is a young Steven Gerard who is probably best positioned behind the main striker – he will be a premiership star if he continues to develop the way he has – if he stays at Reading, he will command some massive bids in January.
    Reading don’t need to sell and won’t therefore let him go cheap – I would guess £4M would get him
    He has only ever lived in Reading (aside from Iceland) – would he want to go to Newcastle after his first proper season in adult football?? Certainly can’t see him going to the likes of Bolton – Liverpool could be surprise bidders?

  60. Jack – I hope he owuld come to us. I said in the article I was impressed with him. We probably wouldn’t go to £4 million to be honest, but we may try to do a cash + player deal if we wanted him. Of course, whether Reading accept is a different matter.

  61. Hey where`s BBM, aint heard from him in a while.
    Toonsy (Igor)what did you and Workey(The Big Kahoona) do to BBM, the voice of reason ?

  62. BBM is still around. Check the thread before this one. I know he is watching ;)

  63. Simpson is no better than Ryan Taylor at right back, and Taylor is definitely better at going forward and passing, not to mention the joint best free kick taker at the club.

    We seem to give Simpson favour, but I think it’s a bit to do with the fact he came from Man Utd. I think he has got a promising future ahead of him, but he seems to have a lot to learn in terms of general positional play, and gets knocked off the ball quite easily.

    I’m surprised no-one has mentioned the fact we lack real cover at left back. I’d like to see Patrick V A back on loan from Chelsea. I think this is a priority as we rely so much on attacks up the left wing.

    I honestly don’t think Andy Carroll is significantly better than Shola either, so shouldn’t be given the number 9 shirt on a plate. In terms of getting another goalscorer on the cheap I like Maynard from Bristol City.